Our Christmas Gift

We had a wonderful Christmas this year, celebrating our new family! Nathan enjoyed getting to know the faces of his cousins, aunts, uncles, grandmas, grandpas and even his great-grandma! Christmas Eve was spent with the Schwandt family and Christmas Day was spent with the Piunti family. My paternal grandmother lives in Chicago, so my parents travelled down there to bring her up here for the holiday. We attended Christmas Eve service together and new aunties Sasha and Suzie enjoyed holding, feeding and admiring Nathan during the service. Later on, back at the Schwandt's, cousin Hannah enjoyed lots of special bonding time holding Nathan and cooing him to sleep. New great-grandma Dorothy thoroughly enjoyed time with her great grandson all day on Christmas day, and aunties Sasha and Suzie helped out so I could take a much needed nap. It was so special to have my sisters and my grandma here this holiday. We look forward to our first road trip with Nathan this summer to visit my grandma.


My sisters also plan on coming to town (from the Twin Cities MN/St.Paul) more often to watch Nathan grow. Talk about growing.... over the past week alone I can tell my baby has grown so much. I actually had taken him in the day after Christmas because he was so congested and I wanted to be sure if he was sick that we got him healthy at once... he's not sick, just congested after being in the womb breathing amniotic fluid vs being in the real world breathing dry winter air. A vaporizer has already helped his congestion, and I couldn't believe the boogers coming out of his little nose! He's pretty much over that now, but at the appt he was weighted and measured. Nathan now weights 7lbs 1.4 oz and is 20" long! WOW, our little growing boy! :)

The week prior to Christmas, we had the joy of my best-cousin, Arissa, being in town. She and I grew up together and have a special cousin-bond. Arissa was so excited to come here and be the first to photograph our sweet boy. Arissa has been very successful at starting her own photography business, Arissa's Creative Photography; she even has her own studio, does amazing work and is in high demand by many. I'm so proud of her accomplishments and I am so spoiled at all the wonderful pictures she took of our son, our sweet precious baby, Nathan. Below is a sampling of pictures from Arissa:

We hope you enjoyed your Christmas holiday and have a safe and happy New Year. 2009 is just around the corner.

*hugs and love*
Roxanne :)
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Little Cheeky-Boy

I love to kiss these little cheeks! This afternoon "little cheeky-boy" and I were having a little playtime and he was giving me the cutest faces I couldn't help to snap the camera, and I even caught him sneeze!

CHEEKY-BOY

Working up to it.

Uha-ah-uha... CHOO!!

ah, much better!

"the scowl"

but a cut darn onesie for sure!!

We did it!

Nathan has surpassed his birth weight! At birth, our baby weighted 6 lbs. 1 oz. and was 18" long. Upon discharge from the hospital on Dec 5th, Nathan weighted 5lbs. 12.7oz. At his 1-wk check up, he weighted 5lbs. 11oz. But this week, at his 2-wk check up, he is now our 6 lb. 4oz. baby at 19.5" long!!

Dr. Berg also gave Nathan a clean bill of health. He is gaining weight perfectly, skin color is great, bodily functions all sound good, times of altertnes is normal and good, breast and bottle feeding is going good. Nathan is now eating about 2-3oz per feeding and he feeds about ever 1.5-3 hours. Two nights ago I started a new nighttime routine since Tom went back to work this week (2nd shift). We're doing much better and getting in the groove together. Dr. Berg also had mentioned the percentile ranges for Nathan's growth, I can only remember 4% and I don't know exactly which that was for, but since he was a preemie, she's not worried cuz he's eating well and gaining an ounce a day.

Our next check-ups for our sweet little love will be Jan 5th and Feb 4th. Feb appt is when he gets his shots. I'm NOT looking forward to that at all. Tom will be the strong one to hold him for sure.

Speaking of daddy, he was so sweet and cute in church this past Sunday. Nathan was giving us his fuss-face, so daddy swept him out of the car seat, snuggled him in and attended to his needs with a bottle feeding, burping and cuddling. It made me fall in love with my husband all over again and I felt like I was radiating a "happy family" moment. I look forward to many more "happy family" moments with my husband and son.

With Love,
Roxanne :)
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My First Bath

....as if written by Nathan...

I survived my first bath! Mommy was the only one who was all worked up and nervous about giving me my first at-home bath, but Daddy kept Mommy calm and said "we can do it!"

I didn't care too much for all the attention and the water, but I suppose I needed it... and I guess I will learn to enjoy baths as I get a little older. Here's proof that I'm all nice and clean.

Nathan at 1 week

Nathan's first week of life has been very active. He's a happy little squeeking boy who has recently found the optimum use of his lungs. We initially called him "the squeeker" cuz that's as much of a cry as he could produce. Lately he has certainly found the capacity of those lungs, but still provides us with the adorable little squeeks and cute noises as he nurses. What a precious little boy!

Here are a few pictures from this 1st week:

On Monday this week we saw a Speech Therapist for Nathan, as prescribed by Nathan's pediatrician, to help with his sucking both on the breast and bottle. He kept wanting to pull his bottom lip into his mouth making feeding difficult. It was great to learn little mouth exercises to massage the muscles in his cheeks and lips. This will help him gain range of motion and even help down the road with his speech. I never knew how important a good suck was. He does have quite the sucking power once you can get inside those little gates. I have to say the exercises have definately paid off this week because he is feeding SO much better. I'm proud of my little peanut!

We also saw the doctor on Saturday (1st day after being released to go home on Friday). Upon release on Friday 12/5, Nathan weighed 5lbs 12.7oz. At Saturday's check-up, Nathan weighted 5lbs. 11oz. He only lost 5% of his birth weight (6lbs. 1oz), so not bad at all. Also on Monday, after the speech therapist, we saw his pediatrician and he weight in at 5lbs. 12.5oz. We're working on gaining up back to his birth weight by this next Monday the 15th. All-in-all, he checks out perfectly and is healthy. He does have a little diaper rash, which just breaks my heart for his little sore bum. His circumcision is also looking better and better every day. His umbilical cord stump should fall out this next week sometime. I notice it getting looser when I change him.

Notice the little red scratches on his face? Yeah, they are courtesy of....himself. He loves to have his hands up touching his face and you wouldn't think soft little nails not yet big enuf for the trimmers would leave such marks, but he doesn't complain.

The Nursery

I haven't had time to get the last piece of decoration up on the wall above his crib yet, but here are pictures of Nathan's Nursery.

You're looking at the Amby baby hammock bed (far right), his crib, the glider, and the bookcase. A tight fit in our little house, but very cozy!

Here is his dresser, with changing station a-top, and pregnancy pictures on the wall, which I still haven't gotten around to putting up the 5x7 framed pics. Also, the words on the wall are Uppercase Living vinyl expressions. It says "miracles, believe in them" which I thought was so perfect for our little miracle!

This is his packed closet! Nothing else to be said...small house.

Well, that's all I have time for right now. Hope you are all well and I'll check in on your blogs tomorrow. Nathan needs me...

*hugs*

Roxanne :)

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Our Christmas Gift

God has blessed us with an early Christmas gift, our precious son. Nathan Gerald Schwandt was born to us on Tuesday, December 2nd, 2008 at 5:00 pm, weighting 6lbs 1oz and 18"long.

