As If ...

Seriously ...
Last night was a pretty good night. We swaddled. We used the bassinet. Chloe slept.
Matthew went to bed feeling a bit feverish - nothing Motrin couldn't fix.
When Matt, Chloe and I got up I sent Mike back to bed since he was looking pretty tired. And, so there we sat - Mommy and her 2 babies - feeling pretty good. We had calm, we were all watching Buzz Lightyear. When it was over I asked Matthew if he wanted to hold Chloe.
It was a total Kodak moment until I reached over and gave Matt a hug and realized that he was covered with a rash. And holding the baby. Crap.
After panicking and waking Mike up I realized that we probably didn't need to go to the hospital. (in all fairness, this child hasn't had a rash in more than 2 years). Instead I called our amazing new doctor's office and spoke with the nurse who completely calmed me down. She explained that it's likely that the rash is from the fever and that he's not suffering from anything serious. And, she has even squeezed us in for an appointment after Chloe's well-baby visit.
So, today isn't going exactly as planned.
Oh the joys of parenting!

UPDATE: Matthew is fine. The rash was from the fever, and he's feeling much better. Though we're really glad his birthday party is next weekend - not tomorrow. By the end of the visit he had us all laughing over some of his comments. He was such a cutie.

This Saturday's Toronto Star ...

In case you're interested (why wouldn't you be???) Chloe's birth announcement will be in this Saturday's Toronto Star.
It's a miracle since I got kicked off their website about 6 times, managed to place a very expensive ad by accident, had that deleted and finally had a helpful woman figure ad placement out for me. Honestly, why make an online system that doesn't work????
Anyway ...
If you get the Star on the weekend, check it out. And, if you know me in person, save it for me. If you live too close to my house good luck finding a copy. I'll be sending Mike out to buy a bunch of newspapers.
As for the sleep situation - a nice afternoon nap made everything better. Matthew seems to be on the mend, and my WonderMommy dinner has arrived. All is well in my world again!

And I said it was easy ...

That was all till last night hit!
After a really nice dinner that our friends brought over, the evening became a bit of a challenge. First we realized that Matthew, who usually doesn't feel the need to go to bed EVER was lying on the floor saying he was sleepy.
Mike took his temperature and discovered that Matt had a fever, and truly wasn't feeling well. So, we let him sleep in our bed and then had some time with Chloe before I went to bed.
Not too bad.
Until Chloe realized it was night time which must mean time to eat and eat and eat. Instead of being the angel baby that we know and love, she ate and cried ALL NIGHT. From 10:30 till about 7 am she ate at least once an hour. And, when she did sleep, she refused to go in the bassinet because then she would scream some more. I was getting crankier and crankier. She was getting crankier and crankier. Finally at about 4:30 we both fell asleep while she was nursing and we woke up 2 hours later in the exact same position. weird.
to add to the fun of the evening, I had decided earlier in the day that I didn't want to be taking all the pain medication I was prescribed. So, instead of just taking a lower dose to wean myself, I just stopped taking anything. So, once Mike convinced me to take pain meds just a little longer things felt a little better. But, it took awhile for all of it to kick back in.
Needless to say, today I'm a little tired.
Matt is home from daycare today because he still has a fever, and the last thing we want to do is have him sick on his birthday. And, quite honestly, neither Mike nor I seem to have the energy to fight with him about getting dressed, going to daycare, etc etc. Besides, Matt has decided that he's really into watching Cityline and that is what we're doing today. And, hopefully we'll have a nice long nap this afternoon.

We're Home!

Yesterday evening, around 7:30 we all arrived home, safe and sound and in one piece!
We thought we would be home earlier, but Chloe had a jaundice test and it was borderline, so they extended our stay so we could enjoy one more yummy hospital lunch before going home. Luckily she passed the 4pm blood test, and we were allowed to go home.
Life with Chloe has been pretty wonderful!
I am totally in love with this baby. She's got a very sweet personality. She sleeps a lot. Basically, she wakes up to nurse and then looks at us for awhile and goes back to sleep.

