Baby's first pictures

OK, these aren't actually the baby's first pictures, but the first one really just looked like a black dot, so I'm calling these the baby's first (and definitely not last) pictures. I think I'm becoming a sucker for this baby stuff, because I honestly can't think of anything to say how I feel about these, so I'm just going to show them.



Arm/hand view



Side view: Leg and foot



Baby feet



Back/spine shot (look at the bones in white)



AND FINALLY...


Full baby profile

Shopping Spree

Going along with Christopher's rearranging for baby I have been trying to get organized myself. So I have been trying to clean out my closets and start to get rid of stuff that I no longer need. I decided that what I no longer needed I was going to donate to Good Will since a new store was getting ready to open up in the area. Another reason I decided to donate to Good Will is that they recently hired a lot of clients from my work which was really awesome. I came home one day after hearing about a donation drive on the radio and told Chris to get some things together so we can go drop them off Saturday at the donation drive. So, we got 6 bags and 2 boxes of stuff together and off we went to Food Lion to donate.

Once we arrived Good Will workers helped us unload and offered us food and to sign up for prizes that they were giving away on opening day. I thought what the heck I am pregnant so the food and soda was a relief and it gave me an extra minute to sign up for the shopping spree that they were giving away. As time went on I got more stuff together to drop off at the next donation drive forgetting all about signing up to win a shopping spree I was just trying to get prepared for baby.

Well to make a long story short I received a phone call last Wednesday while I was at work from Jennifer at Good Will telling me that I was the winner of the shopping spree at the grand opening of the Surfside store. She then gave me the details I won a 1 minute shopping spree where I could grab all that I could. The spree is scheduled for 1-18-08 at 12pm.

I was so excited I have never won anything really before. I asked Jennifer if they had baby stuff because what better time than now to grab up some free baby gear. She said that they had alot and that I should go in and check out the store. Well the night before the shopping spree I drug Chris, my mom , and my dad down to Good Will so I could map out my plan of attack. I gathered up all the stuff that I liked and placed them on three different racks and placed a Woody costume, a Sponge Bob toy, and some rollerskates by the stuff that I had gathered so I did not misplace it.

Well it is finally Friday the big day the grand opening was being broadcast on the radio so I was getting nervous that the stuff I had picked out would all be gone so I decided to get down there a little early to scope things out. As I was pulling in I realized the place was a mad house I just knew that everything was gone and all my hard work the night before was for nothing. So, I went and checked in with Jennifer to let her know that I was there and she told me I had to wait for the radio stations to change over so she told me to go back and check on the baby area. I was happy to note that most of the stuff that I had picked out was still back there so I decided that I was going to stand guard to make sure no one tries to get any of my stuff.

Finally Jennifer tells me that it is time to announce me. She got me a shopping cart and tied balloons to it so no one could miss me. Then Ron, from Mix 97.7 announced that I was the shopping spree winner and that I was expecting my first baby and said to look out in the baby section because I was coming through. Jennifer was my cheerleader because Chris had to work so I was on my own.

I know what you think a minute is not a long time to shop but since I was organized I was able to grab 110 baby items all clothes ranging in size 0-3 months to 18 months and in both genders since we don't know what we are having. I also got the one item for Chris that he wanted a brown belt so all in all I got 111 items in one minute of shopping not bad.

After I was finished we bagged up all the stuff and it filled up 5 shopping bags it was awesome to be the center of attention even if it was just for a hot minute. I finished up the shopping spree with a quick interview on the radio so I felt really special. I would love to thank Good Will for the opportunity for me to collect some really nice clothes for my baby for free and I will definitely go back and shop there for more clothes for the baby Mowder as time goes on.

Heidi

Rearranging for baby

I know it's still early, but I know how busy things are gonna be throughout the next few months, so the other day I decided to take the first steps toward getting a room ready for Baby Lillian...or was that Miles. Whatever.

Point is, on my day off I was able to take down Heidi's old wooden daybed that currently rests in our CPU room and rearranged things in that room so that the full bed we keep in our guest room could slide over into that room. The room was a mess to begin with, so it took some considerable effort, but we were able to consolidate our guest and computer rooms to have one nice-looking guest/CPU room and one empty room full of junk and a few random baby items.

