Month 8 - Showers and Classes

Here we are in March and there is no sign of spring. Snow, snow, snow.

Up until now we have 2 things for the baby, a pair of blue moccasins from Margaret and a book from Aunt Joyce. I start to panic and we head off to Babies R Us to get the crib. I have a coupon so am feeling good about getting a bargain on this stellar crib I spend 2 weeks researching. I am very relieved when we order the crib and dresser. My Mom is coming to visit so we keep the bed in the nursery until she leaves.

Mom arrives on the Wednesday before my family shower. Like me, she is also slowing down which is a good thing with a very boring pregnant lady playing hostess. We have a nice time watching bad TV, grocery shopping and hanging around the house. One of the best visits with my Mom! My amazing Aunt Joyce is throwing me a shower on the 12th. I am so looking forward to this shower as there is absolutely no stress or worry involved with this shower. I simply have to show up and be loved by my Rodenhiser family. It's a nice spring day and my whole family is there. Aunt Lorinda made the 12 hour ride down from Canada and brings my grandmother's rocking chair that she rocked me in. (Tear!!!, I miss my Nana). Aunt Joyce has a bunch of games planned and we open gifts early! Wahoo!!! We spend most of the day there and then head home around 7pm where we again, just hang out. Life is soo different. On a funny preggo note, it's 40 degrees out and I have a dress on but I can't wear tights and I feel they are strangling me. Most days, I wish I didn't have to wear pants but this wouldn't be appropriate at work.

Mom heads home on Sunday and Dave puts up the crib, instantly we have nursery with actual baby things in it. This is becoming real. I am superstitious so I don't want to do too much. Phrew, a rush of relief. On a great note, I have almost no spells while my Mom is in town. She has a calming effect on me this week. Thank YOU. Baby More thanks you too!

We have our first baby class (Newborn essentials). It's taught at the hospital and Dave actively participates. In true Dave fashion, he puts the diaper on the dolls head, I almost kill him but one of the other Dad's is in hysterics. Men will always be boys! We get home and he tries to swaddle our 17 pound cat. Senor More will have none of this and we think oh nelly, he is in for a surprise.

I have a super busy week at work, meetings and entertaining. My clients can't believe I am still going to games/taking them out. Well, I am not dead and the spells are subsiding so live and let live. We have Matt and Leah over for dinner, we haven't seen them in a while so it's great to see them, they are recently engaged. We watch Donald Trumps roast and Matt laughs so hard he spews whiskey all over the living room. I crack up at this. We spend St. Patty's day with the Macione's, another couple we haven't seen in a while. Gotta get this stuff in before Baby More, although I plan on taking him/her out after 2 weeks. I will not be a slave to the living room.

Sleeping is still elusive, it's so unfair when I have just weeks left to sleep through the night and my giant belly, anxiety and wicked charlie horses do not allow this. I have 1000 pillows and there is no more comfortable bed than mine yet I lie awake staring at the ceiling (and occassionaly petting the Senor More).

My friend shower is on the 19th. We receive a nice card from Dave's parents a few days before and for the first time in 7 weeks, I sleep through the night. PHREW!! My friends are incredibly supportive and the shower will now be 5 minutes from my house at Brandy's . I am so grateful, this eleviated me having to travel which has been a huge source of my anxiety. Cars and trains = me not so good. The night before the shower I also have another nights sleep - yay, thank you lord! Dave knows I may have 100 spells this day and he is a great "Dave" mood. He comes downstairs with his shirt off and holding Senor More and says, "look, skin to fur". This is something we learned in Newborn class. Its so ridiculous I almost spit out my hot chocolate. HAAAAA

I wake up this day and have not idea what to wear so I decide to put off getting dressed and go for a run. I feel sooo great running. It's only 1 mile but whatever, I am 8 months preggo and the music pumps me up. I have 20 minutes to get ready and end up putting on a black dress that is 2 sizes too small with red heels and I look like a hooker. Oh well, my friends are so complimentary and I say screw it. Some friends I haven't seen in years show up, the theme was baby animals which seems to be our theme in general. Brandy's house looks so great. Love my girlfriends. Dan also makes a surprise visit! We get a ton of loot which again, I am so thankful for. We get the "Bob" stroller. I feel a bit guilty because all I harped about to Brandy is about this damn stroller. I must have forced her to buy it.

