Pregnancy thoughts...and a bit about P&E too

So, this blog is mostly about Perry & Ella, but I thought it only fair to share a bit about the pregnancy with Junior since he will soon be getting blogged about as well...

I'm 38 weeks pregnant!

Who'd have thunk it? I certainly didn't. With the early dilation issues with the girls, I thought this baby would be lucky to be a 35/36 weeker, another preemie for sure. And here we are, almost at the end. I have to say that I am quite proud of myself (and my uterus) for gestating this baby so long, with a VERY normal pregnancy. Besides a few swelling episodes in my legs when we do too much in a day (or eat too much salty Mexican food) and a bit of finger swelling (had to say goodbye to the wedding rings about a month or so ago), everything has been great. Of course I'm tired (maybe I should take those iron pills, eh?) and feel quite large...bending over to pick something up and feeling your tummy on your thighs is kind of gross...but otherwise in great condition.

My anal retentive/control freak personality has a little bit of issue with the fact that I have no idea when Junior might arrive. I tried my hardest to plan for Tuesday, the 17th but it did not work out. We have the hospital bags packed (for the most part) and try to keep the fridge stocked with ready-to-go meals for P&E, but there are still so many unknowns. Will it happen in the middle of the night, will it happen while Dave is at work, will it happen while we're at Wal-Mart? Will my water break, will I feel the contractions, will I get sent to L&D from a doctor's appointment? Oy.

At any rate, I am SO anxious to meet our baby boy. Anxious to see if he will resemble one of the girls or be his own little person, anxious to see what bringing home a full-term baby from the hospital is like, anxious to see how the girls will interact with him, anxious to see if the dog will pack up his belongings and leave after bringing home a 3rd baby in less than 18 months.

Our house that we once thought was SO huge, and neither one of us ever dreamed of filling up all the bedrooms while we lived here, is now busting at the seams. I cleaned 3 little bedrooms and a playroom this morning...certainly not what we would have done on a Saturday morning just 3 years ago, before babies entered our minds. But, I know neither of us would have it any other way :)

Anyway, hopefully that rambling made a bit of sense. Mommy brain and pregnancy brain are bad enough separately, but combine them and you're left with mashed potatoes. Mmm, mashed potatoes sound good!

On to P&E...

*The stomach bug is gone. Please please please let it never return to this house ever again. I hate seeing my babies sick and I hate the smell of puke. On a good note though, Dave and I never caught it this time around, which made it a bit easier to deal with.

*As far as teeth go, I want to say that Ella has all her central and lateral incisors and I *think* all of her 1st molars...which would be 12 teeth. Perry though, only has her top central/lateral insicors, her bottom central incisors, and one 1st molar...7 teeth. Don't quote me on that because it's really hard to get a look in their mouths, but I'm fairly sure that's right. I guess all babies really do develop differently ;)

*Talking...eh, not so much. Both girls have reverted back to "uh oh". It gets used properly at least, but sometimes I think they purposely do things just so they can say "uh oh". For example, Ella takes a handful of graham crackers and throws them on the floor to the dog and says "uh oh". I'm pretty sure Ella says "sissy" and knows that it is Perry. When I said, "Let's go get sissy up from her nap" yesterday, Ella immediately ran to Perry's door. Perry still says "ey yah" for Ella...very cute.

*Dancing has reached an all time high around here. ANYTHING resembling music gets both girls on their feet. Ella introduced foot stomping while watching country week on American Idol. We started recording The Backyardigans (it's on during naptime) because it's full of music and the girls LOVE it. Still big Doodlebop fans too.

*Tantrums have started. Someone told me that "terrible 2s" actually refers to the 2nd year of life, not the age of 2...and I'd believe it. I know it has to be frustrating for them since they can't talk or tell us what's wrong. Both of them like to throw themselves down on the floor and cry...it's all for drama though. We have some future Academy Award winners on our hands. Daddy also started time-outs with the girls (standing with their arms against the wall for 10 seconds). We've come to realize that they *know* the word "no" but are testing us. We only use "no" when they are in danger (standing up on the toybox) or touching something they shouldn't (gross dirty diaper champ or toilet), so it's not like it gets overused.

Well, this has taken quite a long time to type out, so it's time for me to close. Thanks for reading through it if you made it to the end. Until next time!

March-In like a lion, out like a lion?

So we end the month with another round of the stomach bug. Perry threw up and had a bit of diarrhea on Wednesday, ran a fever on Thursday, but was fine Friday. Then Saturday came. It was Puke Fest 2007. One right after the other, at least they took turns for the most part. Grandma and Grandpa Bast were here visiting and helped out with the cleaning and keeping the dog out of the messes. The last puke ended around 7 PM and both girls slept in on Sunday until 9 AM. They also took a 4 hour nap Sunday afternoon. Unfortunately this bug caused us to miss the opening game for the Cardinals, although it doesn't look like we missed much.

We thought after a day of no pukes that we'd try half Lactaid and half water this morning, but it didn't sit well with Ella. Neither did lunch. Both girls are getting tired of the BRAT diet and water, but anything else will "re-activate" the bug. Dave left for work this morning not feeling well either. Looks like it might get him next. I gratefully decline a visit from the bug this time around...but I'm sure it'll find me.

The odd thing is that we haven't even been out of the house much lately. We were at Babies R Us on Saturday, IHOP on Sunday, and had the contractor and cable guys here on Tuesday. So who is the culprit of passing us this lovely stomach bug once again? Oh and sorry in advance to anyone we might have given it to.

The teeth monster is back in town as well. Both girls are cutting molars, which doesn't help the sickness situation. Ella constantly has her hands in her mouth and keeps chewing up food and then spitting it out. Both of them are cranky and clingy. Buy stock in Tylenol, Motrin, and Orajel because we surely help keep those companies in the green.

Still not much talking going on. We think Perry repeats "flower" when we say it to her as she's getting her diaper changed and staring up at a big purple daisy on the wall...and she definitely says "Ella". Ella still says "dog"...A LOT. I'm going to invent a machine that deciphers baby babble because I know they're saying some meaningful stuff to one another, but I just can't understand it. Some secret baby language I guess.

They still love music and dancing. Ella has gotten more "rhythmic" lately. She spins now too, probably copied it from her big sister. She is quite the copy cat. I thought it would be the other way around, but for the most part, Ella follows her big sister around and does what she does.

Spring, April, and baseball season have arrived...and I'm still pregnant. It's kind of odd knowing I have a baby bigger than Perry and Ella were when they were born inside me. He's measuring around 5.5 pounds now. That's like a 2 month old to us! I'm hoping he comes at the end of April, but I'm guessing I don't get much say in it. His ultrasound pictures today showed some very large lips (a daddy trait) so I'm guessing he's going to favor Perry.

Well, the nappers have awoken from their slumbers and it's time to think about dinner. It's getting hard to be creative with Bananas, Rice, Applesauce, and Toast. Until next time!