Big Long Update

Week 22 (as of Tuesday). Well it's been a while, this might be long... I have been meaning to get something up, but things have been pretty busy at work and home since we got back in full swing after the holidays. And I feel like it's been a bunch of little things, not any one of them enough for a whole entry. So here they all are.

First of all I dyed my hair. For all the haters, http://www.pregnancy.org/article/dying-change-hair-color-and-your-pregnancy. I used a no ammonia, semi-permanent dye. I went back to my "roots" (or at least my Dad's) and am once again a redhead. I probably match Nicole pretty good, but mine does have that bright funky look (aka fake). I love it, I think it brings out my eyes, which are usually too dark blue (more of a grey blue) to look really nice.

Christmas was fun; our little girl got her first gifts. She got a blanket that Cheryl got before we knew the sex so it is neutral colored, a crib set as well as a picture frame and a bunch of adorable clothes from Venissa and more clothes from her sister Cindy. Along with the little collection of stuff that Blake and Alyssa have already given us, we really needed to make some headway in the baby's room. So we finally got rid of the bed (FYI, if you ever want to get rid of something, post it for free on Craig's List... within LITERALLY 30 seconds of posting the bed, there were 3 people calling us about it, and while I was getting back on the computer to delete the posting 2 more people called and someone emailed me.) That sort of spurned a cleanup burst, and our good family friend Steve came over and cleaned our carpets to give us a "clean start". So now we have some room to work with and need to finish sorting out all the rest of the room and the stuff in it, find places for it all somewhere else in the house and go from there.

We registered at BabiesR'Us this last weekend too. That was an experience. I took insisted that Cheryl come with us, even though Ryan wanted to do it on our own. Thank God I had her along, because I would have A. Been lost with what to get (even if you talk to your friends and stuff, it is not the same as going down your checklist of items and having someone right there with you to figure it all out), and B. Would have registered for 5 items in the 2 hours we were there. So it was really good that she came! We figured out the carseat/stroller system, the breastpump/bottle thing, and a lot of basics. We still have a lot to do, but it's at least a start. Anyway, I was really really tired after all this and by the time we got to the furniture section, there were the glider/rockers. I sat down and sank into heaven. Now I was at odds with myself because for my birthday, my Mom had brought down the family solid wood old-school rocker that her and my Dad had used for me, and I had wanted to use it and keep it in the family, etc. Well after sitting in these modern gliders, my body said, "Screw you, this is where it's at." all the while my heart said, "That glider has no sentimental meaning!" Well I ended up deciding that at 3am when I am trying to breastfeed the baby, my heart will be asleep still, and my body will be very angry after a few months if it doesn' t get it's way, so I broke the news to my Mom (I was surprised she was so understanding) and will be sending it back up to the Ranch, and registered for the glider. It will always be there for me at least.

Moving on to baby showers... so excited! After talking with Cheryl about it, we realized there were like 70 people all from different groups, which is way too much for one shower, even a lot for two, so I made up a spreadsheet of all the groups and how many people were in each. We grouped them together in the best way that made sense, and ended up with 3 groups, all 20-25 people each. Awkward, but I had to ask some of my dear friends if they would throw 2 of them, since Cheryl couldn't do all 3 and I was afraid everyone would think someone else was doing one then nothing would actually happen. Lucky me, they were happy to do so, so it is all set now! Cheryl will be doing the shower with her side of the family, Melinda will be doing Rick's side of the family, the ladies from the Medical Center and some ladies from Cheryl's church that know me from the yearly women's retreat, and the 3rd shower for my family and my friends will be planned by Grace (with help from my Mom). I am so happy. March and April are pretty much all filled up now, between all the showers and other events, so the next few months will FLY by.

Then we get to the healthcare front. I switched to UCSD, and had my first appointment last week. I was sooo very happy. It was with a wonderful RN over at Perlman. It was completely different from Kaiser. First of all she took a lot of time with me, went over my records, made sure to answer any questions I had and really made the visit feel personalized. Kaiser (although the RN I was seeing there was very nice) made me feel like just another number, and the visit and how it was handled was clearly "assembly line". My last apt with Kaiser was actually really disappointing; they told me I was gaining weight too fast based on one weigh in at 14 weeks and then this one at 20 weeks, and didnt ask me anything about my diet or exercise before she told me that. I had to remind her that we had the results back from the second big blood test, and also had to remind her that I was switching to UCSD and needed my records. Back to UCSD, the RN was wonderful. The big thing that came out of the appointment was that I didn't realize I really had to choose between the birthing center and picking a midwife, vs. a physician and delivering in labor & delivery. After talking it over with the RN, I still definitely wanted to go with the birthing center. When it comes down to it, my baby is the number one priority, but if my pregnancy is healthy and normal, I want to experience it as raw and natural as possible, at least this first one. I want to see what it is like as it was meant to be. I may make a different decision for subsequent children I birth, but if I didn't do it this way this time, I would always wonder and be disappointed I didn't take the opportunity. Cheryl was with me for this appointment, and we ran into Cory, one of the wonderful lactation nurses at UCSD that we know and love and she made some suggestions for great midwives in the center. Over the next few days, I signed Ryan & I up for some classes, found out when the next "meet the midwives/tour the birthing center" event was and scheduled my first apt with my new midwife, Rita. From everything I have heard from everyone she is high energy, and really wonderful. I think it will be a great fit. I will have to go down to Hillcrest to see her, but that is a small price to pay for good care. My next scheduled apt with UCSD is at 24 weeks, and it is with Rita so we will see how it goes!

Oh, and important to note, I have for sure been feeling her move and kick the last week and a half. It is really wonderful, like my own little inside joke with her (pun intended.) She isn't as active as Luke is for Nicole (maybe it is the difference between boy and girl, or maybe she is just destined to have a night owl for a child and our little girl is just going to sleep all the time like her Daddy) but I can't wait until Ryan can feel the movement and can share it with me.

Well I think that pretty much gets me all caught up. Ok I don't want to go that long again, it is past my bedtime and Ryan has been complaining about the "clickity-click" for the last hour. Good night!