Cleaning Challenge

I'm on the FlyLady list, and receive daily emails for a great cleaning system for the house...one that uses baby steps and breaks large projects into 15 minute spurts; one that tries to combat perfectionism, not that I have an ongoing battle with perfectionism or anything, (drip, drip).

Anyway, I thought that while on maternity leave I would have the opportunity or take the time to actually DO the things included in these daily emails, but I seem to only manage a few days at a time each week before I stop. Apparently the routine part of this system hasn't quite stuck yet.

So today, my cleaning challenge is to see how many of the small 'projects' from the emails that I can do today.  (Nah, that doesn't fly in the face of the FlyLady baby step principle or anything)  Here is the list of things I managed to do this afternoon:

• purge underneath the kitchen sink (get rid of almost-empty cleaners that don't spray because they're so empty, etc)
• decluttered the food storage containers
• decluttered and reorganized the pantry (then moved on to the drawer in the kitchen that serves as a 'junk' drawer - it's amazing how many pairs of 3D glasses we have kept after the movies!)
• swept and mopped kitchen floor
• cleaned the ceiling vents in the bathroom
• cleaned off the left side of our desk (odd one, I know)
• cleaned bathroom door knobs
• cleaned the right side of the desk (tackle it one step at a time)
• cleaned screen on the computer monitor
• made list of items needed for bathroom (conditioner is out!) and office (printer paper, anyone? wishing I had bought some for the house when I bought for Kellen's school supplies!)
• cleaned baseboards in both bathrooms (and they still look dirty...I think it's the paint, as they are in dire need of a new coat of paint.  But this is a rent house and we aren't doing that.)
• cleaned the front of both bathroom vanities
• 5 Minute Room Rescue (folded and put away 3 loads of laundry)
• cleaned off the 'stuff' that had accumulated on the top of the dryer, then cleaned the washing machine and dryer (it's amazing how dusty they both get and how you just don't notice it!)
• cleaned the glass on the front door, mirrors in both bathrooms, and the full length mirror in the master bedroom
• cleaned out my purse
• dusted walls and ceiling in master bedroom
• cleaned fan and air conditioner vent in master bedroom
• cleaned out my car (pulled all of the kids stuff and trash out (isn't it odd how some things could fit into both categories), vacuumed, and sprayed with fabric freshener

It's an odd list, I know, but it's my attempt to do some of the things I've been meaning to do while I've been home.  Now, if I could only do the regular house keeping items on a regular basis. Oh wait, that's called a routine.

Care to share yours?

Delusions....

Well, my full-time maternity leave is rapidly coming toward an end...with a day and a half left to go.  Apparently I'm fairly delusional about things....I envisioned my maternity leave to include such things as:

• daily walks with Jacey
• small moments (maybe 15 minutes??) of laying out in the sun (yes, I am aware it's horrible for you, but it's SUCH a stress relief for me!)
• finishing all of the kids baby books
• scrapbooking and/or other crafts
• cleaning house
• reading for FUN
• blogging on a regular basis

Yeah right.

My maternity leave has actually consisted of:

• a couple of walks with Jacey until I admitted that it was too stinkin' HOT for her to be outside...at ANY time of the day
• 1 lone jog, sans any and all kids
• cleaning house (to only have it look like I did NOTHING the next day, or later on that night)
• laundry, laundry and more laundry
• changing diapers, diapers and more diapers (and we aren't even on cloth diapers yet, so this one and the last aren't related!)
• baby books gathering dust, with me desperately trying to remember when the first time it was that Jacey boggled my mind when I caught her on her back AFTER she had been put down for tummy-time (funny - those milestones were a little easier to record with #1 and #2)
• starting a book for fun, not finishing said book (speaking of...I'm not even sure where that stinkin' book is!)
• do I even need to mention my lack of updating this blog?
• nursing (Repeat, repeat, repeat - hmmm...an average of 8 times a day for 5 1/2 weeks now - yowzers!)
• burping Jacey, then cleaning up Jacey's spit-up (Repeat, repeat, repeat)
• snuggling with and kissing on my sweet Jacey princess (can't even begin to count the number of hours spent snuggling or how many times I've kissed that sweet face!)