On the Monday after the shower, we have a breastfeeding class. I did not sleep the night after my shower. Up ALL night!! The spells came back. I really wish I could make the stress go away but I have no control over others. Anywho, we go to the class which is not taught by the same teacher as the newborn class. She is all over the place. Dave almost falls asleep at the table and I want to crawl under the table and die I am so tired. We'll try this feeding thing.

Super busy at work as I am trying to cram everything in before I leave. We attend Al's 45th birthday party. Brandy hosts her 2nd party in 6 days. I manage to stand up for 4/5 hours then need to get home to rest my bones.

The last day of this month I have jury duty in Lawrence of all places. I try to have a positive outlook on this as I think its important that people uphold thier civic duties. We have freedoms that not all enjoy. I hike over to Lawrence and get to a beautiful courthouse. The judge comes in a few times. I bide my time reading In an Instant about Bob Woodward and eat donuts from a place they mention down the street. 4 hours later they dismiss all of us and say thank you for your service. Being positive gets you places I swear!

We go from having nothing for the baby to having double and triples of everything as well as having gone to classes and finding a pediatrician. We got a ton of swings for some reason, all the big things and almost no clothes which I find comical. I am so grateful and it really does take a village to prepare for the arrival. We are READY!

Month 8 Photos:

Month 8 Belly x 2

Aunt Joyce's shower

My Aunties and Mom

Champ Dave

Friend Shower

Month 7 - February

The spells come almost everyday now. I visit the OB and one happens there. I was thankful that it did so they didn't think I was crazy. Crazy needs validation you know :). This happens about a week before we are supposed to go to the Cayman islands. I am told, the trip is off, there is no way you should be flying until we figure this out. I am stubborn and think, well I COULD try it but even the hubby says, I think we should cool it. For a whole week I work from home and visit the cardiologist every other day for a battery of tests. I had an echocardiogram and wear a holter monitor for 24 hours. I have to say the Cardiology center at North Shore Medical Center is top notch. I am impressed, its a bright light in the dingy, old hospital. The good news is that they find NOTHING wrong with my heart, the bad news is what the heck is going on? Since nothing is wrong technically, I am determined to salvage a vacation, we both need to get out of dodge and at this point so does Baby More. Caymans is cancelled and we loose those tickets. I write it off as its better than having to land the plane in San Juan because I faint or worse. Usually I would have a heart attack about loosing the money. We had miles to Florida so am able to get tickets down there. The good thing about Florida is that we have friends there and can make a last minute trip. My boss is amazing and says, GO! Dave's dad even offers to drive us to the airport after he made the trip to Newport to visit them.

We head down to Islamorada, FL to visit Dave's friend Drew. We called him on a Wednesday and he said, come on down. We get on a direct flight to Miami and it is amazing what the airlines will do to be helpful with a very visibly pregnant woman (who is terrified something is going to happen on the plane). I am pretty sure I scare a few passengers, they are thinking, please don't have the baby on the way to Miami. We got a whole row up front of the plane. Dave promptly falls asleep and I sit up the whole time thinking mind over matter, don't have a spell. At one point I did but since we had a row, I was able to lie down horizontally and get over it in about 20 mins. Long story short, we get to Miami in 1 piece, rent our car and drive the hour and a half to Islamorada. We get there at midnight.

