For those of you patiently waiting for me to post my saved blogs, check earlier in the order of them... For some reason it posted them in chronological order. Probably to confuse us all.
I had my "18 week" ultrasound yesterday, which I'm guessing was actually a 19-20 week ultrasound, but I forgot to ask what the new dates were. Everything went well with it and the baby was extremely cooperative until the tech tried to get a picture of all four chambers of the heart, at which point it decided to lie on its side and hide. So seeing the detail on the ultrasound was really cool, but the pictures that I got aren't as good. I'll be posting them once I get them uploaded.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Surprise! (And Oh No)
Ok, since today was the day that the Grammie, Grampa, and Mom found out, I can now spill the beans blog-wise. For those readers who are not members of my immediate family (all 1.5 of you), I was going to send out cute little e-cards, but since my computer is totally done I can't email anything. The news is that we are expecting baby #3 sometime September-ish. Note that I didn't say "good news" because it was totally unplanned and unexpected. And more of a shocked, frightened accident than a happy accident, but all my saved blogs will explain all that. I've been typing drafts of blogs to record my thoughts throughout the first half of the pregnancy and saving them so I could post them once everyone knew. I thought about torturing you all by posting one a week, but I don't know how long I'll have full blogging capabilities considering my computer, so I'll just post them all. Enjoy!
Friday, April 20, 2007
Potty Progress
Josey has shown much improvement in the last little while about staying dry. Most days he succeeds, although he still needs jellybean incentives. We're trying not to make a big deal about accidents when they do happen, and he hasn't been full-on peeing in his pants for at least a week or so unless he doesn't go before his nap.
Roanen will now sit on the toilet (with a small seat on top) or on the potty without pants or a diaper on. This morning he stared intently at his penis for a while and I could see his tummy pushing, which to me is a really good sign that he knows what he's supposed to be doing up there. He also makes really cute pushing noises that Josey showed him. Hopefully one of these times he'll actually pee and we can make a huge deal about it so he wants to do it again. I'm cautiously excited about this and am renewing my hope that he can be trained by the time he's 18 months...
Roanen will now sit on the toilet (with a small seat on top) or on the potty without pants or a diaper on. This morning he stared intently at his penis for a while and I could see his tummy pushing, which to me is a really good sign that he knows what he's supposed to be doing up there. He also makes really cute pushing noises that Josey showed him. Hopefully one of these times he'll actually pee and we can make a huge deal about it so he wants to do it again. I'm cautiously excited about this and am renewing my hope that he can be trained by the time he's 18 months...
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Prenatal Appointment Update - Originally Typed April 17, 2007
I had another regular prenatal appointment yesterday. Pretty uneventful. I have my 18 week ultrasound booked for next Tuesday and apparently they'll be able to figure out for sure how far along I am. Other than the doctor they're all being pretty stubborn and sticking to the dating of my original ultrasound (which was at least a week off according to me) so this will show them :) The nurse measured me at 19.5 cm, which would normally indicate that I'm 19 1/2 weeks but I think she's on crack, especially since it took her 5 minutes to just find the heartbeat.
The only other relevant part of the appointment was that Josey had a violent meltdown in the waiting room while I was trying to dress him to leave and I had my usual "There is no way I'm going to be able to deal with another baby, and I'm not going out in public anywhere after September" moment while holding back tears. This enforces my decision to get all my Christmas shopping done this summer. Part of me thinks that it won't be that bad, but the realistic part of me (the one who experienced Josey taking off for fun and nearly getting lost in No Frills last week) knows it will be. I'm certainly not hoping that the pregnancy goes fast anyway.