The Birth Story

I woke up to my alarm at 5:40am on Tuesday, December 2nd. As usual, I emptied my bladder and proceeded to the kitchen to get my cell phone, which is set with a 6:07am alarm so that I can cuddle on the couch with my doggie and make sure I don't fall asleep and miss work. As I grabbed for my phone, I felt two "wets" and thought, What the heck did I just pee? As I returned back to the bathroom, the thought crossed my mind, Did my water just break? Well, it had to be that cuz I couldn't stop the flow, if ya know what I mean... So I started yelling for Tom, LOUDLY, cuz he sleeps with ear plugs. He had just gone to bed (works 2nd shift) about 2 hrs prior to my water breaking. Once I got his attention, he opened the bedroom door and although he was speechless, the look on his face said, What the heck is your problem? All I said was, I think my water just broke and he said Are you sure you're not just peeing? I was sure. Boy, was I sure! Neither of us could believe this was happening. NOW? Really? Oh-my-gosh-we're-going-to-have-a-baby!! A little ironic how Monday is when I got the call from my Dr's nurse telling me I tested positive for Group B Strep (see post just below here) and I was instructed to call the office if either I was having contractions 7-10 mins apart OR my water broke, whichever came first. Ha, did that instruction come at the perfect time or what?! So, I called and woke up the on-call nurse, who confirmed it certainly sounded like my water broke and instructed us to enter at the ER entrance. I had my hospital bag only partially packed, so I quickly threw in things I had on my list-to-pack. I wasn't having any crazy contractions, no more than I was before, so on our way we stopped for gas since the truck was on "E". I wanted to eat my muffin, but withheld (afterthought--wish I hadn't). We checked in at the ER at about 6:30am and were brought up to our room.

Once in our room, the nurses put monitors on me to watch contractions and the baby's heart rate. They also did a test to ensure my water had broke and it came out positive. Since I was only dialated 2cm, I was put on pitosin to urge along those contractions and dialation. I had already decided I would get an epidural and the nurses told me I'd have to get the whole bag of fluids in me before the epidural could be put in. As the contractions got much more stronger, we took a walk around the floor, came back, got the catheter placed, the bag of fluid pushed through, and then the epidural came. I knew I'd have to be super still, and I was worried cuz I could only get thru the contractions by vigerously moving my legs around. While getting the edpidural placed, Tom, the nurse and the anesthesiologist were all encouraging me and telling me how perfect I was doing. The nurse commented she wished they had video taped it to teach other people how to be super still. I only got thru the 2 contractions I had while all of this was taking place was because of my loving husband's encouragement and reminding me to breathe through them. He was so great and I couldn't have done that without him there holding his hand listening to his voice. The acutal epidural didn't really HURT, it was just trying to be a perfect statue so nothing would go wrong while having painful contractions. After the epidural was placed, Tom and I both took an hour nap. Mind you, Tom is running on like 2 hours of sleep on top of a bad cold!

Hours went by, I was feeling SO MUCH better and the nurses continued to check dialation. Finally, I was fully dialated, confirmed by Dr. Kaldas, but the nurses were having a difficult time getting baby's heart rate, so we tried an internal monitor which slips right under the baby's scalp. Still the heart rate was irregular, and Dr. Kaldas wanted to install one on his own cuz he thought maybe the nurse hadn't done it correctly, but still the heart rate was irregular. Baby was at +1cm (above the cervix), part of his head was bubbling through the fully dialated cervix, but he wasn't coming down like he should be. Each contraction was putting strain on him, causing the irregular heart rate, so an emergency c-section was called for. They quickly rushed me in the O.R. (I'll save the gory details and pain of the surgery), and a few minutes later Nathan Gerald Schwandt was born!!

The look on Tom's face when we both heard that first cry was priceless. I'm sure my face looked much the same. Oh my gosh, we have a baby! Tom immediately said how perfect he was and took pictures of him as the nurses wiped him off, swaddled him and handed him over to Tom. Tom brought our precious little miracle to my face and I kissed him, with tears coming from my eyes. Our precious bundle - how amazing! Tom was a natural, instantly, at holding him so perfectly. If you know my husband, he always passed on holding our friend's babies for fear of breaking them. But he said holding our own precious son was so much easier.

Since Nathan was born at 36w 5d, he is considered pre-term (a.k.a. preemie). Because of the irregular heart rate, an EKG was done immediately which came out perfect-- no hole in his heart and no more irregularity. His vitals were montiored closely the entire time of our stay, and Dr. Berg, his physician, came to check him over and with another EKG to be safe, and it still looked good. The only concern she had was him being high risk for jaundice. He had some yellowing and discharge from his eyes, so Dr. Berg ordered more Erythromycin to be put in his eyes 4 times per day. That's the stuff they put in a baby's eyes after they are born. After just one more dose of the gel-stuff, his eyes were much better and Dr. Berg later came in to say his 2nd heel poke test came back good and his eyes looked good. So far so good, and no billy bed!

Here are the pictures I know you've been waiting for...

Nathan Gerald Schwandt

6 lbs. 1.1 oz. 18" long

born 5:00 pm Dec 2, 2008

PS - Tom even cut the umbilical cord. Days ago he wasn't so sure he could do it, but he did and I could tell he was proud!

The name NATHAN means "gift from God". I like meanings of names, and I find them special, so we wanted to pick a name we liked, and with good meaning. The meaning of Nathan is perfect, especially for our miracle gift and we hope that he will never forget that.

GERALD is Tom's dad's first name, and Tom said from day 1 he wanted his son to have his dad's name for his son's middle name.

Proud MOMMY

Proud DADDY (with a cold)

the good and the bad

The good is that baby is still cooking inside getting bigger and stronger with each passing day.

The bad is I am positive for Group B strep, which means (and being my first) we are instructed to call the Dr office when either I am having contractions 7-10 mins apart or my water breaks, whichever comes first. I will be put on an IV antibiotic to ensure that Group B strep is not passed on to the baby if he is born naturally.

The good is I am still working. Up until the day we go in to have the baby.

The bad is I found out my paid disability leave is not going to be paid out as I had expected. Because my 1 yr anniversary date is Jan 2nd, 2009, and I will be having the baby before that date, I will not get any pay until that date, but my 6wks leave starts the day the baby is born. So that reduces the # of wks I will have at 60% of my pay. That part really stinks!!

The good is my body is starting to do what it should be. As of last Wednesday's appt I am 50% effaced and 1cm dialated. I know you can be 1cm for a number of weeks, but it's kind of exciting to know things are actually happening that should be happening. Dr. Kaldas said I look really good, my weight gain has been great, blood pressure all wonderful, and that I have made this real easy on him. I said and easy on me, too!! Which is a true blessing considering all the IUI's, a miscarriage, and almost the IVF we had been thru.

The bad is my body is definately taking a toll on the extra baby, amniotic fluid, placenta, and extra blood weight. My right sciatic nerve has been bothering me, but more so the past few days than ever. I can't wait to see my chiropractor tonight. It will probably be the last time I see him before the baby is born. My bladder is surely feeling the pressure of everything, and I can only stay asleep for about an hour and half at a time before I'm uncomfortable and have to change sleeping postions.

The REALLY GOOD is my favorite Holiday season is upon on us! After the hustle and bustle of shopping online and in stores this weekend, the beauty of crisp white snow dancing down on to our rooftops and covering the grass and roads, I am in awe of God's wonderful gift he has given us. I love Christmas music and have been playing it in the truck and on my iPod. I'm in the spirit. Every year I make a little gift for everyone in my family (in-law family included) and I just got all the "ingredients" for my gifts yesterday. Now is the fun part... putting them together!

I hope you all enjoy this holiday season!!

