Wow..It has been a long time since we last updated the blog. So much has happened in so little time. I had my first baby shower in Harvard over Memorial Day weekend and was overwhelmed with the kindness and generosity of so many family and friends. We returned home, wishing that our basement has magically finished itself while we were gone... it had not. Matt promises to write soon with more basement updates....
Our nursery is truly starting to look like a nursery. The walls have been red since we painted our office a few years ago, and we really didn’t want to paint over it. One window now has blinds on it as well as a valance. The other window will be shaded and valanced by this weekend. I'm just hoping we get it all finished before Baby gets here!!!
Baby Wogs is continuing to grow, as have I. Most of my growing seems to have been in my feet and hands. Any time I travel more than an hour at a time, even with taking breaks every so often, my shoes don’t fit! We had hoped to do a little more traveling to meet new babies that we haven’t met yet, but after last weekend, we have had to call off all traveling for me until after Baby Wogs is here. Sadly today, my wedding ring also no longer fits. I have a Hawaiian ring that Matt bought me last September which still fits me, so that has become my new wedding ring until after Baby is here.
We are officially three weeks away from Baby Wogs being full term, so the end is in sight! I think Matt and I are both starting to feel a little anxious, but in a good way. His comment this morning was that he is getting goose bumps thinking about how close we now are! Thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers that we know are coming our way!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
new pictures!
Matt and I got to see our little "mustard seed" again today during a growth scan. At my last two appointments, I have measured ahead of schedule, so they wanted to rule out any concerns. What a great ultrasound it was!! Baby Wogs completely cooperated during the scan, so we got some great pictures :) Here is Baby Wogs' 31 weeks and 1 day pictures... Maybe I am biased, but I think this is going to be one cute kid!
If you are trying to figure out what the lump is near Baby's left ear, we have learned that Baby Wogs' likes to sleep like Mommy..with my left arm underneath my head! Isn't it amazing what technology can do these days!?
In case you are wondering, Baby Wogs weighs 4 pounds and 9 ounces as of today. I truly may have a "small elephant" as we keep on joking. The sonographer saw no concerns with the amount of amniotic fluid present, so she just attributes my "measuring big" to having a baby who may have hit a growth spurt a little early. We can't wait to hold our little bundle of joy.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
It's a....
As of today, May 16, we have decided that it is ok to share what the gender of Baby Wogs is. We have tried keeping it a secret, but it has leaked out!!! Some have mentioned that they would still like the gender to be kept a secret, and so for your sake, we will not share the answer on our blog. However, if you would like to know if Baby Wogs will be a Polly Wogs or a Junior Wogs, we are willing to share. (And of course, Polly and Junior are not the names!!) If the anticipation is driving you crazy, give us a call..we will fill you in. Don't bother asking the name though, because that is one secret we can and will keep until Baby Wogs enters the world!
Friday, May 15, 2009
glucose test
For those of you who have never had to experience the "glucose test," consider yourself lucky. For those of you who have never had to experience the 3 hour glucose test, consider yourself extremely lucky! At my 28 week appointment, I had to endure the routine one hour glucose test to check for gestational diabetes. You have to drink this incredibly sweet drink and then have to have your blood drawn an hour later to check your blood sugar level. If your numbers are below 140, you are totally in the clear. My nurse told me to not expect a phone call from them...in case I didn't pass. That afternoon my phone rang. It wasn't the nurse. It was the lab. The lab lost my blood.
Two days later, on a Saturday morning, I had to get up before 8:00 to head to the hospital to get my blood drawn again. The lady who did my test was in training, so every step of my test was explained out to her. I was fine with a new person being trained, until the trainer told the trainee to just "eye ball" the amount of glucose drink they gave me. Once again, I had to sit in the waiting area for an hour until my blood was ready to be drawn. On Monday afternoon, the phone rang. It was my nurse this time. My level was 148. I didn't pass. I had to plan for the three hour test.