My guess is that it will take another few months before I get brave enough to reorganize that second room and really get it looking ready for baby, but still just doing what I did was (at least in my mind) a big step that really started making the whole thing feel more real than it has up until this point. It's hard to believe we are about to be half way through this pregnancy within the next week.

It's gonna be time before you know it. Pretty crazy stuff.

Chris

What the heck is a doula?

Hey there everybody it has been a little bit since I posted anything sorry about that. I have been busy with work, reading my pregnancy books, going to the doctor and just everyday life.

There is one thing that I would like to talk about is the difference between a midwife and a doula? Someone told me that I needed to have a doula and I was like "what is that I have never heard of that." Well the other day I was on Babyfit.com and one of their articles was about that exact topic so I thought I would share it with you all. So, if you are like me and have no clue this article is pretty helpful so enjoy.

What Are Midwives and Doulas?
Explore Your Options
-- By Antigone Arthur, Health & Pregnancy Writer --

Whether you’re a first-time mom or mom of many, having a baby brings with it many different emotions, perhaps the most common of which is worry. Mom’s worry. If you are expecting, you’re probably pondering the type of delivery you would like to have. Many women are opting for more natural births that can be performed in the home with as little medical intervention as possible.

This trend is becoming increasingly more common for second-time moms, having tried a traditional birth once, are more open to trying something more natural the second time around.

If you are considering a natural birth, you will undoubtedly want to know more about midwifery and doula practices. As a midwife or doula will tell you, there are many differences between a traditional or medically-managed birth versus a natural childbirth either at home or in the hospital.

Click here to find out the actual definitions and read the rest of article.

Heidi

It's begun!

That's right folks, the pregnancy cravings have arrived. Up through this point Heidi has been pretty good about not changing her eating habits (possibly because ours weren't too great to begin with). She hasn't had any really strange cravings, and has kept her urges to a renewed interest in macaroni and cheese.

However, as of this weekend I have seen a distinct change in her desires, starting with breakfast yesterday. As soon as we woke up I headed out to grab a drink and asked if she needed anything. Here's how the ensuing conversation went:

"An icing cookie with pudding," she says.
"What?" I reply.
"An icing cookie with pudding."
"For breakfast?"
"Yep."
"So you want a cookie and a pudding cup then?"
"No, just put the pudding on the cookie"
"Alright, then...pudding cookie it is."

And again today, we had a similar, yet much more complex conversation when I asked what she'd like for lunch. I won't bore you with the entire transcript but here's a recap of things she asked for:

• Cheese pizza from Domino's
• Cream of Mushroom soup mixed with white rice
• Amish Potato salad
• Beans and rice
• Cornbread
  

We settled on a DiGiorno pizza from the freezer, but I honestly believe that she truly wanted to have all of those things on one plate and just slam it on in. Don't get me wrong, at least some of it sounded good to me as well, but I just think the whole cravings thing is hilarious. It's crazy as hell, but it's gonna be fun to see how strange they get...next week it may be waffles with soy sauce or peanut butter and mushrooms.

Chris

Our New Toy

It's crazy. We don't even have a baby yet and already we are getting toys. Ok, maybe not toys per se, but I think a new digital camcorder qualifies as something fun to play with.

We spent part of our holiday visiting my mom in Lexington and to our surprise came home with a very nice gift, in the form of a Panasonic SDR-H18. I haven't spent any time actually learning how to use it, but I did get a chance to take some video of all of us spending New Year's together.



I was planning on looking into something like this eventually, but getting it this far ahead of baby-day should give me plenty of time to practice...Not to mention time to use it for some cool non-baby projects too.

I'm looking forward to sharing more as I figure out how to actually manage/edit what I'm shooting and actually get it uploaded online.

Chris

Doctor Appointment

Well I went to the doctor today for my normal 4 week check up. Overall it was a good visit Chris sat this one out and my mom came with me. I have been worried that I have not been eating enough for the baby but my doctor said that I am doing good and my weight is doing good. She said that I am at a good weight right now which made me feel much better.

