Doggie Summer Camp

Lola is a good, sweet dog with the best personality ever! To know her is to love her. Really love her. But put a leash on that dog and it's a different story.

Last year Alan came to our house to teach me to teach Lola how to heal. I worked with her for weeks on our court and she became a pro. Then I took her off of our court...in to our neighborhood...And, well...She didn't behave as well as she did on our court.

Progressively, it got worse. If she saw, heard, smelled or even sensed another dog, she went crazy. She whined, she cried, she pulled and when you made her sit in an effort to calm her down her whole body shook. I would try to wait it out. No dice.

A few weeks ago I almost cried REAL TEARS because I was so frustrated. All I wanted to do was walk my dog. Why did it have to be so difficult? Would I be able to walk her and push a stroller? I knew the answer to that was a big fat heck no!

Knowing how upset I was Freddy suggested sending her to Alan for two weeks. He trains dogs for a living. I really didn't want to because I didn't want her to be gone for two weeks. Hello, I am an emotional pregnant woman! After much consideration, I caved. I knew it was in her best interest - and our family's.

So the Saturday before last we dropped Lola off at what I like to call Doggie Summer Camp - in the late winter/early spring. Freddy wanted to call it Doggie Boot Camp, but let's face it. While the end result of any boot camp is probably nearly always positive, no one likes going through a boot camp. Doggie Summer Camp it is.

It has been over a week and I am doing better than I thought I would about not having my dog around. As for Lola, that' another blog. Otherwise, this one would go on forever!

Mark your calendars!

Mark your calendars, people, because Baby Carly Dilyn , Mallory Dilyn or Dilyn Breighanne will be here via c-section on Friday, March 13th at noon.

Yup, we know. Friday the 13th. It's supposed to be unlucky. "Fooey", we say! The 13th is a great date! It just so happens that Freddy and I were married on the 13th, August 13th that is. Our options were Wednesday at 5 pm or Friday at 7 am, noon or 5 pm. Since I wouldn't be able to eat after midnight, I said heck no to all 5 pm appointments. It wouldn't have been pretty. We also opted not to have to be at the hospital at 5am. We know that we won't be getting much sleep the night before, but we at least want the option to sleep in one last time.

As of yesterday, this little girl was kinda transverse (sideways in my tummy). So she moved a little but not to the position that she needs to be in.

Now for some pregnancy funnies:

Note: Freddy is an only child and really hasn't been around babies at all.

This conversation took place a few weeks ago:

F: What time will the baby go to bed?

C: Every three hours.

F: Hmmmm.

This conversation took place at work between myself, pregnant co-worker Lauren and non-pregnant Shelby.

L: I am dilated to 1 1/2.

C: How far does it go? 10?

L: Yes, 10.

S: Holy Crap! That's almost a foot!

L: Centimeters, Shelby. Not inches.

Last night Freddy watched a c-section on youtube. I look away from the tv an average of 10 times per Grey's Anatomy episode, so I wanted no part of it. Later Freddy was trying to explain it to me.

F: They make several incisions, cutting layer by layer.

C: More than one cut?

F: Yeah, they don't just gauge you!

C: Okay. Go on.

F: Then they cut you this way and it all just kinda falls back out of the way - kinda like when you are skinning a deer.

C: I've never skinned a deer.

F; It would be easier to explain this to you if you had.

Update Madness

First...Thank you to everyone who posted kind, encouraging words about the post below. Your support is much appreciated.

Now on to some fun stuff.

Two weekends ago Freddy and I met Sara and her family at the Botanic (not Botanical as I have always thought) Gardens. I brought my new fancy camera and we took turns taking pictures of each other. I was 8 months preggers (36 weeks) in these pictures. Here are my favorites from that day. Thanks, Sara!

Yes, I was wearing kitten heels. I have the same pair on today and I wore heels yesterday, too. If they fit (and some are a little snug), they are more comfortable than flats. Plus, flats give me more of the pregnancy waddle.

Other pregnancy facts you may or may not be curious about:

I burp ALL the time. It's indigestion and Freddy always says that he really hopes that will go away when the baby gets here.