Now, I have been brave some and have done some day trips with the kids to infuse some fun into this time.  We took a day trip to the Mayborn Children's Museum on the Baylor campus in Waco (the older two had a blast, and Jacey just slept and ate).  Last week we did a slew of activities with Maw Maw and Paw Paw, which the kids enjoyed immensely.  Monday we watched Despicable Me in 3D, then went to Incredible Pizza and watched 101 Dalmations.  Tuesday we ate a late breakfast at IHop then went to The Woodlands Children's Museum, then had frozen yogurt at TCBY's, then headed back to Maw Maw and Paw Paw's for an in-house showing of The Aristocats.  Wednesday we went to the Johnson Space Center in Houston and closed the place down, and stopped at Chili's on the way back home for dinner.  That particular excursion was fun, but I think we might wait a few years before doing that one again.  There was stuff for Kellen to do, but not as many interactive things as either Matt or I thought there would be.  Poor Tatum, she was pretty much told all day long that she was just "too little" to do virtually any of the activities.  Thursday was a more laid-back day, with backyard pool fun on the deck, and then we headed back to College Station.  On Friday, I took Tatum to school and Kellen, Jacey and I hung out, getting things ready for back-to-school.  We ventured out to Wal-Mart for a tax-free shopping outing so get a few t-shirts for Kellen and lots of diapers for Jacey (I haven't gotten any cloth diapers for her just yet and am thinking about waiting until she can fit into the ones we already had for Tatum).

So as you can see, I wasn't a complete home body.  My mom thinks I'm crazy for all of the outings we have done.  I can't say I disagree with her totally.  There's a fine line between brave and stupid, and I might have crossed over that line a little with all of the outings, but I wanted the kids to have fun as their summer was winding to a close.

Perhaps my Supermom complex is starting to show through...you know, the one where you think you can do so much more than you actually can - at least more than you can do and maintain some semblance of sanity.  'Cause I apparently suffer from that syndrome every now and again....

Time Warp

So I have entered into a time warp...one where over 3 weeks have gone by since Jacey graced us with her presence, one where Tatum has moved into the 'big girl' classroom this week, and one where Kellen will start the 2nd grade in less than 2 weeks.

I feel like singing the Time Warp song from the Rocky Horror Picture Show...'Let's do the time warp again...'

I'm going to turn around and the girls will be teenagers. Oh my.

So...let's get everyone (or the five people who read this blog) updated on the variety of things that have taken place since I updated the blog last....

Jacey's arrival
I was slated to arrive at the hospital at 10 PM, and Matt and I went to the hospital, got settled in, and when I was checked, I was 30% effaced and about 1 cm dilated.  And apparently I had/have a posterior cervix, which was making it difficult to check me. (Fun for me!)

Here's the delivery time line...

• 11:40 PM, Cytotel medicine (to get my body ready for labor. Once administered, they ordered me to stay in bed for 2 hours - no problem!  I actually got to sleep a little!)
• 2:15 - 3:30 AM, Up and walking the halls (I was a sweet laboring woman and let Matt sleep for the first 45 minutes of my walking, then decided that I wanted someone to enjoy my misery with me share the experience with me)
• 3:40 AM (Saturday), 1 cm dilated (Way to go, body) and 50% effaced (Woo hoo)
• 3:45 - 5:40 AM, Napped!!
• 5:40 AM, Another dose of cytotel (The meds could only be given 6 hours apart, so this was the earliest they could give me the 2nd dose.  We had HOPED that my body would have progressed a little and that they would be able to start the pitocin at this point.  Unfortunately, I guess my body and Jacey had other ideas! I was still at 1 cm)
• 7:10 AM, Dose of staydol (Apparently, the cytotel was getting things going, and the nurses continued to ask if I wanted any meds.  I was determined to make it through this birth WITHOUT an epidural, and decided to get some staydol just to take the 'edge' off of the contractions)
• 8:45 AM, 1-2 cm, Doctor broke my water and indicated he needed about 15 minutes lead time to get back up to the hospital for the delivery.
• 9:45 AM, 3 cm, Pitocin started, another dose of staydol
• 10:42 AM, 4 cm
• 10:50 AM, Another dose of staydol
• 11:25ish AM, Dr arrived, 9 cm, and another contraction later I was begging to push.  Once everyone had taken their places, I pushed for about 5 minutes and......
• 11:34 AM, Jacey born!

The grandparents and the kids came in to see me at about 10:30 AM or so...the kids wanted to see us and present Jacey with her gifts, so they came in to check on me and then everyone went and waited for Jacey. As you can see from the picture below, Tatum was a little bit concerned, and I'm not sure that seeing me made much of a difference.