The only other relevant part of the appointment was that Josey had a violent meltdown in the waiting room while I was trying to dress him to leave and I had my usual "There is no way I'm going to be able to deal with another baby, and I'm not going out in public anywhere after September" moment while holding back tears. This enforces my decision to get all my Christmas shopping done this summer. Part of me thinks that it won't be that bad, but the realistic part of me (the one who experienced Josey taking off for fun and nearly getting lost in No Frills last week) knows it will be. I'm certainly not hoping that the pregnancy goes fast anyway.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Oh Where, Oh Where Has My Little Waist Gone? - Originally Typed April 16th, 2007
I'm extremely surprised that I've met my goal of keeping the pregnancy a secret until I was at least 18 weeks along. This is mostly due to the fact that it's so cold out and I can wear sweaters and lumpy clothes and I'm carrying differently than last time. Instead of a big nasty lump all out front, I've got blobs everywhere and my waist is quickly disappearing. I'm glad it seems to be looking a little more normal this time around because I thought it was a little freaky and ugly previously. I've got a monthly appointment tomorrow at which point my 18 week ultrasound will be booked. I figure that once that's done I'll make the big announcement because I'm really sick of hiding my belly and sucking it in whenever people are around. The really paranoid part of me thinks my mom has already figured it out and is just sitting around waiting for the announcement, which would disappoint me since I want it to be a surprise.
I've been feeling movement for a few weeks now too, but not too much, which I'm hoping is a sign that this is going to be a quiet, boring baby.
Oh, and for those of you who are wondering, Josey's recent obsession with babies, pregnancy, and drawing fetuses isn't actually due to the fact that I'm pregnant, since he doesn't actually know about it. Maybe he has a sixth sense about it.
I've been feeling movement for a few weeks now too, but not too much, which I'm hoping is a sign that this is going to be a quiet, boring baby.
Oh, and for those of you who are wondering, Josey's recent obsession with babies, pregnancy, and drawing fetuses isn't actually due to the fact that I'm pregnant, since he doesn't actually know about it. Maybe he has a sixth sense about it.
Amusing Child
Although Josey has been more badly behaved the last couple of weeks than any other time in his life, he's still being as entertaining as ever. Last week he was drawing a picture of himself with me, and drew his usual circle for a face with eyes (pupils included), nose, mouth, eyelashes, and spiky hair. He then drew lines down the middle of the face and informed me that they were "tears streaming down my face". Where does he get words like "streaming" and use them properly? He then drew two long legs with feet coming straight down from the head, then a BIG belly button with a little baby in it. This is "Baby Bobby" whom he has been talking about forever for some reason. When we have another baby it won't matter what we name it because I'm sure Josey will insist on calling it Bobby. This happened to a friend of mine who named her son Wesley, but now everyone in the family calls him "George" because that's what his sister insisted on calling him. Anyway, Josey also had a baby in his belly button, as well as tears streaming down his face. A later picture of Daddy had a baby too. He seems to be very into babies, and will suck a jellybean until it's really small then say (in a really high baby voice) "Ooooh. Wookit de wittle baby just wike Tiewnen" (everything little is little like Kiernan).
On the jellybean front, the other day I gave him a couple of jellybeans for staying dry, then went upstairs for something. When I came down, Josey's pants were off, which usually indicates that he has peed himself and is trying to hide it. His pants were dry though, and he was insisting that there was something in them and that he wanted to wear other pants. When I got back with a change of pants, he said the first pair was fine. A little strange, but I didn't really think much of it. At lunch time he had another jellybean and at one point he pulled his pants down and started examining his penis. When I asked him what he was doing he said "Looking for my jellybean". I told him that I didn't think he'd find it there, to which he responded "Well, that's where I found the last one". Lovely! Apparently he was sucking on the jellybeans until they were small and really sticky, then sticking them down his pants. Fortunately I haven't seen him do it since, so maybe it was just a brief obsession.
He has been doing pretty well staying dry the past few days, as long as I check him often and remind him to go. I ordered a potty training book online, partly to figure out what to do with Josey, and partly to get Roanen started. It basically gets you to do months of prep work, then train them within a week once they hit 2 years old. Normally I wouldn't get anything online, but it had a phone number that I called with an actual person who knows the author, and it's also guaranteed. I read the book and it makes a lot of sense. I'm a little disappointed that I probably won't have Roanen trained by the time he's 18 months, but I'll try the techniques anyway and see what happens. We got the potty chair this weekend because he hates the toilet, and he was quite amused with sitting on it. He has been pointing to his tummy once and a while when he pees, and also whenever we talk about peeing or pooping. This morning he came into the bathroom and pointed at the potty, then at his tummy, so I think he's quickly catching on to what he's supposed to do, although he'll only sit on it with his pants on. It's promising anyway.
