Pictures vs. Words

I promise to give the details, but lets let some picture cover the big news for now.

Quick Update

I thought I would take a few minutes to update any readers. The pregnancy is going according to plan so far, although there is some debate now over the due date, whether it will be the twenty-eighth or the thirtieth of this month. I would have said two days isn't a big deal but I suspect that for Angie it is an important difference considering how uncomfortable she is. All in all things are well according to our Doctor, who we saw on Wednesday. All the bodily functions that have to occur for the baby to make her way out have progressed from our visit last week: effacing, dilating and head engaging. The house and baby room seem to be ready as well, except for curtains and a carpet in the baby room, not essential items for sure. My sister said something along the lines of:

All you need for the first three months are boobs, diapers and a bed.

Simplistic but true, as I don't think the infant notices crown molding or fresh paint.

It seems unlikely that things will continue to go this quietly so we are both trying hard to enjoy it while we can. Unfortunately we are both so ready for the actual birth it is difficult to focus on the daily grind of work and groceries, etc. We will make it through though, and I think we will both be surprised at how much we miss these last weeks when the baby is on marathon-crying hour eight and we are wearing earplugs and glaring at each other and the dogs across the coffee table.

One small note I feel like saying:

Congratulations to all the athletes and supporters who participated in the Olympic Games. Team USA really made me proud at a time when the worldwide view of the US is pretty low. Thank you for all you have done to mend fences, and congratulations again.

Baby Room

Picture of Angie's picture project, my homemade changing table built to fit my childhood furniture and our crib and crib bed set.

How many kids do you have?

I suppose that every mother-to-be has at least one, especially when prompted by well-meaning co-workers: a false alarm. The phone call was pretty exciting actually, a very subdued Angie saying she has had four cramp-like contractions in the span of forty minutes, and lots of movement, so she called the doctor and they told her to come in…No, it was probably nothing, no, you don’t have to leave work and come too.
Yeah, Right.
I can’t speak for Angie’s trip over to the doctor, but as for mine it was brief. I honestly didn’t play Andretti, I just drove carefully and precisely, kept the “5mph over the limit” rule, and promptly drove right past the doctors office as my mind started to think about hospital bags and car seats. Back on track I arrived at the office to find Angie had already been taken to the back. Everyone was super nice, and smiling broadly, a knowing glint in their eye. When I got to Angie she was sitting glumly on an examination table. Her first comment was: “nothing’s happening, everybody got so excited at work, I just thought I should call and the doctor said to ‘Come on in’, so here I am—you didn’t have to come…”
Again: yeah, right.

A quick exam confirmed that all was well; no distress, no labor.

The doctor, not to miss a chance at some good-natured teasing asked:
“How many kids do you have at home, two, three?”
Not to let him get away unscathed, I replied:
“Seven.”
But so he knew we got the tease and had a good sense of humor I added:
“Different fathers for all of ‘em though”

All in all it was not a waste of trip. It was a nice practice run for me, and Angie definitely has a better appreciation of what to expect when the time does actually come. Frankly, I’d rather have Angie head over there every time she is worried, than to ignore a symptom of something that could be serious.

At least we are more “ready” than we were. Almost all of our supplies are in place, the changing table is finished, and all the 0-3 month old clothes are dutifully washed, checked for tag remnants, and put away. The room is decorated and Angie finished her final picture last night. I will post a picture of the room and her really neat creation on here soon. We have three baby/dog gates up that all of us are trying to adjust to, we know we won’t need them for a few months, but we and dogs take some time to adjust to the new traffic pattern. Angie apparently tripped over one last night after I had gone to bed. The details are sketchy, I will update if it is important, but it may be the death knell for that particular gate.

Important facts:
-Due Date: August, 30th
-Time for DBD Jr to get from office to Hospital/Doctor: 13 minutes without the wrong turn.
-Time for ASD to get from office to Hospital/Doctor: unknown
-Level of Preparation (percentage based on confidence and physical preparations): 65%
-Dog Frustration Level (average between DBD Jr & ASD): 80%
-Cat Frustration Level (average between DBD Jr & ASD): 10%