Apparently I am a power pusher.  With every birth I've gone through, I've busted the blood vessels in my eyes and on my face.  This one was no different....blood vessels busted in my eyes, all over my face and neck, and I even made my own nose bleed during the pushing as well.  I guess that's why Matt said she shot out like a rocket?

And, like her brother, she had the cord wrapped around her neck. Twice. But I apparently also had excess cord, so it wasn't wrapped tightly, which was probably why we didn't see it on the ultrasound.  Either that or she managed to wrap it during delivery.

7 lb, 2 oz
19 1/2 inches long
11:34 AM
July 17
Jacey Victoria Hapes

Our bookend baby!

The kids came in shortly later to meet their sister.  They loved her immediately, of course!

And here is one of the first pictures of newly expanded family!

I stayed in the hospital through Monday, and left shortly after lunch on Monday.  Kellen's birthday was on Tuesday, and his birthday party was the following weekend.

Kellen's birthday
We decided to have the birthday party at GattiTown, and as we have learned, not many of Kellen's school friends could make it (darn summer birthdays!).  However, he had some church and family friends in attendance, and he had a GREAT time!

He is obviously in to super heroes....Spiderman cake (thank you, Heather!) and plenty of Spiderman, Iron Man, and other comic heroes for gifts.

Jacey's first bath
Jacey is speedier than the other two, and her cord fell off at the 10 day mark.  Lucky for me, grandma was still here and was able to keep her bath-streak going.  She's given each of my kiddos their first FULL bath after the cords have fallen off.  She happens to LOVE giving babies baths and I do not.  Really.  I know that seems to be something lots of parents look forward to, but I don't like it.  The babies are too little, squirmy, and slick.  I feel like they're going to pop right out of my hands and arms when I'm giving them baths when they're teeny tiny.  I know, I know...I'm a wierdo!

Anyway, once we got the water temperature correct, Jacey LOVED her bath!  In her pink tub, nonetheless...

Although her face may not show it, she really DID like her bath!  According to her Paw Paw, she's a serious girl.  In actuality, she doesn't like bright lights and I miss her happy faces because of my flash!  She ADORES getting her head played with...hair washed, head rubbed and/or stroked (which both of the kids do quite often), and hair brushed.  Loves it!

Tatum's crazy hair/hat day
Tatum's school has been trying to have a 'fun' event at least once a week during the summer.  Last week it was crazy hair or hat day.  In Tatum's case, she picked out a hat (which had a matching purse to go along with it) and I did her hair in low pig-tails.  I figured when she finally got tired of the hat and pulled it off we would accomplish the crazy hair bit as well.

Kinda' like a two for one deal!

Isn't she just stinkin' adorable???


Kellen's Music Camp Performance
Last week Kellen was at music camp, marking the second year in a row that he's participated in this camp in Conroe.  He did a wonderful job during the performance, singing and doing the movements, etc.  He's such a ham!

It was themed - GPS (God's Plan for Salvation)...such a great show!!

And of course, one of his biggest fans was his sister Tatum!

Jacey behaved quite well, despite my concern...I was convinced I wasn't going to get a chance to watch anything, and she pretty much slept her way through the performance.  Yay!

Cookie monster!

I had an intense craving today for no-bake chocolate cookies.  So intense that I fought the urge to leave work and go home to make them.  I fought the urge ALL AFTERNOON LONG!

After I picked Tatum up and before we went to meet our Sunday school dinner group, this is what our kitchen counter looked like.

Tatum and I both sampled the chocolatey goodness and were very pleased with the results.  She was a great helper, even if I was paranoid that she was going to burn herself on the stove while I was cooking them (and yes, I kept her away from the hot stove very well).

A few (ahem...) additional cookies after getting home from Chic-fil-A and my craving is satisfied.  I think.  Now, if only I could put them away for good and stop eating them.

Weekend Fun

So indulge me while I backtrack just a bit to this weekend.  We were able to get some things done around the house on Saturday, and Matt was kind enough to let me sleep away most of Sunday to rest.

In the midst of my nap, he must have fallen asleep as well.

As you can see, it's probably not a good idea for both adults to be asleep at the same time in our house.  Apparently the kids, Tatum specifically, felt like Daddy needed some doctoring.