We also got to hear the baby's heartbeat again for me and for the first time for my mom. It was really exciting seeing my mom's reaction when she heard her grand baby's heartbeat for the first time. It was a good heartbeat it was a bit slower this time around it was only 132 beats per minute instead of 181.

I also asked my doctor about Diet Pepsi to see if it is ok to drink and to my happy surprise she said that it is ok as long as it is in moderation which works for me.

All in all everything is going good with the baby and with the mommy and I think with the daddy but who knows about him. More to come as the days fly by.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!!!!!

Ten-year renunion

I was thinking a bit about my ten-year high school reunion last night while I was running. I really don't know when it is, and have never really been all that excited about going back to it. But the more I thought about it, there is probably quite a few people that I went to school with that I would be interested to see nowadays. There is no doubt I still wouldn't want to face it alone...I doubt I will go unless I can convince a few other close friends to attend as well...but it still would be interesting to say the least.

The reason I bring it up is because as I was contemplating how many people I would actually want to see (names like Keith Marsolo, Tim Wolfe and Shannon Flaherty came to mind, amongst others) I thought about what they might be up to these days, and I began to wonder how many of them are probably going through the same thing as Heidi and I right now. Maybe not right this second, but really I just got to wondering how many people were having kids and have already had kids.

I know it's not like we're young anymore, so there's probably plenty out there, but it was just kinda fun to sit back and think about people who you could have never imagined even getting through high school, actually growing up and getting a job and a family. I think it might have all been brought on by a recent message from an old friend of mine who was one of the craziest people I ever knew and now has a couple of kids and seems to be really embracing fatherhood.

Seriously, it's kinda encouraging to think that if Curt Grether can be a good dad, then why the hell can't I?

Chris

I think I want a Japanese baby

Lately, everyone is always asking me whether I want a boy or a girl. It's a hard question, but I think I've finally found an answer. From now on when someone asks me, I'm just going to reply "I don't care, as long as it's Japanese."

I will go into detail on why I'd much prefer one of the cute little dark-haired Japanese babies, then the surely odd looking child Heidi and I will produce. If necessary I will break out the wallet-sized examples I have provided below as proof of why these children are much cuter and more fun than normal babies (just look at the one with rice all over him, he's having a BLAST!)







My hope is that by this point the asker of the question will either run away, thinking I am insane, or be so intrigued by my answer that we continue down a long path of conversation that includes further questions such as:

• "It is possible for two white Americans to have a Japanese baby?"
  
• "Do you plan to go to Japan and kidnap/save one, Madonna-style?"
• "What is the financial cost analysis of raising a Japanese baby vs. and American baby?"
• "What are the long-term rammifications of having a Japanese baby? (i.e. Do you still prefer Japanese teenagers over white teenagers?)"

Either way, I win. Awkward question avoided. Problem solved.

Basically what I'm trying to say is that I have no idea which sex is better, and it kinda annoys me that people think that I would prefer one over the other...either way it is going to be my first (and probably, only) child and I will love it. I refuse to be one of those people who goes out and has like 6 extra kids because they weren't happy with the first five being girls...

And seriously, you have to admit those Japanese babies are cute, right?

Chris

Maternity shopping

My God, I had no idea maternity shopping was going to be so hard. I usually have a pretty good time trying to find things I think Heidi will look good in. I will generally go out and buy things that are much more stylish than what she would pick out for herself (what can I say, I'm an artist...I have good taste), but when it comes to maternity stuff it's a whole different game.

I could go into much more detail about why the guessing game that is shopping for maternity wear is so confusing, but I'm sure I would end up giving away too much. Yes, I know I've already giving away the secret that I've been buying maternity clothes, but really this was all she asked for for Christmas. I'm pretty sure the secret was already out.

Still, just in case you are interested, here's a site I came across in my maternity wear research. And no, Heidi, it's not one of the sites I bought from.

...or is it?

BeHereSoon.com