*hugs*
Roxanne :)

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My 1st Thanksgiving Preparation

You read my menu and plan, now here are the results of my very first Thanksgiving preparation of my favorite yummy foods!

First thing I got up in the morning and prepared an herb paste of sage, parsley, lemon zest, onion and EVOO which I stuffed under the skin of the turkey breast. (Thank You, Pampered Chef, for my plastic food handling gloves or I never would have been able to complete this seasoning task!) Next I chatted on the phone with my sisters, both living in Minneapolis/St. Paul area, while I prepped freshly shredded colby cheese for the veggie casserole, and halved grapes for my grandma's fruit salad. Everything was prepped and ready, the turkey cooking in the roaster, and I had 2 hours to spare before needing to put everything together to cook and be done at the same time. Nice! I don't know what people are talking about when they say they are cooking "all-day" and complain about it... ?? what in the world are they doing "all-day"? I don't get it.

Once all was complete and presented on the table beautifully, decked out in all of my Pampered Chef stoneware, Simple Additions, and bamboo, of course, I took some pictures.

MMMMMMmm YUMMMM!! Looks good! Tom and I enjoyed this delicious meal with his parents, and everyone was stuffed! Tom's mom had made pumpkin pie for dessert and I also served hot apple cider from my silver Carafe. Yummm! I think I'll go have some leftovers for lunch today.

Here is the wall above our kitchen table. A year after having painted the kitchen, put our house up on the market, took it down, and with a blank wall, it was finally time to get a little personality pumped back in. I put up these decorative shelves, which were a wedding gift 4 yrs ago, and the 12x12 scrapbook frame with a piece of my scrapbook paper within and an Uppercase Living expression applied to the face. I plan to change the decorative framed art with each changing season. Although the lighting wasn't the best to photograph in the evening, with the kitchen overhead light on, I think it still looks really cute!

I hope you and your families had a yummy and enjoyable Thanksgiving meal! Next up? Christmas! My favorite holiday. And who knows where we will be celebrating. Christmas plans all depend on when baby schwandt decides to arrive. We're hoping he comes before Dec 20th as my Dr is on holiday vacation beginning that date! We...will...see...! :)

*hugs*

Roxanne :)

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Thanksgiving & a Menu

We have so many things to be THANKFUL for this year. Just to name a few...

• Our health
• Tom being 3-yrs cancer-free
• A healthy baby boy on the way
• the fact that we have stable jobs
• supportive and loving friends and family
• a loving God to bless us with all of this in our happy life together

FOOD!

I am really looking forward to preparing my very own Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow! I have my menu planned and the grocery list organized so as soon as I am out of work, I can go tackle the grocery store!!

Everything I am making are my favorites. From my all-time fav, green bean casserole, to my grandma's yummy fruit salad, and traditional biscuits. Yummmy! I am not shy, I will and fully intend on overinduldging in this meal! My mother-in-law is making her homemade apple pie, my favorite, and I will serve it with vanilla bean ice cream! MMmmmm :)

Here is my MENU:

Turkey
Gravy sauce
Cranberry Stuffing
Green Bean Casserole
Grandma's Fruit Salad
Creamy Cornbread
Biscuits & butter
Cheesy veggie casserole
Mashed Potatoes
Apple Pie


What are you THANKFUL for? What is on your holiday menu?


*hugs*
Roxanne
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This and That

Not a whole bunch new, just a few odds and ends of "This and That" going on.


To-Do list.
Things are getting done, the house is clean, laundry washed, but not all put away yet. I have a P-Chef show tonight in Green Bay, so guess it will wait another day.


Thanksgiving.
Tom and I are hosting his parents for a Thanksgiving dinner. Being so close to my due date, it's not safe to travel 4 hrs south to my Grandma's house (usual tradition), or 4 hrs west to see my sisters. They will all be here in town soon once the baby is born, so I will see them all for Christmas.

I have my menu down, my grocery list ready and my re-useable grocery bags on stand-by in the truck for Wednesday after work when I attack Copp's grocery store! I am really looking forward to cooking my favorite things, getting out my nice P-Chef Simple Additions Square plates, Dots bowls, lighting candles, playing holiday music, and enjoying a nice yummy dinner that I fully intend on indulging without regret!


Baby.
Baby boy Schwandt is surely growing! I think he's dropped because this past weekend I felt a lot of pressure really low on my pelvic bone and my lower back. I had a massage last night which was super fabulously wonderful. No, we still do not have a name picked out for our son. We have ideas, about 8 on the list, and are working to reduce that down to 3 or 5 by the time we go to the hospital. We really just have to meet him and then I know we will just KNOW. In the meantime, the running joke has been that we call him "yoda" (having to do with Tom's childhood passion for Star Wars). While this is fine for now, I have a bone to pick. I hope you are listening.... I DO NOT WANT ANYONE CALLING MY SON "YODA" ONCE HE IS BORN. It is not nice, not fair to the child, and once he has a NAME on his BIRTH CERTIFICATE, people, THAT is his name and should be called by that name and that name alone! Yes, I am passionate about this. Would you want people to call you MORON if that isn't your name? Just because Tom and I have chosen to take our time naming our child, and keeping the names on our list to ourselves does not entitle anyone to their free will of name-calling once he is named by his parents. Thank you for listening/reading, for your time and considerateness towards our new family.


Work.
Yesterday was the first day I sat at my desk and actually felt HUGE. I usually can be found scrunched-in bellied-up close to my keyboard, but now I feel 3 ft away, stretching my arms to reach, leaning forward to read the papers and reports on my desk, with my feet propped on a footrest. I stretch my back and have to remind myself to get up and use the facilities. Once I stand up, sometimes I can't stand straight cuz the bladder is so full. Both bathrooms are a bit of a hike, but the walk back is nice to move my body around a bit.

I'm so glad we only have today and tomorrow with 2 days off this week! I'm counting down the days till I go on leave with the baby. No, it's not determined yet, but it sure is getting close and I'm looking forward to being away for a while, especially since that means taking care of my new loving son.


Weather.
We got snowed on. Yup, Sunday night I went to bed, Monday morning I woke up, and when I looked out the window I did a double-take. I couldn't believe my eyes! Although I hadn't watched the evening news like everyone else to be forewarned, I did hear we were supposed to get more last night, but we didn't.

The snow and the cold wind-chill sure puts me in the mood for some Christmas music. I've been listening to Martina McBride's Christmas CD in my truck. I love her voice! Of course, I try to sing like her as long as I'm alone driving down the road. I think baby likes it :) I've got to get my iPod updated with my other two new Christmas CDs I bought.... and 80's Christmas Mix and a 2-cd collection called Peaceful Christmas.


Other.
That's about all for now. My hopes for this weekend are BLACK FRIDAY shopping, and getting the decorative things done in the baby's room and put up on the walls. As soon as I have that done, I will take pics and post.


*hugs*
Roxanne

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A weekend of BABY

This past weekend we spent a lot of time on BABY, for BABY, and about BABY!