I had fully planned to formula feed. With Matthew nursing was a major struggle. He cried a lot and rarely slept, and when he was hungry he just screamed more. Chloe is a little different. Because she is laid back, and I'm more relaxed about things, nursing has been a joy.
From the first time I tried to feed her she latched beautifully, and I can honestly say that the bonding experience everyone told me breastfeeding is actually is true in this case. I'm thrilled.
We're still going to introduce formula so I can get more sleep and have more flexibility. But, all that will come in time. For now I'm just enjoying being a new mommy and all that it entails.

My c-section went really really well.
I'm in very little pain (okay, thanks to pain meds). There were a few moments where I was in agony, and I'm still taking the stairs slowly, but I'm not complaining. The incision is healing beautifully, and I'm not in a ton of pain. And, because Chloe is so tiny the incision isn't sore when I nurse.

I was surprised by how low the incision is. When I asked my doctor how low it is she told me that it's called a bikini incision, and she is confident that when warm weather is here the incision will be healed. GOOD TO KNOW!!!
It's all about getting into a bikini :)
Anyway, here are some pics.
I'm still feeling a bit groggy from all the meds, so I'm not sure if this makes tons of sense but I wanted to show you my little girl.
Matthew is doing very well also. He is loving the new role of Big Brother, and has already been showing Chloe how to play with toys. She particularly enjoyed playing catch with him.
And as for the cats ... Rosie, the kitten, is confused. Mojo is standoffish. We're all good around here!

Much Anticpated Pictures!

And here she is:

Introducing: Chloe Jessica!

On behalf of Mommy Laural and her husband and son, here is little Chloe.

I can assure you Mommy Laural is doing well and little Chloe is a jewel!

More pictures will be coming soon!

A Little Princess

She's a girl!
Chloe Jessica was born at 12:29 pm today, March 28, 2008.
She is tiny - 6 lbs 6 oz.
We are totally in love.
Mommy is sore from a c-section, but managing the pain.
We will post pictures soon.

Tomorrow is the Big Day!!!

I'm so excited!
I've done the requisite blood tests. I've had the tour of the ward. I've met with the nurses. I've had the explanation of the spinal vs. epidural vs. spinal/epidural. In case you're wondering - I will likely have the spinal.
And, I feel more than ready.
In 24 hours or so we'll be pretty much ready to go. We'll be dropping Matt off at daycare and then off to the hospital.
I've been told that with a planned c-section there's a lot of "hurry up and wait" so I plan to bring some magazines and relax as much as I can while I wait for everything to happen.
Truthfully I'm just so excited to cuddle this new little baby.
We will be posting an update here. I'm not exactly sure when, but check back if you want to see pictures and stuff.

5 Days to Go!

Am I ever counting down!
I figure that this will likely be my last pregnancy picture. This was my Good Friday outfit. I was pretty impressed that I actually found something that was comfortable!
Depending on who you ask, I'm carrying either high or low. I've either dropped or I haven't. I look like I'm carrying a girl or I'm carrying a boy!!!
Confusing.
So, what do I think?
I'm definitely carrying lower than I did with Matthew. I don't think I've dropped. I don't think my face has changed all that much, but I don't really know what that means.
I haven't spoken much about my weight this pregnancy. But, since several people have asked me, with Matthew I gained around 80 lbs. (I started off a lower weight than with this baby). This time I'm hovering right around the 20 lbs mark. As much as I'm ready to have this baby, I have to say that I'm way more mobile this time around and in a lot less pain.

The Countdown is ON!