Monday's Mission Accomplished

My home to-do list consisted of:

• Laundry
• Dishes
• Kitchen Counters
• Sweep and Mop Kitchen Floor
• Vacuum (the entire house)
• Soak in the bath with some bath goodies

I managed to complete all tasks (well, you and I both know that laundry is NEVER actually finished) except for the vacuuming last night and rewarded myself (and my aching back) with a soak in the tub.

It was so nice and relaxing that I actually fell asleep in the tub.  I'm not sure that had the desired effect on my aching back!

This morning, I finished off the list by putting in another load of laundry and vacuuming the house (all rooms except Kellen's).  Pretty good job on my to-do list, if I say so myself!

Let the countdown begin!

Had another ultrasound and non-stress today and both turned out fine.  She's hanging in there on the low end of the 'normal' range for AFI.  And she gained a whopping half a pound in three days!

Yup.  You read that correctly.  She went from 6 lb, 6 oz on Friday to 6 lb, 14 oz today (give or take 7 oz to each of those).

The doc popped his head in to say hi and I took advantage of the opportunity to ask about induction.  And we're now scheduled to go into the hospital THIS Friday at 10 PM to begin the process.

As you can see, my maniac-ness is continuing.  I thought about it, bugged Matt, then asked both Aunt Boo and Kellen what they thought about holding off on the birthday party for a week and having Jacey this weekend instead.  To be fair, I actually asked Kellen if he wanted Jacey to come before his birthday and/or birthday party.  He said yes.  He wanted her to come before his birthday and birthday party so that she could come to the party, too.  And let's be realistic...there's no way Aunt Boo is going to come down here so close to his birthday and NOT celebrate it.

So he'll end up getting a family birthday celebration and his 'real' birthday party out of the deal (although he doesn't know that) and we're good!

By my calculations, I have 4 nights to finish up the projects around the house.  And tonight Tatum and I went to the pool so that she could have a swim lesson and I could float.  I'm so glad that I went ahead and mustered up the energy to do that!  She and I had fun playing before her lesson, she had fun with Cymon during her lesson, I was able to float in water that was amazingly cool, and even swam some (slow) laps while she was having her lesson.  And I actually feel a little refreshed!

Praise the Lord!

We got home, I bathed her, we had dinner, got ready for bed, read and she's tucked in all tuckered out.  Nice!

Now on to my maniac ways.  I've been having contractions since about 3:30 or so this afternoon.  For about 2 hours they were 3-9 minutes apart.  A little more sporadic than what would be considered 'real' labor, if I remember correctly, but strong ones nonetheless.  They stopped while we were at the pool (for the most part), and started back up when we got back home.  I'm thinking they're nothing, other than a nusiance.

So, to continue with mustering energy, I have unloaded and loaded the dishwasher and the dishes are washing right now.  I've done 3 loads of laundry (so far) tonight, and have a stack of clean laundry to fold and put away.  I've swept and mopped the kitchen floor and cleaned off the counters.  I've picked up quite a bit in the living room, and wanted to vacuum the house, but since Tatum is already in bed and asleep, I'll try to do that in the morning before we leave for the day.

And I'm determined to soak in the tub tonight and use some more of my rediscovered 'goodies' from the bathroom cleaning spree.

Wish me luck!

My maniac ways continue.....

Tatum and I went grocery shopping after I picked her up today, and before putting the groceries away, I decided that, despite being exhausted from work and the simple excursion to the store, that it was the PERFECT time to deep clean the refrigerator.

Maniac!

But, it does look much better, even though I didn't completely finish due to a finger injury.  Apparently the corner portion of the microwave is incredibly sharp, and when you clean next to it without paying complete attention (or have an incredibly pins-n-needles, carpel-tunnel-like hand), you can rip quite a bit of skin away from underneath your fingernail.  OUCH!

Project done, at least for now...that's my cue to sit down, relax, put my feet up, and watch a movie with Tatum.

Maniac...

That's what I've felt like almost all day...beginning at shortly after 4 AM when Tatum burst into my room, poked me, and asked me if it was wake up time.  When I told her no, she asked if she could snuggle with me, got into bed, snuggled, and promptly fell back asleep.

I didn't.