Saturday was our full day class for Birth Preparation. We learned a great deal about how babies are born, the stages of labor, and much more about after baby is born. I'm so glad we did this class because I feel like I have a better understanding of my body and what might be going on to tell me when I'm starting labor. We learned different positions to help overcome pains and help open the space for baby to decend. Yes, I've heard other's birth stories and what contractions felt like to them, but honestly, until you really feel it yourself, it's hard to grasp what those feelings will be like to you. We are hoping baby will come naturally, but if cesarean is necessary, that is ok too. What I really like about what our hospital is doing now is once baby is born, he is placed on mommy's chest to be wiped off, then he goes straight to skin-on-skin for 2 hours before bath, measure, etc.. They've found in doing this that babies are responding so much better to their adjustment into the world, and instinctively are looking for the breast to feed. In addition, while they are in the womb, their body temp is controlled by mom's body, but once they make their entrance into the world, it's all-systems-go and their little body's have to adjust. By placing baby skin-to-skin on mommy's chest for those first 2 hours, mom's breasts naturally will help to adjust baby's temp giving him more heat or less heat to help him learn how to control his body. I just think this is so amazing, it's natural raw-ness, and exactly what God intended when He created us. I can't wait for this first bonding time for our new little family!!

Sunday we had fun doing maternity pictures! My friend Pahla takes her family to The Picture People and I always love her results. Once I found out how totally reasonably priced they were, I made the appointment. Of course we had to leave the house in the middle of the 4th qtr of the Packer/Bear game, but Tom survived! Luckily the Packers were already killing the Bears, so all was safe ;) Here are a few pictures from our session:

The last picture is the one pose that I requested. You may remember me in this kind of pose when I had Tom stand on our stoop and I was wearing the teal colored top. The photographer was showing everyone this picture and they all loved it. They can't wait to share the pose with other couples. I hope it turns out as good for them as it did for me! The only thing I had them change was to edit out my necklace pendant. I didn't like it -- looks like it's coming out of my chin. All-in-all, I am very happy with the pictures and the fact that we walked out the door with them in hand! How cool you don't have to wait a month to pick up your pictures! Next will be baby newborn pics! I will be doing birth announcement pics incorporated with our Christmas cards. So depending on exactly when baby comes, Christmas cards may be late, but it will have to do!

Love,
Roxanne :)
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34 weeks and Great!!

I had my regularly scheduled OB appt today. I am 34 weeks and doc gave me a rave review! After last Friday, I was a little anxious as to what he might have to say.

Firstly, I lost the 5 extra pounds of water weight I had freakishly gained last week. I'm so glad, but my feetsies don't look any less pudgy or papaya-like. That's ok though, cuz Tom promised to give me a foot and back massage this weekend. That, on top of my exciting afternoon at the spa tomorrow!! I'll post about that later this weekend. :)

Dr. Kaldas told me I look good, no rash on my tummy. I'm like, rash? what kind of rash? He was referring to PUPPPs syndrome where some women, at this point in pregnancy, develop a red rash with blisters on their tummies... Here, this is how crazy PUPPPs is: (One study has shown that male fetal DNA can be found in skin biopsies of the rash. Since 70% of women with PUPPP give birth to boys, a new hypothesis is that male fetal DNA acts as a skin irritant.)

Doc also told me as long as I am feeling well, no unrelieveable headache, and no painful contractions, I am good to go for another 2 weeks. So I will be back for Week 36 check up on 11/26.

Now that ROXANNE is back, me and my old self, here's the weekend plan:

Friday afternoon 11/14: Spa Ben Mar Nico's for prenatal massage, facial, manicure and pedicure with my 31 wk pregnant girlfriend, Toni, for our b-day presents to eachother:)

Saturday 9am-3pm 11/15: Tom & Rox birth prep class at AMC. We will install the car seat in the truck and leave the base in there (prepare is my middle name), make dinner and watch movies while Tom fulfills his foot/back massage promises:)

Sunday 11/16: Church, then visit my family to hear all about their wonderful vacation/cruise in Italy! They fly into Minneapolis late Friday night, then mom and dad will drive home on Saturday afternoon. I can't wait to see the video's and pictures!!

*hugs*
roxanne :)
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Anticipation

November 21st is fast approaching and I am anxiously anticipating seeing TWILIGHT come to life on the big screen!! My boss at work just came back from lunch and handed me THE COMPLETE ILLUSTRATED TWILIGHT MOVIE COMPANION!

This magazine-size book is SO cool!! It shows pictures from the scenes of the movie, how they got the shots, and everything in between! I can't wait to put my papaya's up on the couch and read my TWILIGHT MOVIE COMPANION!! Yes, I still need to finish Breaking Dawn, but I will do that in due time before next Friday.

Speaking of next Friday, November 21st... I just purchased 4 Adult tickets on Fandango for the 7:30pm showing of TWILIGHT. Me, my mother-in-law Donna, my sister-in-law Debbie, and my friend Nikki are so excited to see the movie! I wanted to be sure we had tickets secured since this movie is highly anticipated by folks in ages from 12 - 73. Thank you, Fandango, for securing our tickets! I think we will arrive at the theater an hour early to ensure we can pick up our tickets at the box office, buy some popcorn and drinks, and get comfortably seated to prepare to meet our favorite vampires!

*hugs*

Roxanne :)

the scare at 33w 1d

I was in the hospital on Friday 11/7 being monitored. Everything is ok now, but here's what happened...

I woke up at 4:30am (nothing new) but I had a really bad headache. I went to work and it got worse. I couldn't stand to look at my LCD monitor...it was so blury and bright. Took 2 Tylenol extra stength and it wouldn't go away. My eyes hurt, my face hurt, my head hurt, my hands and feet still hurt (swollen like melons), and I just felt down in the dumps. So after freaking out worrying about these symptoms of pre-eclampsia, I called and got an appt for 2pm to see my OB.

My OB, Dr. Kaldas, was off so I saw Dr. Schluzelberger. Not sure how to spell her name, but she was very nice. Turns out I had gained 5 pounds of water weight in the past week (not good), my blood pressure was ok, but considering my other symptoms, she wanted to do some tests and monitor me to find out what was going on... So they sent me up to the 3rd floor (baby floor). On my way, I lost it, again. I called Tom, who was home raking leaves with his nephew Ryan helping, and I could hardly speak through sobbing tears streaming my face and trying to catch my breath. I was scared of what the outcome might be, I wasn't scared we'd be having the baby, but I was worried for his health, my health and the fact that I just couldn't stand the thought of possibly being put on bed rest. I can't! I just can't! Can't afford it paycheck-wise, can't stand it sanity-wise. There's so much we have to do yet before the baby comes and time is ticking. Being put on bedrest would be the worst possible thing that could happen to me right now. So Tom was on his way.... And then I called work to tell them I wouldn't be back. My boss could tell how upset I was, sensing my previous sobbing and all, and she was very supportive and encouraging.

So I got on the elevator and pushed the "3" button. I just felt so drained emotionally and energy. I had none left. They got me set up in a room and just as soon, Tom came in. I instantly felt better having him there with me. They took my blood to run tests and hooked me up to some monitors. One on the baby's heart rate, and one on my uterus. The baby was doing perfectly - very energetic, excellent heartbeat, "textbook-perfect" the nurses said. But I was contracting. Had 4 in like 10 minutes. But they didn't hurt, I didn't even know!! Once I watched the machine and concentrated on my body, I could associate what I felt with it being a contraction. Weird, but not good. If this was baby #2 or #3 for me, then fine they would probably go along with it, but not for the 1st and at 33w 1d, so they had more tests to do and were able to rule out pre-eclampsia which they did, so that was a relief. What they did find is that I have a bladder infection, my cervix is 50% thinned out (not common for 1st time and this early) but my cervix is definitely closed. I got set up on an antibiotic for the bladder infection and they gave me a shot to stop the contractions, which worked. Oh, and they had given me a narcotic to get rid of the terrible headache, which worked like a charm.