Tomorrow I have my 2nd last pre-natal appointment. And the countdown is ON!!!!
I will be having my baby in two weeks from tomorrow (or sooner!). I'm soooo excited. Okay and a little nervous.
What am I worrying about?
A) Having a c-section
B) Not having a c-section.
I kind of want to go into labour before my scheduled date, throw all caution to the wind and go with the flow. I've got lots of people supporting me in this (my doctor included) with the final decision being if it doesn't happen on its own then d-day is March 28th. I'm totally okay with that.
And ... I have lots to do in the next couple of weeks. I have the weekend projects that include my husband like a little more clean up (sorry sweetie) and installing the car seat.
And then there's my other list.
I've got to fix my hair colour.
I need to get my nails done.
I would like to get my eyebrows done.
I need a bikini wax.
I want to sort through baby clothes.
I need to buy a nursing pillow.
I also need to carve out relaxation time. Ahhhhh! Sweet afternoon naps. I love afternoon naps. I have borrowed a couple books from my friend and I may even pull out some scrapbooking stuff. My goal is to fill my time so I'm not wishing the next two weeks away.
A week on a beach would be nice also, but I'm guessing that's not in the cards.
Of course, Easter is also coming up. It's an early easter this year. Matthew was born just before Easter on Passover and we brought him home on Good Friday. (it was a late Easter). Part of me is thinking it would be nice to have the baby before Good Friday. But, whatever, I don't think that will happen.
But ... wishful thinking.
Plus, tomorrow is my last day of work. Yippee!!!!

So Close ...

I have 16 days left of pregnancy.
I have 2.5 days left of work.
I'm done! I'm totally looking forward to a couple of weeks to unwind, nap, watch tv and do very little else before this baby makes her grand entrance.
That is, if she doesn't show up early!!!
Here's the thing ... I'm the world's most impatient person! I'm trying to concoct all sorts of ways to bring on labour. Nothing is working. I do get contractions, but I think that's normal in a second pregnancy. Nothing else happens. Boring.
And, the contractions all happen at the weirdest times. Like on the GO Train. And while I'm trying to have a little nap on the way home from work my mind goes to scary places, like what would I do if it were real contractions or if my water broke while on the train. Or standing on the platform, or walking from Union Station to work.
Anyway, I've unlocked my blog for awhile. You know ... just in case the baby comes early. I plan to post here and also send an e-mail.

Checking In ...

It's been a long time since my last post.
Things have been a little busy in our neck of the woods. I have one week left of work, and at about 36 weeks pregnant here I'm getting tired!
It's funny wrapping stuff up at work. It's hard figuring out which files to keep, pass to others, etc. And, I still need to write some sort of e-mail to everyone explaining who to contact for various things. I was working on the wording of my e-mail last week and I was laughing when I realized that I have worked on enough projects over the last couple of years (the last year in particular) that I'm referring people all over the place - from my department to lawyers, etc.
Hopefully it will all sort itself out.
And, of course I argued to keep my blackberry on mat leave. There are valid reasons for this, but I do believe it is entirely possible to go into blackberry withdrawal! And I will want to keep up.
Otherwise, things are going well with my pregnancy. Of course I'm hitting the point of being of uncomfortable. But, that's pretty typical. I'll be glad to have a couple weeks off to prepare for the baby, and you know, nap! As much as I want this baby to come early I also wouldn't mind a few days to finish getting ready.
Speaking of getting ready ... we're getting there. Last weekend we bought a ton of stuff in Buffalo (no, not a car seat or crib, don't worry) and then this week I had a shower held by my friends at work, and also a lunch out with a lovely gift from the people I work with. I was really pleasantly surprised and touched.
We're now trying to get our house in order, buy the stuff for my hospital bag (this snow is not helping me!!!) and chill till the big day arrives. That would be 19 days or less. Woo Hoo!
I know I've had my blog locked for awhile. I'm thinking of unlocking it (or taking off the password protection) for a few weeks once the baby is born so that I can post pictures and updates.
I've been playing around a bit with the template to take off some stuff that was bugging me (like the facebook link) so I'm not quite as worried. And, thanks to the fact that one of our work intranet designers showed me a little bit about understanding html coding I figured that all out on my own!
I think that's it for now.