Later that week, I endured what were perhaps the worst four hours of this pregnancy. I think I would rather have 4 hours of my morning sickness back instead of being so bored. To start things off, I had to fast before this test. So, after 8:00 PM the night before, I couldn't have anything that would throw off my test. This is not easy for a preggo to follow! I showed up at 8:00 but due to a slow computer, they couldn't see me until 8:30. Finally, they found me in the system, but realized they hadn't done my baseline draw they were supposed to do immediately upon my arrival. So, vial number one got drawn. After waiting 30 minutes just for that, I was lucky enough to finally get my perfectly measured, double the sweetness, double the amount, bottle of glucose. And the wait began. One hour went by and it wasn't too bad. I read the newspaper and had small talk with some of the other patients sitting in the lab waiting area. (Once again, I couldn't leave the waiting area...with no TV, by the way.... so they could monitor me in case I got sick) 10:00 AM: Blood Vial number 2 got drawn and I returned to the waiting room. I was starting to get antsy now. I was thankful that I had brought my own magazines to read. I read all the way through my Taste of Home magazine and half way through my Rachel Ray magazine. I had to move to the other waiting room because boredom was over taking me. 11:00 Blood Vial number three got drawn. The nurse commented that my arm was going to have a mark after I got done. Perhaps if the lab wouldn't have lost my blood the first time, I wouldn't have had to be stuck five times in the same arm, within a week. I returned again to the lab waiting area, extremely hungry and very antsy. By now, I was able to direct patients who looked lost to the place where they could pick up their number for the lab, how to find the internal medicine clinic instead of the lab and how to get to the cafeteria. I was not enjoying my seemingly permanent new home. That last hour took forever to pass. Finally, 12:00 rolled around and my poor arm endured one more needle stick. I truly felt like a user at that point since my arm was pretty beat up.
Later that day, the phone rang...it was my nurse... I passed my test. I didn't have gestational diabetes and my numbers were considerably lower than my original one hour glucose test. It makes me wonder just how much glucose I got in the first place when it was just "eye-balled." Maybe this was just a foretaste of motherhood: hurry up, wait, worry, wait, shed a little blood, wait and then celebrate small successes. Baby Wogs is worth it all.
Two days later, on a Saturday morning, I had to get up before 8:00 to head to the hospital to get my blood drawn again. The lady who did my test was in training, so every step of my test was explained out to her. I was fine with a new person being trained, until the trainer told the trainee to just "eye ball" the amount of glucose drink they gave me. Once again, I had to sit in the waiting area for an hour until my blood was ready to be drawn. On Monday afternoon, the phone rang. It was my nurse this time. My level was 148. I didn't pass. I had to plan for the three hour test.
Later that week, I endured what were perhaps the worst four hours of this pregnancy. I think I would rather have 4 hours of my morning sickness back instead of being so bored. To start things off, I had to fast before this test. So, after 8:00 PM the night before, I couldn't have anything that would throw off my test. This is not easy for a preggo to follow! I showed up at 8:00 but due to a slow computer, they couldn't see me until 8:30. Finally, they found me in the system, but realized they hadn't done my baseline draw they were supposed to do immediately upon my arrival. So, vial number one got drawn. After waiting 30 minutes just for that, I was lucky enough to finally get my perfectly measured, double the sweetness, double the amount, bottle of glucose. And the wait began. One hour went by and it wasn't too bad. I read the newspaper and had small talk with some of the other patients sitting in the lab waiting area. (Once again, I couldn't leave the waiting area...with no TV, by the way.... so they could monitor me in case I got sick) 10:00 AM: Blood Vial number 2 got drawn and I returned to the waiting room. I was starting to get antsy now. I was thankful that I had brought my own magazines to read. I read all the way through my Taste of Home magazine and half way through my Rachel Ray magazine. I had to move to the other waiting room because boredom was over taking me. 11:00 Blood Vial number three got drawn. The nurse commented that my arm was going to have a mark after I got done. Perhaps if the lab wouldn't have lost my blood the first time, I wouldn't have had to be stuck five times in the same arm, within a week. I returned again to the lab waiting area, extremely hungry and very antsy. By now, I was able to direct patients who looked lost to the place where they could pick up their number for the lab, how to find the internal medicine clinic instead of the lab and how to get to the cafeteria. I was not enjoying my seemingly permanent new home. That last hour took forever to pass. Finally, 12:00 rolled around and my poor arm endured one more needle stick. I truly felt like a user at that point since my arm was pretty beat up.