All in all, I was there from 2pm and didn't get home until 7pm. Once my headache was relieved, knew the baby was fine, and pre-eclampsia was ruled out, I felt 100 times better. My next regularly scheduled OB appt with Dr. Kaldas is this Thursday, so I will go to that and see what he says. We need to keep the baby in as long as possible. He has lots of growing to do yet in these final weeks, and being in the womb is the best place for him. Mommy and Daddy have lots to do yet to get ready for his arrival!

In fact, my friend Nikki came shopping with me at Babies R Us to get items on our "absolutely-need-before-baby-comes-home-list". After $450, the only two things I need yet are the breast pump and the pack-n-play. I want to make sure breast feeding is going to work out for us before I buy the pump cuz it's like almost $300, probably more after all the accessories for freezing, etc... I have a couple 15% off coupons that I can use the end of this month and into December, so we'll hold off on those two items for now. As of this moment, I have yet another load of baby stuff in the wash. It's drying now, so I'll start putting those things away... a nice sling to carry baby and still have use of 2 hands, a peanut shell for nursing, 0-3m white onesies, changing pad covers, boppy covers, lap pads, crib mattress pad, etc... I happily fold and put away baby's beloved laundry; I just love the smell of Dreft baby detergent!

How am I feeling now? I am much better. My happy, energetic self is back and baby is happily bouncing around doing his normal aerobics. Oh, and I'm hungry... time for lunch!

Love,
Roxanne :)

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Papayas, an Expo, and To-Do List

Papayas.
This is what my feet look like. Yes, swollen and huge. A few weeks ago I started to notice my ankles were slowing disappearing. I joked to Tom that I had "k'ankles" and we laughed. But last Monday I finally broke down and bought a size 7 1/2 Wide width pair of shoes. My normal size is 6 or 6 1/2 and have very narrow feet, normally. Every day as I look down at my feet in the shower, they are growing chubbier and chubbier and I no longer can see or feel my ankle bones. Not to mention the soreness and aches... Yesterday and today it wasn't so easy to slide my feet into my new "fat" shoes, but once I get them on, and proceed about my day, they are fine.... Until mid-day when I take them off (habit), like yesterday, and notice all the swollenness water retention is just shoving up to the top of my foot like squeezing toothpaste from the bottom of the tube! This morning it occured to me that my feet resemble papayas because they are not only swollen on the tops, but the bottoms, too. While I will reserve from posting a picture of my feet until after my spa trip next friday when I'll have a beautiful and much needed pedicure, here is a picture of a papaya.
Expo.
While my feet are looking like papaya's, I have been steadily working on a Holiday Extravaganza Expo. As co-coordinator with my friend, Cassie, we have been working hard to attract vendors, get advertising organized, plan a layout, confirm reservations, and get the word out about our event. I haven't had much time to actually come home from work and put my feet up. Last night after eating dinner, checking email and a few quick things, I forced myself to lay on the couch with a pillow propping up my papaya-feet at 7:30pm. I watched Ugly Betty and cried my eyes out at Grey's Anatomy. Nothing new with crying my eyes out at that show, along with Private Practice the night before. Ok, so maybe a few extra tears shed due to increased hormones...


Anyhow, the Holiday Extravaganza is coming along great. The event is this Saturday, Nov. 8th from 10am - 3pm at The Stone Toad on Oneida Street in Menasha. I will be there with my Pampered Chef business, as well as other businesses like Arbonne, Uppercase Living, Tastefully Simple, Tupperware, lia sophia, WineShop at Home, Close to my Heart, and many more. We have a total of 20 vendors and are very much looking forward to meeting new people, building our businesses, and enjoying a little holiday shopping! If you are in town, please stop by and visit us! There will be a ton of door prize drawings and cash-n-carry items. You can even get yourself a quick back massage from The Massage Factory.


To-Do List.
My papaya's, and the Expo lead me to my To-Do list. While I have so many things yet to do to prepare for tomorrow's event, I need to find time to get my feet up. Literally. I have to elevate them. I do not, and can not afford to be put on bed rest before the baby is born. Not only would it drive me totally insane, but there is so much yet to do to prepare for baby's arrival! Here are some things on my list:

1. Get a changing pad, covers, lap pads, a bathtub, bottles, and other baby necessities

2. Install Uppercase Living expressions on baby's room walls (Miracles... believe in them and I'm a Dream Come True, BABY)

3. Wash more clothes recently received, along with organizing the closet.

4. Remove shelves in living room closet so we can put the vacuum cleaner and steam cleaner in there (Tom's job)

5. Rake leaves... wet leaves now since it's been raining and we're due to get a snowy/rain mix on Saturday.

6. Pack my hospital bag

7. Pack baby's diaper bag

8. Give Theo a bath

9. Organize Pampered Chef world and get files moved up stairs to new file cabinet.

10. Relax & finish reading Breaking Dawn (for crying out loud, I want to finish SO bad!!!)

This is just a sampling of my to-do list. I have a headache now and can't think of anything other than everything I need to do tonight alone just to be prepared for tomorrow's event. I also suppose I should re-direct my focus to actual work that I need to get done today here at my FT job. I'll let you all know how the Holiday Extravaganza goes after tomorrow! :)

*HUGS*
Roxanne :)

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Homemade Dog Treats

Do you remember my first post where I talked about Theodore's surgery in March of this year to remove 14 stones from his bladder? Dr. Chris, our vet, had just called to confirm the stones removed were calcium oxalate, the most hardy, worse kind of stones a dog's body can develop. They are also very common to develop in Schnauzers, and the risk is the fact that they can come back. Our poor, sweet, little adorable dog had the most difficult recovery and we almost lost him. It was the scariest hardest thing we've had to go through since Tom's cancer in '05 and our lost pregnancy in Dec '06. We couldn't imagine life without Theodore.

While this post is NOT to say the stones have come back, because they HAVEN'T, *knock on wood* I am writing to tell you about a really fun recipe for homemade dog treats! Since Theo can't eat milkbones, snausages, and pigs ears, he's become our little vegen-dog. His favorite treats are apples and frozen peas. I can even entice him to come in the house after playing Chuck-it by saying "who wants an apple?" (of course, I cut it up and we share) He also loves frozen little carrots, and fresh green beans, along with his canned u/d formula dog food, which he inhales fast so the cats don't eat it :) hahaha He's so funny!

I found this receipe at bullwrinkle.com. They have a ton of recipes on there, but I will not make any that contain garlic or other processed food I know he can't have. I think he'll really like these Apple Cinnamon Drops!!

Homemade Dog Treat Recipe

Apple Cinnamon Drops

1 large apple

1/4 cup honey

1/2 cup of water

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup oatmeal

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1/8 cup whole wheat flour

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 ° F (180 ° C).

Core, slice and mince the apple (use a food processor if you have one). In a large bowl, combine the minced apple bits, honey, water, cinnamon, and oatmeal. Gradually blend in the wheat flour, adding enough to form a stiff dough.

In a small bowl, add 1/8 cup wheat flour. Spoon the dough by rounded teaspoon onto ungreased baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches (5cm) apart. Using the bottom of a glass dipped in the wheat flour (to prevent sticking), flatten each spoonful of dough into a circle. Adjust the size of the drops based on how big a treat you like to feed your dog.

Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and flip each cookie to brown evenly on both sides. Reduce oven temperature to 325 ° F (180 °C). Return to oven and bake for an additional 30 minutes. Let cool overnight.

Makes about 3 dozen crunchy cookies, depending on how big you make them.

