Who Needs Santa...

...when you have an angel like this?



37 Week Appointment & Santa

Today was a family day to run errands and go visit Santa at the mall.  Needless to say, Marissa wasn't thrilled with the old man.

Trying to escape...

So, Santa went about as well as we had expected.  These pictures are priceless so of course we had to buy them.  Maybe next year she'll entertain the idea of the old man!

I had my 37 week check up today.  I am 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced.  Dylan's heart rate was 142 BPM.  The doctor offered to strip my membranes but I declined.  I'm not quite ready to jump start labor.  I've been having some mild braxton hicks contractions and cramping the past few days, but nothing too serious.  The doctor estimated that Dylan weighs 6 pounds right now and that he may weigh 8 when he is born.  Dylan might hold out until after Christmas but I guess time will tell!  My next appointment is on Wednesday, so we'll see if I've made any additional progress.  

I really need to pack my hospital bag, but I've been having too much fun with my sewing machine.  I picked up some supplies to finish Marissa's quilt today and I made a Christmas gift for someone special. :-D

DIY Receiving Blanket Quilt

I started Marissa's receiving blanket quilt tonight.  I need to get matting and backing to finish it off.  I hope this is a nice keepsake that she has for years to come.  I may add some embellishments but I haven't decided yet. I've enjoyed doing some crafts, I figure I better take advantage of my time while I still have it.

Sew Much Fun!

I am finally learning how to sew!  My MIL showed me a few things on Sunday and I have been practicing straight lines by making cloth wipes out of some of Marissa's old receiving blankets.  I'm feeling pretty proud of myself and hope that I can get more crafty with my sewing machine that I've had for over 6 years. :)

Here's my first sewing project!

A friend suggested making a quilt out of Marissa's old receiving blankets as a keepsake so I might try my hand at that.  I made a quilt with the help of a family friend when I was 12, so we'll see if I can remember what to do. 

Full Term, Baby!

I'm 37 weeks today which most people consider "full term."  I still want Dylan to cook a bit longer  for his lungs to mature and make sure he is 100% ready for the world.  :-D

21 +/- days to go!

36w3d

Here's Dylan at 36w3d!

While I realize these are taken from different perspectives, I definitely think I look bigger with Dylan than I did with Marissa at 36 weeks:

Doctors, Doctors and More Doctors!

Yesterday was filled with lots of doctor appointments (in the pouring rain, no less).  Fun!

To start, Marissa had her 15 month check up.  Everything is looking good, the doctor wants to see her gain a little more weight, so we'll be trying to increase her healthy fats and proteins...it sounds like peanut butter and guacamole are in order (two of my favorites). :)

Here's her 15 month stats:

Height - 30.5 inches - 34th percentile
Weight - 20 pounds 6 ounces - 13th percentile
Head - 17.5 inches - 18th percentile

She got 3 vaccines and goes back in 2 weeks to double check her double ear infection.  She finishes her round of antibiotics tomorrow so hopefully everything will be nice and clear at her follow up appointment.


Remember the nasty cold, virus, ear infection, high fever, etc. Marissa had?  Well, part of her sickies was a red eye.  The doctor confirmed that it was not pink eye, just a part of this virus/what-have-you that she's been fighting.  Well, my sweet girl was kind enough to share it with me.  My right eye has been red, it doesn't really hurt and isn't goopey or crusty, just red and irritated.  I stopped in to see an eye doctor yesterday and he confirmed it is not pink eye, just a viral thing that will go away on it's own.  No antibiotic needed.  So that's good but now I have to wear my glasses until it clears up.  Oh joy!


After the eye doctor and making several returns at Wal-Mart, Lowe's and Target, I headed to my 36 week appointment.  Everything is looking great.  The doctor is happy with my blood pressure, weight gain and baby movement.  Dylan's heart rate was 130 BPM.  I had my first internal and I'm a "finger tip" dilated and 50% effaced.  I had my GBS+ test done and will get the results at my next appointment.  I also had my last blood draw to make sure everything is looking good.  The doctor doesn't think Dylan will be making an appearance anytime soon, unless something drastic changes.  So that's good news!  Still holding out for our 2012 baby, much to Danny's dismay (he really wants that tax break).  Apparently a co-worker told him that there is a grace period for adding a dependent after the new year.  He believes it's 7-10 days but we need to research it more to find out if that's true or not.


I got the Christmas tree up yesterday and a few decorations.  I'm keeping the decorations to a minimum this year...so, what you see is what you get!  I don't want to deal with the fuss of trying to put everything away after having a newborn and dealing with all those delightful postpartum hormones.  As bad as this sounds, I almost wish I could just hunker down until the baby blues/crazy hormones settle for a bit.  While having visitors to help and see the new baby is great, functioning on little sleep, dealing with nursing a new baby and entertaining guests can be a bit overwhelming.  Sometimes just being able to nurse on the couch without an audience and nap when I need to is a life saver for my sanity!  Anyone who knows me knows that I'm a bit...umm...OCD?  I need order in my life and obviously having a newborn and postpartum hormones throws a wrench in the mix of things but just having time to wind down after a long day with my husband and a Guinness can be nice and revitalizing! 

Here's a cell phone picture of the tree, I haven't gotten my regular camera out yet.