I wake up in Florida to find out that we are in spitting distance from Drew's pool. I spend the day by the pool and Dave and Drew fix a boat (which is right up his ally). I am usually moving 100 miles and hour, I did not move more than a few feet ALL day. I am worried mama isn't going to have enough snacks so later that evening, I venture to the Winn Dixie to get some vittles and a Valentine's card for the hubby. I have a spell there and it takes me an hour to get 2 bags of snacks. I get back to everyone waiting in the street for me (I had forgotten my phone) and we were meant to see Sunset. The good thing about the keys is that everything is 5 minutes away on a straight road. The next 2 days are spent by the pool not doing much. Dave is content to muckle around on the boat and we ride out to toilet bowl alley a couple of times. I bought some beer at the Winn Dixie when I was there for Dave and you know our life is already different when he doesn't even finish a 12 pack and is bed by 11 every night and we sleep until 9.

We head up to Palm Beach Gardens on Wednesday to visit Nikki and Adnane Chalf and their 2 kiddies, Zahra and Ali. This is a whole other Florida experience. The keys are kick backed, sandals and t shirts, PBG reminds me of the Real Housewives of Orange County. They live in a pretty condo surrounded by beautiful trees and shopping malls. We spend a day there then head to Miami. I LOVE MIAMI. Whoever will listen to me, I am always harping about Miami. In my heyday, I would go there with my girls (Mysti or the travel gals) and wear hot pants and heels and strut around the beach. Skin to Win! Now, I am sober as a judge with a 20 pound basketball attached to me, wearing a long moo moo. So yes, the experience is different. We spend an entire 9 hours by the pool at the Four Seasons (downtown, not on the beach). Dave has never been and is amazed with how city it is and the hot people everywhere. Both nights we head down to South Beach to have dinner (after we are told, we'll never get a reservation as the boat show is in town). 1 night in particular is funny as we get a table on Collins Ave at one of the Bice's (on the boardwalk). About 2 doors down from Bice is a bar/restaurant called Planet or something like that. I am wearing a white dress and Dave is sporting his Nantucket Whale shorts. All the boys are staring at Dave and his shorts, we clearly look like WASPy posers. Then I realize the boys are looking at this thin, neatly dressed man because Planet is a gay bar. I am chuckling and Dave suggests we go for a drink (he doesn't realize it) hahahah We make one more pass through and a drag show starts. I get chased or rather Dave is being chased down the side walk by a 300 pound African American drag queen wearing red angel wings and red patten leather heels. Hysterical!

OK enough about our trip, we get home in 1 piece and both salvage tans. The sun helps the spirit so much. We get home on my 36th birthday. I love a Facebook birthday as I get about 100 happy birthdays. Even though I am dead tired from flying, I don't want to stay in so we hit Paradiso with our friends, the Rands. Always good food and 5 minutes from home. I still cannot believe I am 36. Seriously, what the hell! I moved to NY at 25 and fast forward 9 years, I am in the burbs, going to bed at 9pm with my big fat cat, Senor More.

The rest of this month has its ups and downs. I want to keep these postings positive, I will never forget how I was very hurt this month. A girl is just trying to be pregnant and keep a good vibe for baby More. The spells are particularly bad when we get home from FL, thank god I can work at home. I rarely drive or leave the house. On a very positive note, my parents are being more supportive then they have been and Dr. Gennaco gets a big increase to his business.

Dave goes to Lake George to ice fish with some buddies. I am glad he gets a boys weekend but also to have the bed to myself since sleeping is very elusive. I need a crane to turn over.

March is coming and so are the showers! Not rain, but baby!

First is Lucy's shower on Nantucket. I am 1 of the coordinators (I sign myself up for these types of things all the time). We have it at Roberts House and it is a great day, good food, lots or wine for the party girls and lots of loot for Lucy. Lucy and I are 1 week apart and have been able to go through this together. This was one of the easier showers to throw and what is most important is Lucy has no stress.

Onto the next month....

Month 7 photos:

7 month belly

My perch at Drew's

Daddy Dave enjoying a Heineken in the pool

Pierre's at Sunset

The Ice House at sunset

Mel, Dan and Lucy