I am planning on making these treats for Theo for Thanksgiving & Christmas. I hope he'll have fun opening his presents!! We'll have to get the DVD camcorder out for that! :)

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32W 1D

We had an ultrasound and OB appt today. The u/s technician measured the baby and amniotic fluid. It was quite interesting to watch her because baby was just moving around the whole time... very active! The measurements of baby's tummy and his head looked similar. Nice round tummy, nice round head! Baby's position is spot on, too. A few weeks ago when we went to Baby's Debut, he was head down with body along my left side facing right. Today he is still head down (WAY down) and body along my right side facing left. I thought I had felt him turn over the other day. I guess since he's got the room, he can flip away all he wants as long as he keeps his head down to prepare for his arrival. We did get a few pictures, but he was playing peek-a-boo covering his face with his arms. Cute little buggar -- he already loves to play games!

So how big is he?
After all the measurements of baby and my amniotic fluid were taken, baby measured at 4lbs. 6oz. which is in the 51 percentile, so right in the middle -- right on track! I also have a normal amount of amniotic fluid -- not too much, not too little. My blood pressure is excellent, baby's heart beat excellent, size excellent, fluid excellent, everything is just excellent. (ok, now I sound like wayne's world... sorry!!)

Dr. Kaldas said he suspects the baby will be about 8 to 8 1/2 pounds when he is born. Nice size little chubber, in my mind. I go back again in 2 weeks, Nov. 13th for the next OB check up. Dr said if my fundal height measures more than 37cm (as it did 2 wks ago), then we will do another ultrasound just to check and make sure all is still "excellent". He said my blood pressure and weight gain are also excellent, so I'm doing very excellent. Ok, I suppose I just like that word. To think of being able to use that word in this pregnancy, our miracle, just has me so elated!!

Baby's room is well on it's way to completion. We decided to leave the current paint color which is a bagel yellow with a blue moulding boarder (painted) up by the ceiling. Once the little guy grows up and is in love with trains, or whatever it might be, then we will taylor the room to his favorite things. Crib is up, bedding washed and put on. Amby bed assembled, bedding washed and put on. Dresser assembled, and full of clothes, bibs, burb rags, blankies, the cutest little socks and all the baby necessities. We're just waiting on Babies R Us to deliver the rocker glider. Then we also have more shopping to do yet to get some things on our registry that we need yet... like a changing pad, a bath tub, the breast pump, bottles, necessity things that we need for baby's arrival. Other toddler-type items we'll wait and purchase as we grow into them, which I already know happens way too fast.

Baby,
Mommy & Daddy can't wait to meet you. Keep growing in there; you've got a few weeks left and you will grow nice and strong like a little boy should be. We are here waiting for you and we promise to be ready. Together we will all learn new things, even Theodore. He will soon learn your scent and midnight cries. We're sure he will be very interested in you when you come home, and you two will grow up best-buds! We love you so very much!!!! hugs-n-kisses, M&D

Cruise -- Legend of the Seas -- Italy

My family (sisters and parents, minus me) have left the United States! They arrived in Rome, Italy around 10:30am Italy time, and will embark on a 13-day cruise beginning tomorrow evening around Italy. I'm bummed the airplane and cruise ship wouldn't allow an almost 8month pregnant lady on board. I'm bummed I'm going to miss out on a trip of a lifetime. I'm sad I won't get to see all the things I'd love to see. But I know my family will take lots of pictures and DVD video to share with me when they return to the states mid-November.

My father's lineage is Italian. My grandfather, Caesar Piunti, was born in the States after his parents and 12 older siblings migrated from Italy through New York and settled in a Chicago Suburb. I remember many fun things Grandpa always did for us kids. He made the best pancakes. And not just any pancake... he made mickey mouse and our initals! He was a typewriter repairman, by trade, and always had spare typewriters around for us to play with. I can remember the smell of them. I can remember the smell of breakfast. I can remember the smell of Thanksgiving and Christmas. So this trip my sisters and parents are taking is a trip to a country, touring around many ports, where the Piunti family originates.

In addition to visiting Rome, Portofino, Pisa, Sicily, Venice, and Naples, they also get to visit neighboring Split, Croatia and Dubrovnick, Croatia. Lastly, after the cruise is complete, they will stay an additional 2 nights in Rome. Each port docking lasts 1-2 days where they have exciting excursions planned. Here is a little map of where the Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, Legend of the Seas vessel will be taking them.




This is my sister, Sasha's, 3rd trip to Italy. She went twi ce while in college in 2003 and 2005, and had considered moving to Florence a few years ago. I'm glad she didn't move so far away, but at the same time what a great trip to go visit my sister! Who knows, now she is on her way to buying her first house in the Twin Cities (Minnesota), so I doubt a move to Italy will come anytime soon. She did offer to go along on my future vacation to Italy. Of course, then it would be her, what?, 5th trip by then?! Lucky!

Anyways, I'm trying to get a hold of my family over there with text messages and email, and I am anxiously awaiting their reply to make sure they got there all safe and sound. My blackberry is sitting on my desk just waiting for the litle red light to flash telling me I have an incoming message....... C'mon girls, text me back!!!

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Baby Shower

This past Saturday (10/25) was my baby shower. it was held at my church, Whiting Community Baptist Church. I can't believe we are to this point already...the baby shower...MY baby shower! It's an event I always attended for friends and family, and always wondered when it would be my turn. I can't find the perfect words to explain how unbelievably awesome it was -- so much fun, so many people came, and they came for us. I was truly touched and I hugged everyone, twice, I think, or more! We are so blessed to have the kind of supportive friends and family that we do. We couldn't do it without all of you! Here are some pictures...courtesy of my neighbor Nancy.

two cameras pointing at me, didn't know which way to look....sorry for the funny face, Nancy! :)

ok, so not the cutest pic of me, but here is my sister Suzie on the right handing and organizing gifts as I opened, and my friend Jenny on the left recording the gifts for Thank You's. Thanks girls for your help!!

These are little table decorations that I made. Each one had a different "baby" icon from a stroller, a onesie, a bootie, this baby and moon, to a baby in a pea pod. There were six in total and I cut the icons out from my Cricut using the New Arrival cartridge. Now I am prepared to start baby's scrapbook!! See, sometimes I DO think ahead:)

After the shower, my sisters came to my house and helped me cut tags, sort and wash all the clothing, blankets, burb cloths, everything!! Then we proceeded to put some things together. Suzie was so anxious to put together the Fischer Price Little Lamb cradle swing, and she did a wonderful job! It is so cute!! Sasha put together the Bright Starts By Your Side seat, which Tom will love rocking next to his son, and I took the easy road... the Fischer Price Hoppy Days bouncer.

It's a good feeling to have accomplished so much. Of course there is still lots to get done before baby arrives, and now I'm in the "getting things done" mode, so look out! I'm determined to have the baby's room all set and done, ready and waiting, within the next few weeks.

Long at last, it was a wonderful baby shower, fun games, prizes, yummy food, a good time mingling, hugging, and opening presents. I can't thank everyone enough for their love and support. We are so thankful to you all. We love you!!

*HUGS*
roxanne :)

Saving baby's Cord Blood

Recently Tom and I decided to save our baby's cord blood. Are you familiar with saving cord blood and the benefits of the stem cells? Let me help you with some information.


Why Bank?

1. Protect your family. Your baby's umbilical cord blood is rich in lifesaving stem cells that could protect your baby or other family members.