Birthday Plans

Despite the fact that I've been almost obsessively planning for the birth of the new baby (seriously, my husband gets weekly to-do lists) one important thing that I have not forgotten is Matthew's upcoming birthday.
As long as all goes according to plan, I'll be having a c-section in 11 weeks from today.
Matthew's birthday is 12 weeks from today.
And, yes, we will be having a birthday party.
I know that sounds a little crazy, but when your child is in school or daycare, birthday parties become a huge deal. Matt talks about his constantly. And, I really don't want to let his birthday fall through the cracks.
Four is a big deal. He gets it this year.
For months he has been talking about his birthday party. He wants it at "the tree store" which is a local indoor playground that we booked last year. He has created his list of friends. Well, it's a changing list of friends that varies in age from his one-year-old second cousin to his 98 year old great grandad, but there are some constants such as his cousins and his friend Austin.
And now we are on to a theme.
Last year's theme was Monster Trucks.
This year we are having a fire truck theme.
I'll be honest, I'm getting a little nervous about it all. I mean, excited, yes, but worried that we won't pull it off.
Can we even bring a 2 week old to an indoor playground? Matthew has made it clear that even if I'm sick I will still be at his party. And if I go I think the baby goes.
Actually, I think we're a little insane.
Who books a birthday party 2 weeks after a c-section? I think I may be calling in the WonderMommies for a little crowd control (we shall discuss over coffee and pedicures) and hope that it all turns out well.
How stressful can a birthday party be? Ha. Not stressful at all :)

Family

I try hard to be a good mom.
My husband tries hard to be a good day.
And, occassionally we screw up. Our plans not to argue in front of our child don't always work out. We shout when we shouldn't. We have a short fuse at times. And, sometimes we step back and worry that perhaps we should be better parents.
But, then there are the days when we realize that despite the craziness of our lives, and the stress that comes along with it, that maybe we're not doing such a bad job.

Yesterday Matthew drew a picture of us, as a family.(and, since when can he draw people???).
To me it was a pretty amazing moment.
I've posted it below, but feel free to enlarge it. Matt explained it to me in detail.
It's Mommy and Daddy holding hands because we love each other. Matthew is holding Daddy's hand because I have a baby in my tummy.



So, maybe I'm not perfect all the time. But, if this is how Matt views his family I think we're doing pretty well.

Happy New Year's everyone!!!

New Year's Resolution ... Check!

It's that time of year to make some New Year's Resolutions.
In the past I've always done the typical lose weight, exercise more, stay organized, etc. The truth is, I usually fail.
I think the worst one was when I decided to cut out chocolate. Completely. That lasted about 2 hours.
Last year I got smart.
I decided to have a fun resolution. One that I would embrace and enjoy. My resolution: to wear jewelry every day. I'm happy to report I did really well. I have a fun collection of costume jewelry and I tried mixing it up and staying colourful. It was fun.
And, as the year ends I feel a sense of accomplishment.
So this year I decided to come up with something equally fun and achievable.
Want to know what I'm doing?
Instead of buying all my books I am going to the library.
Novel idea, eh? (ha ha ha.)
Seriously. I started to calculate how much money I spend on books. Considering I read about 2 books per week on the GO train, it really adds up. And it's inconvenient to always run to the bookstore.
I hate to admit that I've lived in this town for just over a year and I have never been to our local library. So, I googled it and discovered there is a library that I can walk to.
It's in a little plaza across from a Starbucks.
So ... basically the money I will save on buying books will be spent on getting lattes. Just kidding!
Today I took Matthew to get library cards. Not only did I get us some free books, they also have a really good play area where I can read and Matt can play. Why didn't I think of this earlier????
Now don't get me wrong. It's not that I'll never go back to the bookstore. There are some books that are totally worth picking up.
But, I'm going to save my money for the stuff I really want, and get some library books for the in-between.
So ... what are your resolutions?

A Merry Christmas

Christmas was wonderful.
Santa came ... and brought Matthew a red light sabre



Mike and I were both spoiled as well: Mike with new Ray Bans, me with a Coach purse and a bassinet for the baby.