Roanen is repeating a lot of words now, and can say quite a few really clearly. He has mastered "up", "baby", "kitty", "book", "daddy", and "out" amongst others that I can't remember right now. He's definitely more advanced in his speaking than Josey was at this age, but I think that comes along with being a second child. Maybe he'll be quicker at potty training too ;)
On the jellybean front, the other day I gave him a couple of jellybeans for staying dry, then went upstairs for something. When I came down, Josey's pants were off, which usually indicates that he has peed himself and is trying to hide it. His pants were dry though, and he was insisting that there was something in them and that he wanted to wear other pants. When I got back with a change of pants, he said the first pair was fine. A little strange, but I didn't really think much of it. At lunch time he had another jellybean and at one point he pulled his pants down and started examining his penis. When I asked him what he was doing he said "Looking for my jellybean". I told him that I didn't think he'd find it there, to which he responded "Well, that's where I found the last one". Lovely! Apparently he was sucking on the jellybeans until they were small and really sticky, then sticking them down his pants. Fortunately I haven't seen him do it since, so maybe it was just a brief obsession.
He has been doing pretty well staying dry the past few days, as long as I check him often and remind him to go. I ordered a potty training book online, partly to figure out what to do with Josey, and partly to get Roanen started. It basically gets you to do months of prep work, then train them within a week once they hit 2 years old. Normally I wouldn't get anything online, but it had a phone number that I called with an actual person who knows the author, and it's also guaranteed. I read the book and it makes a lot of sense. I'm a little disappointed that I probably won't have Roanen trained by the time he's 18 months, but I'll try the techniques anyway and see what happens. We got the potty chair this weekend because he hates the toilet, and he was quite amused with sitting on it. He has been pointing to his tummy once and a while when he pees, and also whenever we talk about peeing or pooping. This morning he came into the bathroom and pointed at the potty, then at his tummy, so I think he's quickly catching on to what he's supposed to do, although he'll only sit on it with his pants on. It's promising anyway.
Roanen is repeating a lot of words now, and can say quite a few really clearly. He has mastered "up", "baby", "kitty", "book", "daddy", and "out" amongst others that I can't remember right now. He's definitely more advanced in his speaking than Josey was at this age, but I think that comes along with being a second child. Maybe he'll be quicker at potty training too ;)
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
The End Of My Peeing Child Rope
After receiving dirty looks and head shakes (but, *shockingly*, no helpful advice or alternative solutions) at making Josey sit in his pee with a plastic bag on, I decided to try a gentler, more positive approach. When he stayed completely dry for a certain length of time he got a Jelly Belly, and if he peed in the toilet after staying dry he got 2. This actually worked fairly well from the time I started it on Thursday afternoon to Sunday afternoon, when apparently a jellybean just wasn't worth the hassle of going to the bathroom anymore. The only thing I've gained from this (other than a big bag of yummy jellybeans which I will now devour myself) is the knowledge that he can, in fact, hold his pee properly when he chooses to. Now I have no idea what to do, since any advice in books is all for kids that are being toilet trained for the first time, and not for kids who were previously fully trained and are now indifferent to it.
On a similar note, I want to start training Roanen now because it was such a hassle after Josey turned 2. I have a plan, but unfortunately Roanen doesn't like to sit on the seat and arches his back with a "What the hell are you doing to me?" look on his face every time we go to put him on. Maybe a potty will help. I'm really tired of diapers and wet pants.
On a similar note, I want to start training Roanen now because it was such a hassle after Josey turned 2. I have a plan, but unfortunately Roanen doesn't like to sit on the seat and arches his back with a "What the hell are you doing to me?" look on his face every time we go to put him on. Maybe a potty will help. I'm really tired of diapers and wet pants.