2. Treat nearly 70 diseases, including leukemia, other cancers, and blood disorders


3. Benefit from emerging treatments. Doctors are developing stem cell treatments for heart disease, juvenile diabetes, brain injury, and more


4. Secure the best treatment option with your own family's cord blood. Having access to your own family's cord blood has been shown to significantly improve outcomes compared to using cord blood from an unrelated donor.


5. Take advantage of your one chance at birth. Having access to your own family's cord blood has been shown to significantly improve outcomes compared to using cord blood from an unrelated donor.

So as you can see the benefits are life-saving. For us, personally, the fact that Tom was diagnosed at age 32 with Melanoma skin cancer, saving our baby's cord blood is a HUGE deal. You just never know what life will through at you, and by saving this cord blood, it gives us a huge safety net. For example, WHAT IF (knock-on-wood) Tom were to relapse? We could use our baby's cord blood to save his life. Daddy would be a 50% match. Me and baby are 100% match, and any siblings would be 25% match. That's a higher chance at matching than a perfectly normal healthy woman has at conceiving in any given month (10-15% chance). SIDE NOTE: Tom's next 6-mo check up is this week and we're looking forward to titling him 3-yrs cancer-free!

Here are some reasons why we chose Cbr:

1. Ob/Gyns recommend CBR more than any other cord blood bank. They found my Dr. in their database right away, so he and the hospital are already familiar with Cbr.


2. CBR is the largest and most experienced cord blood bank, which gives you an extra measure of security


3. CBR has the highest cell recovery rate (99%). This is important because you'll have more stem cells to protect your family if you need them


4. CBR's financial and long-term stability gives you peace-of-mind

Read the real stories of real people and how saving cord blood made a meaningful difference in their lives. Click here. All of these stats and info I found right on Cbr's website.

You guys, I am so pationate about this now. I can't express how important and valuable it is to us. I just want to share and pass on the info to everyone I know!!! We just got the collection kit delivered on Saturday by FedEx. The box is sealed and that's what we bring to the hospital when we deliver, so it will be packed in my bag by this weekend! In the packet includes two of those rubbery bracelets that we will start wearing in the next 2 weeks. Mine is purple and Tom's is cranberry. They both have the hotline ph# and the shipping ph#. I really like this idea of the bracelet cuz then we have the info right there on us... AND... when we get to the hospital, the staff are alerted when they see it -- they know that we are saving the cord blood and that they need to get the kit from us! How cool is that!?!

So you are probably wondering how much it costs?

COST: They have six different payment plans to pay for the first 18 yrs of storage, then it's only $125/yr thereafter. It really is not bad price-wise at all, especially considering it can be life-saving for your family. Let me tell ya this... it's about $20-$30 less than IVF (In-Vitro Fertilization).

REFER: If you or someone you know is having a baby, please share this information about saving the baby's cord blood. I also can give you a coupon for $155 discount. I have already shared this coupon and some info with my friends that I know are expecting.

I hope you will look into this for yourself, a friend, a family member and share what you find. It could save their life someday.

It's now time for me to go night-night. I'm very tired and getting more tuckered out quickly these days.... Need my beauty rest before little mr schwandt comes. Oh, he kicks to say HI to everyone! He must think it's play time....

Love to all!!!

Baby's Debut

This was my and Tom's birthday present from my parents. My birthday is coming up on Oct 21st and Tom's is soon to follow on Feb 1st. My parents bought us a package at this place called Baby's Debut where they do 3D/4D ultrasounds. 3D ultrasound is what you see below of our little boy!!! 4D ultrasound is a DVD of the whole session!!!

Our appt was for 1:30pm on Sat. Oct 11th. I was at 29weeks. At first, baby boy schwandt did not cooperate very well. He was turned backwards facing my spine, but once we got him turned over, the umbilical cord was laying across his face. I'm guessing he likes to suck on it or something. He had a foot and an arm up there within reach that if he were to move his foot or arm down, he could have pulled the cord away so we could get a good look at his face. Since we couldn't we took a look around at other things. I love to see his little beating heart, his spine and rib cage or so cool and so obvious to see. Another obvious body part to see was that he is definately still a BOY. That's reassuring ;)

So since we weren't having much luck to see his face, she sent us off (next appt was waiting their turn) and said we could come back after-hours instead of rescheduling for another day. Our return trip after hours was much more successful and so much fun!! Here are two pictures that I have so far. (the CD writer was broke, so I'm going to go pick up my CD of like 70 pictures today)

This first pic, baby boy schwandt is pursing his lips and squinting his eyes. He had just been scowling at us pulling his eyebrows together. It was SO adorable!!!

This next pic is one of my favorites! After his little scowling session, he proceeded to open his mouth and show us his tounge!! Remember at 20 weeks he was seen sticking out his tounge? Little stinker, but it's so darn cute :)

Right after this last picture was taken, he brought his foot up to his face, we could see all five toes, and then he put his big toe in his mouth! Yep, that's my baby, sucking on his toes instead of his fingers. Goofy little guy.

Well that's all for now. Once I get my CD of pictures, I may post some more. We're heading out now, so have a good weekend everyone!!

*hugs*

Roxanne :)

30W 1D

Today was our 30 weeks check up. Let me start off with stating some numerical facts about my particular pregnancy at 30 weeks. Numerically speaking.... I am 30 weeks pregnant and I will be turning 30 years old on Tuesday. Doesn't that just say to you "meant-to-be". God really lines these things up with much thought in mind. He is so rad!

So this morning we went to my OB check-up. If you remember, last month (at 26W 1D), I measured 31cm fundal height. Pregnant women should measure about 2-3cm +/- within the number week of pregnancy. So at 26w I should have been in the range of about 23-29cm fundal height. Since measuring at 31cm, Dr. Kaldas said that if I measure the same at my next appt (which was today), we are ok, BUT if I measure more, he wants to order an ultrasound to see exactly how big the baby really is. Are you wondering what I measured this morning? Sure you are..... Ok, I will tell ya. 37cm. Yes, holy crap!! Dr. Kaldas said we surely have a big boy growing and a good amount of amniotic fluid. He ordered the ultrasound for my next appt, which will be in 2 weeks. Yup, we are now at the point in our pregnancy that we will go see the Dr every 2 weeks.

We also got to talk to one of the nurses. She gave us all kinds of "homework" to do between now and 35 weeks. Mostly stuff to measure (kick counts and early contractions), and other stuff to be aware of that might indicate early labor. Definately good stuff to know, that's for sure! Then we got a couple goody-bags. A diaper bag and a cooler thingy. Inside these bags were a TON of free samples, coupons, info, magazines, etc... Once we got home, I spent a good hour and a half going thru all the coupons and organizing them. I pulled out the coupons and freebies Motherhood Maternity gave me and added those as well.

Oh, by the way, I am off today. I took a vacation day (very much needed might I add), and Tom and I are spending the day/evening together as a late anniversary celebration. Since he works 2nd shift, we didn't get to spend last week Thursday (10/9) together. We have a suite reserved at The Copperleaf downtown Appleton, and we're gonna go get checked in there soon. Then we'll stroll down College Ave, have a romantic dinner at The Bar on the Ave for some much need and much anticipated BBQ/Hot Chicken Wings! Sure, not your typical romantic anniversary dinner, but we've both been craving these wings for a long time! We used to have them every Sunday when Tom was in a volleyball league....and that was before he got sick...before the cancer, so you know how long that has been.

