Good News All Around

Happy Friday Friends - below is a big list of things I'm happy about right now:

- Bid had her baby today - Daniel, 9lbs via c-section. Can't wait to meet the little guy tomorrow.
- Stella doesn't have diabetes, perhaps just a little infection which she'll take antibiotics for and hopefully clear up ASAP.
- 2/3 days of GFS training under my belt and while tomorrow was originally advertised as an 8-hour day, we're hoping to get out by lunch. This would be the best news ever as I'm completely stressed out by another lost Saturday, especially to work.
- hubby is putting together shelving unit I ordered right now before he leaves for Vegas in the morning.
- made it to my favorite muscle pump class this morning even though it nearly killed me (so tired today) and instructor (also preggers) invited me to her water aerobics class on Sunday at a different gym. Definitely going to try to go, think water would feel really good right now. Means skipping pilates but think I'm going to go for it.

Half day tomorrow would change everything. Trying not to get too excited about it but just thinking of all the things I could get done is giving me reason to get out of bed tomorrow. For the rest of you, I hope you are drinking a lot of wine tonight. Sounds fantastic.

6+ weeks and counting

Suddenly it seems like time is rushing at us - this Thursday will mark 34 weeks, just six more to the estimated finish line. To be clear, I'm absolutely counting on going late. It serves my maternity leave better to be off further into the summer. And of course statistically speaking the first baby is usually late.

All that said, after 37 weeks anything is possible. Contractions start - practice for the big day. And the baby is officially 'cooked' so no worries there . So while best laid plans indicate I still have a ways to go, suddenly we're left preparing 'just in case.'

And that is when I realized, we're completely unprepared. Sure we have a car seat to get the little guy home from the hospital but what then? No bottles, bassinette, wipes, diapers, Desitin, nothing. And with all we learned about labor during our Great Expectations class yesterday, I'm longingly looking back at 26 weeks and wondering how we got here so fast and if it's possible to turn this pineapple back into a lentil!

It's time to get focused. Medical paperwork finalized this week. Trip to Babies R Us for necessary boring items that will not be purchased as gifts for final shower. Must organize downstairs and start doing some laundry. Oh, a perhaps we should revisit a few potential names?

Hopefully I'll be looking back on this post on March 16, laughing (or crying) over my eagerness. If not, at least I'll be a bit better prepared.

Breastfeeding is Easy!

I'll revisit the disclaimer I sent out earlier in the pregnancy - something about this whole experience makes ones internal appropriateness filter shift to a place where it seems totally natural to ask a stranger if she breastfed, how it went for her, and if it hurt. And details, no matter how personal, seem OK to share.

If this level of information offends you or makes you feel uncomfortable, perhaps you should skip this post and come back next time?

I went to my first Northwestern class a couple weeks ago - Breastfeeding. The hospital offers hundreds of different classes for the expecting parents. Three were recommended to me by several reliable sources so those are the ones I'm doing: Breastfeeding, Great Expectations and Infant Safety/CPR.

One of the gals in my pilates class indicated she made her husband go to bf but that he was the minority. Hubby asked for a pass and I didn't really care so I said fine. He is going to the others, and doesn't have any breasts so what good was he really going to do there?

(As it happened, of the 40 people in the room, I was one of only two with no husband which left me feeling slightly single-motherish but whatever.)

And guess what? Breastfeeding is EASY! Yes, say it with me folks - Breastfeeding is EASY! Forget what your best friends say about raw skin, milk not coming in, painful swelling, walking around naked to air out her boobs. She is lying to you. It is an easy and natural process.

In fact, they showed a video of a woman in 1979, from England, who had no trouble with the process what so ever! Her baby took right to the breast. On the second day after she was born. With a lactation consultant manhandling her breasts and child throughout the process. And with only 3-4 de/relatchings before they really got things flowing.

Breastfeeding is EASY!

Did I mention the importance of detaching the latch? Ouch, won't even go there but hoping I never forget this lesson in the heat of the moment.

Of course, I'm being a bit sarcastic here. From what I've heard from others , I think our instructor was actually pretty cool and relaxed. She acknowledged the whole thing takes a little getting used to - which accurately reflects what I've heard from friends' experiences though in much less graphic language. And she did provide pretty detailed instructions as to how to go about the whole thing.

I have been practicing my football hold and also the C-and U-expression press. I've been keeping a watchful eye on cabbage sales at the grocery store so I can cover myself in leaves when I'm tender and sore :)

In all seriousness, I plan to do everything in my power to breastfeed. Most obviously it is best for babes. But selfishly it is free and helps you get back into shape. What is not to love? Well I've heard it is pretty tough in the beginning. But I've been gathering as much information as possible so I'm prepared for the worst and hopefully delighted by how easy it turns out to be.