I've only gained 17 pounds (15 if we're going by my scale and not the doctor's).

The specialist told me to eat lots of ice cream (and protein) to help fatten up the baby's abdomen. My choice: Chocolate Milk Shakes from Steak N Shake. Yum!

I quit walking because I don't want to burn any calories that could help the baby's abdomen grow. Plus, I have SO much to do still at night. Every extra minute is valuable.

My hair has little "fly-aways" at the top of my head now. I hate them, but it's nothing that a little product can't handle.

My skin drinks up moisture. They had to reapply the sonogram gel twice (that's three applications total) last week. I go through one 4 oz. container of Mother's Friend (the best stretch mark prevention cream EVER!) every two weeks.

The shirt that I wore on Tuesday was NOT maternity. Okay, now I'm just bragging! Just to offset the bragging - I wore that same shirt before I was pregnant and was asked if I was pregnant. No. But thank you. JERK.

Freddy says that lately I have been snoring at night. I hate snoring and I am so glad that I married someone who doesn't snore (unless he has had a few beers and is REALLY tired). I really hope that I stop after I have this baby. Or that he's lying.

I feel really good and am thankful for having such a healthy pregnancy.

Baby Update

I was going to post a "This week our sweet baby girl..." post, but since those are just approximations from babycenter.com, I thought it would be more interesting if I posted her real numbers. As of last Thursday, the doctors estimate her weight to be 5 pounds, 7 ounces. This was at 36 weeks and several days. So, she's a tall, skinny girl - WITH HAIR! This should make me super-stoked about child birth, but right now we are looking at a c-section. I am totally okay with having a c-section, though. Let me tell you why.

Our baby girl is breech and in the frank position. She is head up, butt "wedged way down there", feet and hands by her face, facing my left side. The doctor says the chances of her turning on her own are slim to none, but she did say that babies surprise her all the time. She referred us to a specialist who spoke to us about performing an External Cephalic Version, which basically comes down to pushing on my stomach until the baby moves. There is about a 50% success rate and there is always a chance that the procedure could put the mother or baby in distress, forcing an emergency c-section.

On top of all that we also had to consider that our little girl has a small abdomen. It was measuring 33 weeks while everything else was measuring 36 weeks. The specialist said there is no reason at all whatsoever to indicate that this means anything more than our baby is tall and skinny, but she would monitor our baby closer than other babies during this procedure should we choose to go through with it. Count me out. I would rather undergo a major surgery than risk the health of my baby.

We go to the doctor this Thursday and if she hasn't flipped (which she hasn't yet), we will schedule the c-section for the week of the 9th. We go back to the specialist next Monday to measure her abdomen again -just to be on the safe side.

Okay. Now...I love mommy advice. I really do BUT...

Freddy and I thought about this, talked about this and prayed about this and we made our decision to have a c-section if she does not flip on her own. It was hard because I kept thinking, "What kind of mother opts out of the greatest miracle ever - childbirth?" The kind of mother that decides it is in the best interest of her family, that's who.

I know that there are ways to move the baby naturally. I've heard to put a frozen bag of peas on her head, to lay at incline, to shine a light "down there", etc. While some mothers swear these methods work, I'm going to have to pass. We have decided to let nature run it's course. What if something happened to the baby? I would always wonder if it was because of something I did.

That being said, if you think that we are making a mistake by opting for the c-section (like the mean lady teaching the class at the hospital), I appreciate your passion and I respect your opinion, but please don't give it to me. And I mean that in the nicest way possible, I really do.

This week our baby is comparable to...

Our baby, almost 6 pounds and still packing on the pounds at a rate of about an ounce a day, is comparable to a crenshaw melon in size. (Length: more than 18 1/2 inches, head to heel.)

Our next (and I think final) sonogram is this Thursday morning. I can't wait to see what position she is in. I've been saying breach (because that's what the doctor told me a few weeks ago), but now I'm feeling all kinds of body parts and different types of movements in different areas. We'll see.

This Saturday is our class at the hospital. Nothing like cutting it close, huh? I was 36 weeks yesterday! The nursery isn't perfect yet, but it's ready. As for work, I'm not even close to being ready to leave. Late nights, here I come.