Oh, you don't? That's ok, we keep track! This month, in fact, this next week is 3 years!!!!! 3 years cancer-free!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He's now on a 6-month check-up schedule with his Oncologist and Dermatologist. This is still for the study he is involved in for science. Remember the study wasn't about the type of chemo he had, it was about the combination he had vs the usual treatment to determine life expectancy so that someday when a person is diagnosed, the doctors can give them options rather than just one type of treatment. So far in 3 years Tom has never had a relapse or any bad x-rays/labs to worry about. *knock on wood* We couldn't be happier for God's plan for us. Getting through that rough time has made us stronger, more loving, more appreciative, and even that much more anxious to welcome our Miracle Baby into the world! In fact, next weekend is the baby shower and it sure is going to be interesting to see the baby's room full of baby stuff and not an empty room that used to be the spare bedroom. Makes me smile to imagine our little son cozy in his room.

Ok, so here's what's going on in Pregnancy Week 30:

The light is visible at the end of the tunnel! Your oversized self and amazing growing baby have finally reached the single digits (in terms of weeks till birth)! The fine lanugo hair that has been growing all over their little monkey-like body is going to start falling off this week in preparation for the big day. But don’t be shocked if they’re hairier than you’d anticipated, some babies keep their lanugo until after birth. Still, it’s not any cause to be concerned as it will fall off eventually. No surprises here: your little porker is getting even cuter with increasingly pudgy arms and legs this week thanks to the ever-growing layers of subcutaneous fat. In terms of numbers, your baby should be weighing in at around 3 pounds 12 ounces (or more!) and be nearly 16 inches long.

*hugs*

Roxanne :)

It's not just in the water.....

You know the saying. When more than 2 or 3 people you know are pregnant at the same time people say.... "It's in the water."

Well I am here to tell you that it's not just in the water....
My girlfriend recently told me of another friend of ours, her sister-in-law, who is expecting. I'm so thrilled to hear this kind of news, a human life is more amazing to me now than ever before. My friend comically states that she's "not drinking the water here," she's "buyin' bottled water!" Well, my dear, I just heard the news of another friend who is expecting and SHE drinks bottled water!! hehee So the old saying "it's in the water....." IT'S NOT JUST IN THE WATER, my dear. :)

Are you wondering who is all pregnant? I'm sure you are my fellow blog followers. I will share with you... this is so much fun!!

ME - December 25, 2008
friend Jamie - December 22, 2008
friend Toni - January 20, 2009
friend Megan - March 2009
friend Julie - Twins! March 2009
friend Crystal - April 2009
friend Trisha - May 2009

Blue means BOY, Purple means GIRL, and Green means TBD.

Are you expecting? Congratulations!! Please share it with the world!! :)

By the way -- I have to share this. My pregnancy has been so great. I couldn't ask for a better baby, a better husband, a better body... it's been everything and more than I ever imagined it would be.

TWILIGHT - THE MOVIE!!

YEAH!!!!!!!!!! I CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS MOVIE TO COME TO THE THEATER ON 11-21-2008!!! WHOOO-HOOOO!!!!! CHECK OUT THE NEW TRAILIER JUST RELEASED TODAY!!!

Twilight the movie - My Space

Twilightthemovie.com - home page

29 weeks update

This is SO cool! I have been feeling the butterfly tingling similar to the very beginning at 17 weeks. I just didn't know this butterfly was my baby boy's hiccups! Here's what babygaga.com says is going on this week:

Fetal development in pregnancy week 29: If you’ve been feeling butterflies moving around in your belly, it’s not just your run-of-the-mill pre-birth performance anxiety. No, it’s your amazing baby with a case of the hiccups: a fairly common occurrence at this point resulting from practicing breathing for their big birthday. In addition, to getting a round of butterfly-like hiccups, your little swimmer has arduously managed to accumulate enough baby fat to account for nearly 3.5% of their overall body weight. Yeah, compared to we adults, it’s not a lot, but when they’re little like that—it’s certainly a healthy (and warming) accomplishment in its way. Another fantastic accomplishment: your baby's spleen is now in charge of hematopoiesis—the 10 dollar name for the process involved in building up certain important blood components. Another fantastic-accomplishment: your little monkey has been peeing into their amniotic sac for a little while now (this is why potty training takes a while) and if you didn’t know, actually swallows it along with the rest of the amniotic fluid. Although the concept is nasty, their urine is sterile and as part of the amniotic fluid base, is replaced several times throughout the day. So if you didn’t know before, now you can tell people, that yes, you drank your own urine—you were still in the womb, but nonetheless, you’ve been there.


We Love you baby boy,
Mommy & Daddy

Restless Night

The title says it all.

All I did last night was toss and turn. I couldn't get comfortable, and the baby picked up on that. Apparently he thought it was time to get up, cuz he just wouldn't let me sleep. I awoke every hour, got up twice, and finally moved to the couch by Theo at 5am, and then snoozed to my alarm for 40 minutes!

Restless Night.

Hope tonight is better. 79 days to go. Can't wait to meet our little guy!

Roxanne

Fall is in the air!

I love this season. Fall. It is my favorite season. The changing colors of the leaves. The crisp, cool breeze. I love this season. And even though we don't have any trees on our property, we still get to rake leaves. The leaves of our neighbors trees. We are grateful for the shade our neighbors trees provide us, and usually this time of year as the leaves start to fall, I get annoyed. But not this year. This year I am actually looking forward to raking leaves. It's when we rake that I get the best smells of fall leaves. In fact, last year I did much of the raking myself since I was laid off of my job at the time. Those days gone by, I sure loved sleeping in, reading my book, and doing what I wanted when I wanted. Today is very much a typical Wisconsin Fall day. The crisp breeze blows through my hair and the smell of changing leaves whisps past my nose. Here is what our 7-day forecast looks like:

This Friday I get out of work around 2pm, and from that time on, Tom and I have a full plate. Friday morning we are getting new basement windows installed. The job will take about 8 hours. When I get home, Tom and I will get going on the baby's room again. We've got to make space in the basement for the mattress and box spring, wrapped and sealed in plastic. Then I can find places for the few misc items in the baby's room, clear it out and steam clean the carpets while Tom gets the family crib out of the garage rafters. He'll clean it down good, bring it in the house and we will attempt to put it together. I hope the directions survived through the years, or we'll be in for quite the time figuring this one out. Once we get the crib set up and in place, we will be ready to shop for a dresser, which will make it's home as the changing table as well. The plan is so the dresser will be our little boy's dresser until he moves out of Mommy & Daddy's house, so it's got to last a long time!

Saturday we will be attending our nephew, Eric Schwandt's, tackle football game. Tom went the last time and had a blast! They play football music as each little player is announced, and Eric had long carries, good drives and awesome plays last time. Tom said the funniest part is how he walks out on the field like he's "the shizzle." Anyone who knows this 9-yr old can totally picture him in the act! So I am looking forward to the event, and I even might be able to borrow my mom's new Nikon D40 with super zoom (non-technical term) lens so I can get some good shots of him. They even have the kids' last names on the back of their jerseys! Isn't that just every little boy's dream!

Sunday will be church in the morning, then at Noon we are taking a CPR class at the hospital. I don't ever want to see my baby with a blue face, so the more educated we are, the safer we will be. Tom and I both had a CPR class back in Junior High at the Brigade, but man that was A LOT of years ago! So while the Packers are attempting to play Pro Football, we will be much to busy learning survival and safety.

What kind of exciting things have you got going on this fall? Do you like raking leaves? I hope you all have a good rest of the week and a fun weekend! I'll be back to post again soon!