Not that it would have mattered too much, because my brain was doing crazy things to me in my sleep last night.  Note to self: do NOT look up diagnoses on the internet before bedtime.  And by the way, 'oligohydramnios' is the fancy word for the condition of low amniotic fluid.  AFI is the acronym for amniotic fluid index.  A normal AFI is between 8-18 cm, 5-6 cm classifies you as oligohydramnios, and they use measurements from the four quadrants during the ultrasound to get the number.  You know, in case you were wondering.

Crazy me, I dreamed about various scenarios related to Jacey and her AFI all night last night and was virtually convinced that I was going to go in for my ultrasound today and then head straight to the hospital.

Maniac, I tell you.  Maniac.

So immediately prior to going to sleep, I started writing all of the things that I could think of that I needed to get done at work, and some home-related items, before having Jacey.  And I worked from that to-do list quite a bit today, but it still isn't all completed.

Maniac.

However, I went to the doctors for my check-up, passed my non-stress test with flying colors, and had a great ultrasound.  Jacey was even trying to talk to us.  Or swallow.  Or something, while we watched her.  And she's even lower now than she was earlier in the week, and without her starting to actually come out, I didn't realize that was even possible!  (In case you're wondering, her AFI was a little over 9 cm...so we're in the clear for her fluid levels right now!)  She's measuring a whopping 6 pounds, 6 ounces at this point, and with three weeks and 2 days left to go (officially), she may end up being the biggest of our kiddos yet!  If she decides to wait that long.  Or if I decide to let her wait that long.  The doc said he would be ok with inducing me late next week, but we're looking at quite a few conflicting logistics for that to actually occur next weekend....an ABS reunion Saturday, Aunt Boo coming (I think it would be nice if she got to meet Jacey while she were here, but...), then we're ALSO planning Kellen's birthday party for Sunday afternoon (and we probably wouldn't be able to guarantee that we would be out of the hospital in time to actually make it to Kellen's birthday party, and I'm not really ok with that).  In a perfect world, my plan would be to go in to get induced Thursday night, have her Friday morning, get released from the hospital on Saturday, then have Kellen's party on Sunday.

Did I mention that I'm in maniac mode over here??

Anyway, the weather wasn't really cooperating for Tatum to have her swim lesson tonight, so we headed to Target to pick up some odds and ends for Jacey instead.  I had forgotten how quickly things add up when you're dealing with baby gear!  Breastmilk storage bags, cream, pads, a bottle, extra nipples, etc....Craziness!

Tatum was being her usual chatterbox self, and I finally asked her to be quiet for just 5 minutes as we were checking out.  How did the little toot respond, "How about 2 minutes, Mommy?"

The lady checking us out laughed, then (in all seriousness), looked at me, pointed to my belly, and asked if I was having another one.  On the outside, I smiled, shook my head and said "Yes, another girl." On the inside I wanted so badly to look at her with the same level of seriousness on my face and say, "I'm sorry, what do you mean? Why do you ask?"  People, I'm way past the point of trying to ask in a nonchalant way.  And if she really didn't know I was pregnant, whoa buddy.....I look like I have a watermelon sticking straight out in front of me!  She completely cracked me up!

Progress....

So Matt and I really made some progress on the house this weekend....we're getting there, but still have much to do.  You know when you really go through things that you end up making more of a mess before it all becomes clean, orderly and tidy, right?  Well, that's where we are.

Tatum's bed got moved from "their" room to the "girls" room late yesterday afternoon, and that room is shaping up quite nicely (apologies in advance for the poor picture quality...photo taken with my phone).

As you can see, both beds are in there, and other than the cradle (the odd looking thing up on its side), things are pretty well in place.  I still need to assemble the changing table and organize it, but it's certainly getting there!  There is the other bookshelf in there as well (against the wall you can't see) and it looks really nice.

The unintended outcome of our progress were the reactions the kids had last night to bedtime.  They were non-too-happy to no longer be sharing a room with each other.  Tatum bawled.  And bawled.  And bawled some more...even with Daddy AND Mommy trying to comfort her.  Kellen was a little better, but sad, and tried to comfort Tatum in the meantime.  And the odd thing is that Tatum wants to share a room with Jacey (but in her defense, there is no Jacey outside of Mommy's tummy yet, soo......)

And in the living room, the computer desk and computer are all set up, and Matt spent much of yesterday afternoon and evening getting things organized in there.

Next up on the list, assemble and organize the changing table in the girls room, clean up Kellen's room, and finalize the living/dining room transformation.

Whew!

We're getting there....