We spent time with family.





And now we will rest, and shop and generally relax.

Normal blogging will resume shortly. For now I'm enjoying my time away from the computer.

Enjoy your holidays everyone!!!!

Christmas Spirit

It's quiet this morning.
Matthew spent the night at my sister's since Mike and I went to his work Christmas party last night. It was a wonderful evening. We spent most of the evening with his good friend from work who is a friend from university, and his wife. It was really nice to chat with someone who has a similar parenting philosophy as me (especially since her profession is working with children) and enjoying an evening away from kids.
Somehow we got onto the topic of working full-time, having kids, and keeping the house clean.
She said to me "I figure my kids will just grow up to be really agile since they are so adept at stepping around their toys."
It's comments like that that make me think that yes, this is someone who is welcome in my home anytime.
But really, it was nice to get dressed up and enjoy a lovely dinner. Okay, so granted I didn't make it through the dinner because it was so rich and filling, but Mike was more than happy to finish what I couldn't.
And this morning I slept in! I didn't get up till 7am! Considering I've been wide awake at 4 am everyday for the last few months, 7 am was quite the extravagance. And, I've been spoiled watching all my Sunday morning news programs and haven't watched ONE MINUTE of Treehouse.
And what have I done while watching tv? I've been wrapping gifts.
I've gone to great lengths to make sure that Matt doesn't find his gifts, but I realized I also had to hide special wrapping paper and find a time to wrap presents while he wasn't around - not an easy task since he never naps and we tend to go to bed at the same time these days.
Luckily I had some time this morning so I am done.
We still have to go battery shopping though. Last year we forgot to pick up batteries and so on Christmas morning a couple of didn't work. This year I remembered, so as I wrapped I made a note of what batteries everything takes. I even remembered the batteries for the toy I bought my niece. SMART!
And with all of this stuff out of the way we're spending the next couple of days enjoying the season.
This morning we're meeting my sister and parents at a bakery and then we're going to get our house in good shape.
Tomorrow, for Christmas Eve morning, I'm taking Matt on a GO train ride to Toronto, and we're going to go and check out the windows downtown Toronto. I have to admit that even though I work in Toronto, downtown no less, I never take the time to go and see all of the Christmas windows and the beautiful trees at Nathan Philips Square. So, the plan is to take a couple of hours to just enjoy some Christmas.
Truthfully I'd rather drive in, but Matthew loves taking the train, and I know it will be a fun ride.
In the early evening we are going to take Matthew to a kids' church service. As wonderful as it is to talk about Santa, it's important to me that Matt also understands the true meaning of Christmas and understand what the spirit of Christmas is truly about.
Anyway, I'm not sure if I'll be blogging before Christmas.
So to all my friends ...


Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone enjoys their holidays and that Santa is kind to you all!

One More Day of Work

I'm counting down the minutes, I must admit.
I'm so ready for Christmas. I'm ready to stay up late (okay, in my world these days that's 10) and sleep in till at least 7! I'm ready to go to a Christmas party on Saturday night. I'm ready to wrap presents and start baking and cooking.
I'm ready for Christmas cheer.
I have been trying hard to tie some stuff up at work for my week off. I know it's not a long time off, but I hate leaving stuff for other's to sort out.
Luckily everything seems to be working out so far which means that come Friday afternoon I'm turning my blackberry off (or at least only checking it every few hours) and taking a holiday!
Today Matt's letter from Santa arrived. It was so cute and Matt was thrilled that Santa wrote him a letter. It was pretty sweet with a personalized note and everything.

Of course with the upcoming season I've been thinking about the past and toward the future. It's my first Christmas without my Grandma. Last year she wasn't doing that great, and we were sad for her. So, even though this year I'll be missing her, I know that she and Grandpa are with us in spirit. I keep thinking about how this year my cousin's baby is almost one. Last year she was just days away from giving birth. Now this year I'm the one who's pregnant, though thankfully (hopefully?) more than a few days away from giving birth!