Much like pregnancy itself where you hear of all the horrible aches and pains, sickness and fatigue. I've managed to avoid most of that stuff, or at least not allow the discomforts to overshadow the enormity of it all. Whats a little heartburn compared to the feelings of the baby rolling around in there?

Hopefully the same willl go for bf, but just in case, I'm stocking up on cabbage.

Happy to report produce (and hubby and me) made it safely home from Naples - six heirloom toms and four avocados the size of grapefruits. In fact I'm eating a tom/avocado sandwich right now as I type. YUM! There is nothing like fresh produce.

The whirlwind continues, I think for the next two weeks. I'm trying to take advantage of today as much as possible to regain stable ground. We arrived back from Naples Monday, I left for Miami on Wed, got home late last night. Final client visit before I pop. So nice to see all the peeps, it was a great trip.

And I have to tell you, it is pretty refreshing to see how wonderful people still are to the token pregnant lady. I ordinarily nod off chivalry as quickly as the next independant woman but the truth is as I get bigger, I need the help. Luggage into overheads. Seats on the tram. Doors held open for me. I'm here to tell you, nice people are still all over the place, eager to lend a hand.

Speaking of refreshing, have you noticed a spring in everyone's collective step? A lightness in the air? An overall positive feeling about us? Thanks to Obama's speech on Tuesday, I think the world is ready to put a little of that negative energy behind us and start looking forward with a new attitude. I certainly am. And it feels good to ditch the emotional baggage.

I'm all over the board today, are you still following me?

Pouring my last, big, delicious glass of fresh FL orange juice before packing up. The last of our sunny vacations is coming to a close and we're getting ready to head back to Chitown. Good news is it has warmed up to a balmy 14 degrees, 25 degrees warmer than when we left on Friday!

We've had the best time in Naples, though the trip seemed really short for some reason.

Yesterday was, as mom would say - a golden gram day. I found my first, ever full giant sanddollar on the beach while power walking. Later, at the pool, a manatee came swimming by in the harbor right by the in-laws condo. Closest I've ever seen one. He came back by several times throughout the afternoon. I also saw an osprey swoop down to catch a fish AND two dolphins visited the cove. Another rare occurance and the best animal extravaganza ever recorded for Naples!

We went to mass, something we've totally neglected at home. It is always so nice to get back and then I wonder why we don't make it a priority more often. Followed by brunch at one of my favorite spots and a long lazy day at the pool.

We had a fun dinner with all the gals (MIL, aunt MA, and the nuns) while the boys stayed home and watched football.

Off to pack a dozen tomatoes, four of the largest avocados you've ever seen and perhaps a few oranges into my luggage without revealing to hubby, who has to hoist it all into the overhead :)

Hope you've got the day off and are enjoying.

Here is a really cute pic of hubby on vacation relaxing in the sun. Enjoy!

I'm taking a little pole on gliders - do you have one? Do you love it?

I'm shopping for one for the nursery (a glider is the baby version of a rocker - it moves in a variety of directions very smoothly, hence the glider name), and looking for input. I've talked to several girls at the office, and of course my girlfriends who have recently had babies. Everyone seems aligned on the need for one, as well local options to find one (Lazare, Beautiful Beginnings, Galt). But I'm gathering any additional input you may have before pulling the trigger.

Seems like I'm going to be spending the better part of the next year in this chair so it should be comfortable and asthetically pleasing. And microfiber. Can't hear enough great things about microfiber. I think I've found one but appreciate any thoughts you care to send my way.

Busy week ahead, not sure how much I'll be updating but I'll do my best!

Happy New Year!!

Hope everyone had a great time celebrating last night and returned home safe and sound.

I have to tell you, sober NYE is pretty brutal. We aren't big NYE people in general and obviously my current state only further limits the potential for a rockin' beginning to 2009. The last few years we've had some folks over to the house and then headed over to a local pub. It is two blocks away so easy to walk, no worries about getting a cab home. But being sober on one of the biggest drinking nights of the year is tough. Hard to hold a friendly conversation b/c no one wants to make real conversation three sheets to the wind, hard to engage in the funny drunk conversations when you're not.

I made it later than I thought I would - 1:30 (whoa hoo) and rang in the NY with copious amounts of soda water :)

BUT, what I did learn today is that stores are open on New Years Day. Did you have any idea? In all my years I've never made it off the couch on Jan 1. I thought everything was closed and never ventured out far enough to prove otherwise.

This morning I thought I'd just check and see. I still had a few returns to do and merchandise credits gathering dust in my wallet. And what do you know? They were open! And not surprisingly, I was one of only about a dozen other people in Chicago who had any desire to leave the house, so I breezed downtown, easily found parking, made my way through the stores without any trouble, and got tons done!

I bought a few baby necessities -- newborn onsies and socks. Boy, they are really small. It is hard to imagine there is going to be someone so small living in the house soon.

And I was home in time to enjoy some solid couch time too, a perfect start to the New Year!