So Matt and I have managed to swap bookshelves (taking the one from the "play" room into the living room and the one from the living room into the "play" room), purged items from said bookshelves, and have gone through toys in bins and books (both ours and the kids).

I also inventoried all of the girl 0-3 month clothes, washed, folded them, and they're now put away in the former "play", soon to be girls, room on the newly inserted bookshelf.

Next up, moving the computer desk and computer into the living room, rearranging the furniture in there, bringing Tatum's bed back into the girls room, and then setting up the changing table.  I'm hoping we'll get all of this done by the end of the day tomorrow (it would be wonderful if it was all done today, but I know that I'm certainly running out of steam!).

Just can't take it anymore!

Those are the words Kellen said to me as he walked back out of his room and into the bathroom, determined to pull the loose tooth.  And so he did.

So, he's lost both middle bottom teeth and now the top right side tooth (you know, the right one of the front pair).

He just yanked that sucker right outta there!

When did he get so big?  I remember marking down in his baby book and on our calendar when he first got those teeth.....

To back the story up, he and I had a date night tonight...just us.  It's been the first time in ages that he and I have gotten to spend time together, so I picked him up, we went and got pizza and a milkshake (and used two more of the coupons that expired today, thank you very much) then headed home, where he got to select the movie of his choosing.  We hung out, then read a book about dolphins (he chose, not me...although I adore dolphins!) and he read it to me.  He's such a good reader!  Then he got all ready for bed and was putting himself to bed when he decided that he was done with the loose tooth.

Hangin' in there....

If folks ask me how I'm doing, that's the response they're most likely to get.  Is it sad that I officially have over 4 weeks left and I'm already to the 'hangin' in there' point?

"give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." - 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NIV)

• I don't feel like giving thanks right now because my body is a human humidity reader, swelling larger and larger the higher the humidity levels go.
• I don't feel like giving thanks right now because it takes me longer than I think it should to actually be able to move once I get up from sitting down.
• I don't feel like giving thanks right now because the face I see in the mirror no longer resembles the image of me that I have in my head.
• I don't feel like giving thanks right now because I am seeing way too many numbers on the clock throughout the night.
• I don't feel like giving thanks right now because I'm having to trek to the bathroom every half hour.

BUT, this verse, and many others with the same overall theme, don't tell me to give thanks when I think my circumstances warrant it.

"give thanks in ALL CIRCUMSTANCES..."

Pretty straight-forward, isn't it?

How do you give thanks when you feel blah?  If you have the answer, let me know, but I'm guessing you adopt a Nike attitude and JUST DO IT.

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." - Romans 8:28 (NIV)

In all things.

So, God is working for the good in:

• the fact that my body is a human humidity reader
• the fact that it takes me longer than I think it should to actually be able to move once I get up from sitting down
• the fact that the face I see in the mirror no longer resembles the image of me that I have in my head
• the fact that I'm seeing lots of numbers on the clock throughout the night
• the fact that I'm having to go to the bathroom every half hour

He has a plan for all of this.  (And you're probably thinking, 'Well, duh, Rebecca....the plan is for you to be able to deliver a little baby girl!')  Well yes, but considering that some lucky folks go through their pregnancy with very little 'unpleasant' symptoms, I think there might be more to the plan than just delivering.

We'll see.  And I'll trust.

But if you ask me how I'm doing and I'll still probably answer, "I'm hangin' in there!"

Interesting facts....

• My kids are apparently so competitive that challenging them to a race -- one to determine who can fall asleep the fastest -- actually works.  Yeah, I'm cool like that.  (Don't you wish you would have thought of it? - Go ahead, steal the idea...it works!)
• In the time it takes to cook ramen noodles (cut me some slack, they looked really good to me at the store tonight! And I didn't buy the oreos that I really wanted), I can unload the dishwasher. (The kids ate a much healthier dinner, in case you're wondering)
• In the time it takes for said noodles to cool, I can reload the dishwasher and clean off the kitchen counters. (Who knew?)
• I apparently have no "off" button for popcicles right now.

Like a weed.....

growing, that is.  According to the ultrasound today, Jacey is measuring 5 lb 12 oz, and we officially have 4 weeks and 5 days to go.

Just for comparison sake, Tatum weighed in at 6 lb, 8.8 oz when she was born at 38 weeks.  Kellen was 7 lb, 2 oz full-term.

