Our Love is All of God's Money

We just arrived home today and it will probably be awhile before I can gather my thoughts and share even more photos of Sophie who somehow gets even more gorgeous by the day, at least in her mother's eyes. Thanks for all your well wishes. She's turned our orbit around and we're so very happy (and exhausted).

a new chapter

Sophia Mari Scott
born 3-28-2007
7lbs. 7oz.

Mother and baby are both perfect.
Father is PROUD.

Best of Times/Worst of Times and Shopping

I had two doctors appointments today. At the first one they put me on a fetal heart rate monitor that also measured contractions. Evidently I'm having contractions every 10 minutes. The doctor said they were "medium contractions" but I could barely feel them. Unfortunately they also don't seem to be helping me progress much, because when I had my second appointment this afternoon (and I was so proud, bouncing in with my "I'm having contractions every 10 minutes! I can't even feel them yet, but they're there!") I was still at 1cm and the baby is still high.

The second appointment was also discouraging because my doctor said I could schedule an induction now, and be at high risk for cesarean because my cervix isn't ready, or schedule it later and be at high risk for cesarean because the baby is too big.

Everybody all together now. "That's a big baby you've got in there!" Yes, thank you.

I decided with my doctor to split the difference, so I'll be going in Sunday night for an induction for Monday. By April 2 (just missing April Fool's day) we'll be highly likely to have a child.

What else? The first doctor, my baby size specialist, said that he wasn't even going to check the baby's size this time since it will not be much different. Normal Sized Baby, he said several times. There's also plenty of fluid and all the things that they check when you go past your due date seem to be just fine. Three or four people asked me when I was due today and I answered two days ago each time. The cab driver slowed down when I said that. Also, according to the latest sonogram, she has a very cute nose.

After my somewhat disappointing second appointment I indulged in some retail therapy. I discovered Giggle in SoHo, which was filled with adorable things for baby. I'm seriously considering some peel and stick wall candy. Dots anyone?

Love, L'oeuf, Whatever I'm Still Pregnant.

There is evidently a sale at Dwell this weekend, which I might have to attend if I'm not in labor. I'm in love with the patterns. Hello cowgirl.

I also love some of the photos on that site, because who would be tempted to decorate a nursery with animal skulls? (I mean, besides me?) Honestly, I think our Bali wood mobiles will be possibly terrifying enough.

I had another appointment today and not a lot has changed. My last ultrasound a few days ago estimated the fetal weight at 7lbs 15 oz. I'm hoping I'll go into labor before I have to have another ultrasound. Like Hannah, I'm walking and drinking raspberry leaf tea. I hope it's working for her. So far it's not doing much over here.

Also, can someone pick up a can of tennis balls for me? I'm supposed to put them in a sock, but I just haven't been bothered to pick up a can. You know, with all the tennis I play.

I am, I am the Ram

A friend sent this youtube out in his birthday party invite. Since our daughter will probably also be an Aries I thought you might be amused by what we have to look forward to.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CWnp5wOz6c

Still Pregnant

There's not a lot going on here. I have more laundry to do and I still need to take down the Rage Against the Machine poster that was in our office/now nursery. (There's a whole discussion we could have on the implications of taking down one's concert posters for the nursery, and placing them in frames for the next apartment, and what that means about one's adulthood and one's youth.) Truth be told, my days are pretty quiet. I nap to make up for not sleeping through the night. We surf the internet for furniture, tile, and storage solutions. I fold baby clothes and look at the bookshelf and wonder where all those books came from exactly. Didn't we just sell boxes of books? They must be reproducing in the night. The whole apartment is fertile.

Still I know things are about to get crazy. It seems like all my correspondence these days could be summed up by saying: Thanks for the invite/job offer! I'm about to give birth. See you in a few months!

I know education is empowerment, but I wonder how wise it is to tell expectant mothers that their babies are full term weeks before their due date. Well, of course it's wise. It also makes for impatient expectant mothers and fathers and grandparents.

It's March. It's sleeting. I'm still pregnant. I'm off to wash some mattress pads and baby blankets in Dreft.

I'm here, just cleaning

So, we are full term. Yikes.

Things I've learned over the last 9 months:

-You never really know what this is like until it actually happens.

-the joy of Family and Friends is a palpable and invigorating thing. I hope that continues when she is screaming with a loaded diaper.

-my wife is the toughest person I know. Actually, I already knew that. This has just reaffirmed it.

-I have looked about 5 months pregnant for the last 6 years. Maybe I should cut down on the carbs. And by carbs, I mean beer.

-We had (have) more unneeded crap in this apartment than I ever knew possible.

-Our unborn child has nicer everything than we do.

-Health Insurance in this country is slowly making me ashamed. Telling us after the fact that you won't cover a procedure that our doctor said WAS necessary by telling us it WASN'T necessary, puts us in a position to 1.) question our caregiver and 2.) try to do the unthinkable, which is putting a 'price' on the health of our baby. And this is Health Insurance, not an HMO. I cannot imagine what parents with even weaker coverage than ours must go through. (Don't worry, we are appealing everything, and if Oxford Health thinks this parent will take it quietly, they have no idea how long I will stay on the phone with my polite and righteous indignation, with the resource of the two insurance professionals that are my parents. Seriously, somewhere a coverage manager at Oxford just got heartburn and they don't why.)

-future Grandparents rock. We'd be lost without you.

Anywho, I'm also doing our taxes right now, so I guess I should go do that.

See you soon!

Maxmax/Minimax, or if ONE of you mentions big babies again...

Yesterday I had Eric join me for what will probably be our last trip to a specialist for this pregnancy to determine, yet again, the estimated fetal weight. I'd seen my regular doctor the day before. She said that she thought the baby would be average, but was still measuring big by their crude tape measurements. The doctor I saw the week before had already referred me again to the specialist. I asked her how seriously I should be considering a scheduled cesarean, she said she'd know more after my estimated fetal weight visit.

One of the sonogram machines was down, but eventually we made it in. I really like my specialist too, not only because he's so direct, but because he has a reputation for being right and he always gives me good news, in quick somewhat broken sentences.

Baby is good. Good baby! Baby weighs 7 pounds. 65%. Good. See baby making sucking face? Baby is head down. Baby has lots of hair. See baby hair! Baby could come out today and be healthy baby. Goodbye!

So if she gains half a pound each week and I go four more weeks until delivery, which would be late, then I'll have a 9 pound baby. Or if I go sooner it will be smaller. Or the estimate is off, which is always possible. 65% means that for this stage, 65% of babies are smaller than that. Or she's 15% above the mean. But really, that's not much. Like my doctor said, I'm not having a small baby. (BUT NOT HUGE! NOT A HUGE BABY!)

We got our last prenatal pictures of her and were on our way to Babies R Us to pick up the car seat. And now I think we're as set as we're going to be. I still need to buy popsicles (the food of champions for laboring moms everywhere!) and finish packing my bag I suppose, but we're set otherwise. Except for all the things we're forgetting.

In other news I'm already 1cm dilated. Which is more about my cervix than you ever needed to know.