Monday, April 02, 2007
Waiting for Karma to Strike
It occurred to me last night that Russ and I are getting an awful lot of bad news about people we know or are related to. Failed and failing marriages, businesses going under, people dying or getting cancer or other illnesses, kids getting diagnosed with diseases and learning disabilities - you name it. At the same time here we are still pretty happily married with two healthy happy kids, a new house that we love, enough of an income that we're very comfortable and that I can stay at home with the boys, and pretty good health ourselves. I'm in the middle of reading Deepak Chopra's The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success and it's talking a lot about karma and how you have to give to receive, etc. I've always believed in that kind of thing, but kind of thought that I was somewhere in the middle - not putting out enough evilness to get randomly smucked by a car, but not really putting out enough goodness to deserve anything back. Now all of a sudden I realize that I'm getting all this really good stuff in my life and that I've somehow thrown off the karmic balance. My first panicked reaction is "Must send happy thoughts to people! Must help the needy! Must find that War Amps donation card that I tossed out yesterday!" Of course this all totally defeats the purpose of doing all this giving out of love since it's totally out of fear that something horrible is going to happen because I haven't been appreciating what I have. Despite the fact that I was planning on becoming a nicer, more non-judgemental person before, now the motivation is totally wrong and I feel like the universe is going to KNOW that I didn't just help that bratty kid use the scissors out of the goodness of my heart, but out of the terrified-that-something-bad-is-going-to-happen-to-my-kids part of my heart. So now I'm in a spiritual dilemma. Aren't you just supposed to know when you're doing the right thing?
On a lighter note, Josey is back to getting his lower half wrapped in a plastic bag whenever he pees himself because he's decided that a toilet really isn't necessary when you can just pee wherever you are. At first it was a novelty and he really enjoyed his "baker's apron", but after he peed himself a second time (because apparently once the bag is on you might as well just pee yourself because you're already wet and being punished) he hid for a while, then emerged wearing only the top half of his clothes. When I made him put them back on he finally got quite upset and really wanted to be changed. Says it won't happen again. I'll choose to believe him, hopeful as I am.
He's also becoming quite the artist and likes drawing people - a circle for the head with eyes (including pupils), nose, mouth, arms with fingers, legs with feet, hair, and sometimes eyelashes ("pointy things"), ears, or glasses. The other moms at Toybus were quite impressed, as their 4 year olds were still only drawing or painting lines. I guess he'll be a famous artist instead of a doctor. A while back he was extremely interested in bodies and how they worked. He would sit and flip through my really graphic medical book and ask all kinds of questions about it. Now all of a sudden he's violently repulsed by anything bloody and can't stand anyone poking at cuts or splinters (their own or his). This morning he disgustedly told me to take down the bleached buck skull and antlers Russ hung above one of the barn doors and "put that deer's skin and fur back on". Now I really can't wait until he has a loose tooth.
Roanen is actually using his imagination, which is something that I didn't think happened until kids were around 2 or older. He pretends to feed me with his toy spoons, picks pretend food off the tv and eats it with me, and pretends to put cream on his face and body. It's just the genius in him I guess. Being as smart as he is, he should have no trouble with toilet training this summer. Ha.
On a lighter note, Josey is back to getting his lower half wrapped in a plastic bag whenever he pees himself because he's decided that a toilet really isn't necessary when you can just pee wherever you are. At first it was a novelty and he really enjoyed his "baker's apron", but after he peed himself a second time (because apparently once the bag is on you might as well just pee yourself because you're already wet and being punished) he hid for a while, then emerged wearing only the top half of his clothes. When I made him put them back on he finally got quite upset and really wanted to be changed. Says it won't happen again. I'll choose to believe him, hopeful as I am.
He's also becoming quite the artist and likes drawing people - a circle for the head with eyes (including pupils), nose, mouth, arms with fingers, legs with feet, hair, and sometimes eyelashes ("pointy things"), ears, or glasses. The other moms at Toybus were quite impressed, as their 4 year olds were still only drawing or painting lines. I guess he'll be a famous artist instead of a doctor. A while back he was extremely interested in bodies and how they worked. He would sit and flip through my really graphic medical book and ask all kinds of questions about it. Now all of a sudden he's violently repulsed by anything bloody and can't stand anyone poking at cuts or splinters (their own or his). This morning he disgustedly told me to take down the bleached buck skull and antlers Russ hung above one of the barn doors and "put that deer's skin and fur back on". Now I really can't wait until he has a loose tooth.
Roanen is actually using his imagination, which is something that I didn't think happened until kids were around 2 or older. He pretends to feed me with his toy spoons, picks pretend food off the tv and eats it with me, and pretends to put cream on his face and body. It's just the genius in him I guess. Being as smart as he is, he should have no trouble with toilet training this summer. Ha.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