After the scariness that was Friday at the doctors office, today went much smoother.  Nevermind the fact that we had technical difficulties during the non-stress test - at least they were technical, not problems with Jacey!  After being hooked up for probably 10 minutes, when the nurse came in to check on me she realized that the machine had run out of paper and we hadn't actually recorded anything.  So they restocked the machine and started over. 

And not only could I hear her movements, I could feel them, too!  YAY!

And the ultrasound looked good.  Good fluid levels, still no appearance of the cord around her neck, and great growth.

So stay tuned for Friday's installment....

Cleaning

So for those of you who know me, you know I aspire to have a clean house but my wishes and reality don't always line up.

Today Matt is at a Sunday school golf tourney with the guys, and I'm going to see just how much I can get accomplished (with periodic breaks - I AM in the about-to-pop-pregnant mode, here) before he gets home.

Note: I'm going to work on the post in pieces as I take breaks, so I apologize in advance if it's somewhat disjointed.

First on the list, hit the "hot spots" (thank you FlyLady for the terminology).  For those of you not in the know, "hot spots" are the flat surfaces around your house where you dump things.  In my house, there are many of them, including the butcher block in the kitchen, the dining room table, the cabinet in the dining room, our love seat (which is currently covered in Matt's clean and folded clothes that he assures me he'll put away later on today), the desk, and our night stands.  I've tacked the butcher block and moved to our bedroom to tackle the night stands.  Matt's didn't take very long, but mine has taken more than a half hour because I'm actually going through things and getting rid of junk.

And apparently I feel the need to harbor all of this JUNK right next to my bed on my night stand.  Ug.  Must. stop. the. pattern.  I want my bedroom to feel like a retreat....not something we need to retreat FROM!  So I'm actually taking an aside from the hot spots and have decided to focus on our bedroom.....I have cleaned off our nightstands, GONE THROUGH the STUFF that was on (and around) my nightstand (and shockingly, this took the l-o-n-g-e-s-t amount of time), pulled the miscellaneous stuff from underneath the bed, and cleaned the TV stand (which also functions nicely as a hot spot).  I now have magazines and papers from way too long ago thrown away, coupons clipped and organized in their rightful place, and clean floors (and by clean I mean uncluttered, not vacuumed - I haven't made it that far yet).

Nice!

And here is question for the masses (or the 3 people that actually read this blog) - what do you do with the kiddo keepsakes?  I mean what do you really DO with them?  The mother's day cards, the cute notes and drawings, etc.  Do you put them in a box, do you take a picture of them, what???  Please tell me your secrets, because my kids are incredibly loving and make things for me that I truly do not know what to do with.  Help!

I'm now putting away the lingering clean clothes from the room...then I believe I WILL vacuum to complete the transformation.  I am resisting the urge to pull EVERYTHING out of the closet floor (isn't it amazing how much stuff happens to fall to the floor of your closet and goes unnoticed???) because I don't know if I will have enough time to go through it all before Matt gets home, and I would like him to see what appears to be a finalized project.  Resist I must.

But perhaps later....

And the stuff under the sink in our bathroom is calling me to go through it as well.....

Baby update

Well, she's still baking, but sure did scare me yesterday.

I went in for my non-stress and doctor appointment, and had ingested my Dr. Pepper immediately prior to like advised.  When I went in, they gave me yet another Dr. Pepper, just to be on the safe side.  Well, after getting hooked up to the machine for the non-stress, I realized that I still couldn't feel her (much).  A few minutes later, the doctor comes in to check on me and I inform him that in general, her movements have diminished dramatically over the last week and that I'm just not feeling her move nearly as often as I had. 

He had apparently already gone through my files looking for any patterns of this, and had found none.  So he was paying attention.  His response was that we were going to get to the bottom of it. TODAY. If he didn't like the way the non-stress looked, he was going to do another ultrasound to check on her, and depending on that, possibly send me to L&D for a contraction stress test (using pitocin to cause contractions and monitor how she responded to those).  And despite the fact that we want her to 'bake' for two more weeks to be considered full-term, if he didn't like that, she was coming outta there.

After I finished the 2nd Dr. Pepper, they moved me to my left side to see if that would get her going even more, and he stayed in the room with me listening and monitoring.

Funny thing was, we realized we could hear her movements on the machine, but I couldn't feel them.  At all. So we started 'ticking' the movements as we heard them, rather than as I felt them.  When we did that, she passed the non-stress test.