Red Hots

Are these things laced with an addictive drug?

I CAN'T. STOP. EATING THEM.

If you touch my stomach, I'm touching yours.

Even before I got pregnant I claimed that I would touch the stomach of anyone who had the nerve to touch mine.

Then I got pregnant and knew that I wouldn't be able to stop people from touching my stomach - especially Sara Pham. So I ammended my rule to the following: Strangers were not allowed to touch my stomach. If I don't know your name, or if the only thing that I know about you is your name, you can't touch my stomach.

Then I went to a wedding. Drunk woman introduces herself to me, strikes up a conversation and discovers that my due date was the her son's due date 20 years ago. She proceeds to drunk touch and rub my stomach.

Why did I not rip her hand from my stomach and call her nasty names? Basically, her husband is a good business contact for my husband.

I tried to make my stomach unavailable for touching by turning it away from her, tucking it under the table or just placing my hand on it. Did this stop her? Heck no! Apparently the wine made her really forward because she always found a way to get my baby bump.

UUUUGGGGGHHHHH!

Note to the world: Don't touch the stomach of a pregnant woman that you do not know. And, no. Asking permission first does not make it okay to touch a stranger's stomach.

Thank you to everyone who has asked to touch my stomach before going in for the kill. I appreciate the courtesy. And that's the honest truth - no sarcasm.

This week our sweet baby girl...

Our baby, now as hefty as a honeydew melon at 5 1/4 pounds, doesn't have much room to maneuver in my belly. (Length: more than 18 inches, head to heel.)

Next week I get to have another sonogram. I haven't had one since 18 weeks when we found out that we were having a girl. I hope that is still the case! By then I will be 36 1/2 weeks along, so if she hasn't flipped by then I think that my doctor will start discussing with us our options.

May the swelling begin! My wedding band and engagement ring officially DO NOT FIT anymore. I haven't been wearing them for a while because I don't want to chance swelling during the day and having to get them cut off, but now they just don't fit at all. Cross your fingers that the swelling stays far, far away from my face and my butt.

On another note - or kinda the same note since it has to do with babies - I visited my friend Jennifer at the hospital last night. Her daughter, Caroline Grace was born on Friday. She was 3 weeks and 2 days early, so she is hanging out in the NICU until she can eat on her own. Other than that, she is beautiful and doing fine. I have pictures of Freddy and I with the proud parents and big sister that I will post later, but none of Caroline because cameras aren't allowed in the NICU.

Melanie and Amie - if you are reading this, they are at your hospital so check in on sweet Caroline if you get a chance. Thanks! Oh, and if you can sneak Caroline to the window so that big sister Cassidy could see her, I bet she would love that. Right now she is wearing out the limited video footage that they have of her.

Peyton Manning Threw Jay Cutler's Diabetes Monitor In The Pool

Yes, this was the headline I read on yahoo tonight. Is Peyton a monster? Do I have to find a new favorite quarterback?

Read the article to find out.

Up until last season, I thought his name was Jake Cutler.

Making room for baby

With the conversion of our extra room in to a nursery comes a lot of "stuff" that now needs a new place to be stored (and sold, but that's all gone now thanks to Craig's List). And when I cleared shelves in the pantry, kitchen cabinets and linen closet for "baby stuff", even MORE stuff needs a new storage home.

The bulkiest of the now homeless items are the blankets, bedding, pillows, etc. Freddy decided that all of these things could be stored in those space saver bags and placed in the attic. I thought it was cool to see how much space those bags actually do save. Have a look for yourself.

This week our sweet baby girl...

This week our sweet baby girl has bulked up like the average cantaloupe -- to about 4 3/4 pounds. (Length: almost 18 inches, head to heel.)

And man is she moving! This week we were able to SEE her move, not just feel it. It looks so weird when my belly "jumps" and "waves" with the baby's movements. She is still diagonal, head up and feet down. We can't see her feet moving, just her head and arms. The doctor says that she still has plenty of time to flip, but we're getting close. Just 6 more weeks!