But, I'm also looking forward. I can't believe that next year's Christmas pictures will include another member of the family. It seems a little crazy to me right now. The last few Christmases have centered around Matthew and making it magical for him. I'm so excited to share this with another baby.

The Christmas fun starts tonight. My good friend (and who am I kidding, someone Matt LOVES) is coming over. It's our first chance to let someone sample our Christmas goodies and matt's sooooo excited to give her the gift that he helped to make. It's all very exciting.

Five days to go!

Less Than a Week

And we are ready for Christmas.

Thanks to a fellow blogger and Star Wars fan we were able to get Matt's final Christmas gift ... a red light sabre.

The funny thing is, this isn't a terribly expensive gift. It's a $10 toy, but he has been asking Santa for it non-stop. And, no matter how hard I looked the stores were sold out. So, I was more than thrilled when I got a phone call saying one had been located.

And, thanks everyone for looking.

Tonight we also finished up our daycare gifts. Well, almost. We ran out of cellophane, but other than that we are done. Matthew made cards for each of his teachers and then I wrote personal messages. It was kind of fun asking him what is special about each teacher. One sings good songs, another reads good books, another is a good hugger. And, then there is one, a substitute teacher for a month who "isn't a teacher. She's just a person." So, I had to be creative with that one. But, all in all I feel like the teachers will know they are loved and appreciated both by us and by Matthew. And, that's what Christmas is all about.

-----------

Tomorrow I go for my last OB appointment before Christmas. I've had lots of doctors appointments over the past couple of weeks (just various tests, etc), but I'm looking forward to tomorrow.

Lately everything has felt a lot more real to me. I'm definitely looking pregnant and feeling pregnant. And, this baby is moving around a lot. We've also been debating names AGAIN. See why we keep the name thing a secret? The name we loved now we just like and we have moved on to a name we love more.

The thing I find funny is that when I'm making lists of names, most of the names are variations of names that I gave various dolls growing up. In fact, if we stick with the name we have chosen, it's just a reversal of one of my favourite doll names ever. Trust me - this wasn't a conscious decision. It just is. (this will now drive my sister crazy because she knows all my doll's names).

Is it me - or are we feeling the Christmas spirit these days?

Best Friends

The other day we asked Matthew who his best friend is.
Of course his answer was first Kyla (his cousin), but then I asked if he had any other best friend.
His answer was Austin, a friend of his at daycare.
It's pretty cute because he talks about Austin. All.The.Time.
If we ask him what he did during the day it's always "me and Austin ..."
He and Austin sit together at snack and lunch. They colour together when it's colouring time. They play together outside.
He gets along with a lot of the other kids, but it seems that he and Austin are a team. They are close in age, they like the same things (Diego, Transformers, Lightning McQueen) and they seem to have a really similar attitude. Both are "all boy" in many ways. They can be a little rough and sometimes wrestle.
One day Austin cut Matt's hair. Another day Matt closed Austin's finger in the (toy) microwave. If there's any sort of accident report we know who the other child involved was.
But, there's never any malice. They are just playing.
And, the thing is, I really like Austin too.
His parents have the same attitude we do. Boys will be boys, but you have to draw the line. It's not a big deal if they come home covered in paint, have done some silly crazy thing during the day, or been a little rough with each other. But, stuff like swearing, hurting each other, and general bad behaviour is not okay. (though I have to admit that his mom and I were laughing one night about some of the words they call each other, and how we have to try not to giggle when they try out certain words).

Last night I went to pick up Matt. Just he and Austin were there, and they were colouring. I was chatting with them, and they both drew me a picture. After a few minutes it was time to leave. Mike and I were talking to matt's teacher, and we realized that Matt and Austin were saying goodbye.

It was adorable.

Austin came over and gave Matt a hug.
Matt kissed Austin on the cheek.

Then Austin whispered to Matt "don't forget we have to be good."
And Matt said to him "yes. we know Santa is watching us."

It was the CUTEST thing ever. I hope they never lose this innocence.