So my big question - Why am I not feeling her move when it's apparent that she is?  He didn't have a definitive answer to that one...

Still concerned, he has the ultrasound machine pulled into the room and does an ultrasound on her.  After he searched for a while, I finally asked him what he was looking for - and he was checking her fluid levels as well as trying to see if she had the cord wrapped around her neck.  Well, because she's head down - and VERY head down, he actually had to move her out of my pelvis with one hand and try to get a picture of her head and neck with the u/s using the other.

Ouch.

With her head momentarily out of my pelvis, we're able to clearly see her head and her spine, and do NOT see evidence that the umbilical cord is wrapped around her neck.  And her fluid levels look good.

Praise God!

So we're still left with my big question.  And no definitive answer.  We discuss adjusting my positions if it has been a while since I've felt her, and I practiced supporting myself with my arms and laying on my stomach (yep, you read that correctly) in order to put pressure on her and force her to really kick and move. That worked, by the way.  So if she goes too long without me feeling her movements, that is the plan.

As for the potential (and most probable) reason for why I'm not feeling her....she is so low and positioned in such a way that all of her arm and leg movements aren't noticeable to me.  When she's rotating herself - I can feel (and see) that.  I see something resembling a bottom rolling across my belly.  And after she does that, I frequently feel what I'm guessing are her knees or feet on the sides of my belly.

So, reassured that she was in fact moving, and armed with some techniques to use if I became nervous about my lack of feeling her move, we decided to call it a day.  Same ole, same ole for next week....ultrasound and non-stress on Monday and another non-stress and doctor visit on Friday!

Vote for Tatum

Well, if you saw my post on voting for Kellen, you know what I'm talking about.  I JUST found out that Tatum is in the running as well!

So....click here to vote for Tatum.  And while you're at it, remember that you can vote daily!!

2nd verse,

same as the first.

Dealing with cellulitis again with Tatum.  She had her swim lesson last night at the pool, we made it home, ate, bathed, and I didn't notice anything (but also didn't closely inspect her feet for bites, either).

I guess I need to add that to our daily routine, because when we got up this morning and I was helping her get dressed, I noticed that the area around her ankle was red, hot and VERY swollen.  I drew the outline, gave her Benadryl, and we headed on with our day.  Once I got in the office, I gave her doctors office a call and scheduled an appointment for her for mid-day and he confirmed my mommy-diagnosis - cellulitis.  Again.

Armed with a prescription for the same two antibiotics she was on barely a month ago, I dropped her off at school for her nap, dropped the prescription off at the pharmacy, and went home to have lunch.  While I was home, I stripped her bedding, all of her loveys, and the numerous stuffed animals that accompany her to sleep and threw them in the washing machine on hot. Just in case. I also took all of her crocs, minus the ones she was wearing, and soaked them in clorox-water in the sink. Just in case. Then I went to pick up the prescription, headed back to day care, woke her up to take her meds, then stayed with her until she went back to sleep.

So now I'm on a mission to see how in the world we can avoid this from happening again.  Antibiotic ointment on anything resembling a bite or sting is apparently a must for her. Daily. So is insect repellent with high concentrations of DEET.  Note to self: I need to look at what they're using at day care when they go outside. One of her teachers did tell me that they put the insect repellent on them twice for each period of time that the kids are outside.  Not twice a day, twice per outing. You would think that would be sufficient, but apparently not.  Unless we go to the pool for swimming after school during the week, we aren't outside. It's not that I don't like the outdoors, I just can't handle the heat right now. So she isn't getting the bites from being outside after school (which is good, since the mosquitoes that vector the west nile virus are out at dusk). On the weekends we might go and do things, but it's different every weekend and again, I can't really handle being outside too terribly much right now.

So, I'm trying to clean and disinfect everything I can, even though that's probably not the cause of her infections.

I'm open to suggestions if anyone has them!

Vote for Kellen!

A week or two ago, I entered a few photos of Kellen in a contest Parents magazine was running.  They're looking for kiddos to grace the cover of their magazine....and will send some semi-finalists to a photo shoot in August to get the shots they'll make the final selections from for the contest.

Well, I received an email today indicated that Kellen is in the running to become one of the weekly reader's choice finalists!

('Cause my boy can be quite the ham, right?!)

Anywhoooo, follow the link to vote on Kellen and vote for him!  You can do this daily and through June 27th.

Whoo hoo!!