Later that day, the phone rang...it was my nurse... I passed my test. I didn't have gestational diabetes and my numbers were considerably lower than my original one hour glucose test. It makes me wonder just how much glucose I got in the first place when it was just "eye-balled." Maybe this was just a foretaste of motherhood: hurry up, wait, worry, wait, shed a little blood, wait and then celebrate small successes. Baby Wogs is worth it all.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Babymoon!
We are back from Florida! We had an absolutely perfect Babymoon and couldn't have asked for much more. The week leading up to our Babymoon found us in the cat ER with our first child, Clyde. The poor cat was clearly in pain throughout the night and so at 4 AM on Monday morning, I called the animal ER to see what could be done. I woke Matt up, we loaded Clyde in his suitcase and traveled to the hospital. After hours of tests and ultrasounds, he was found to have a urinary tract infection. We had to give Clyde medication three times a day and a new cat food. This led to an interesting decision regarding what to do during our upcoming trip. Our incredible friend Kim, who happens to be a nurse (yes, for humans) offered to take care of Clyde, including giving him his medication twice a day. She saved the day and our trip!
Sadly, all good things must come to an end, as did our trip. Due to a mechanical issue on our first flight, we almost missed our second of three connecting flights to get back home. When we finally got home at midnight, we were welcomed home to reality: water in our basement, a Corolla that needed a new brake job and a cat so happy to see us.
Once we got to Florida, we checked into our hotel which was amazing! The hotel itself was located directly next to a pretty ritzy mall, which was also fun. We grabbed lunch and checked out the pool. Here is the view from our room:
The next day, we took the shuttle back to the airport to pick up the rental car. Somehow, I had entered a "discount code" when I made my reservation, which allowed me a 50 % off discount on my rental car for the duration as well as an upgrade. When offered the upgrade from a Corolla, I didn't hesitate (or ask Matt who was on the phone with his mom!) Since he left most of the trip planning details up to me, I was the one who's name was on the car reservation. Here's the sweet 2009 Ford Mustang that I alone got to drive along the coast. I think Matt got quite the kick out of me being so excited to drive that car. He knew to hold on when I was about to accelerate..there was no holding back! I think this was one of the greatest highlights of the trip for me!!
Upon returning to our hotel, we asked the concierge, John, for suggestions of the best beach we could rent a cabana at for the day. He not only suggested going to St. Pete Beach, but made a phone call to his friend to "take care of us." After about a 30 minute drive, which of course I didn't mind in the 'Stang, we pulled into the Don CeSar Luxury Resort. We found the person we were to ask for, who quickly got us cold water, validated our $18 parking fee and walked us out to our free cabana. As we approached the beach, we found the cabanas to be $50 a day..SWEET! She later came back out to check on us, bring us snacks and offer anything else we could possibly need. We were amazed that 6 hours by the beach could pass so quickly. Thank God for SPF 50 sunblock!
The next day, we opted for a different beach, Sand Key Beach, near Clearwater. While there, two people got stung by stingrays, which prompted our decision not to stay in the water too long. It also didn't help that it was 90 degrees that day and our Midwestern bodies weren't quite adjusted to such heat.
Upon returning to our hotel, we asked the concierge, John, for suggestions of the best beach we could rent a cabana at for the day. He not only suggested going to St. Pete Beach, but made a phone call to his friend to "take care of us." After about a 30 minute drive, which of course I didn't mind in the 'Stang, we pulled into the Don CeSar Luxury Resort. We found the person we were to ask for, who quickly got us cold water, validated our $18 parking fee and walked us out to our free cabana. As we approached the beach, we found the cabanas to be $50 a day..SWEET! She later came back out to check on us, bring us snacks and offer anything else we could possibly need. We were amazed that 6 hours by the beach could pass so quickly. Thank God for SPF 50 sunblock!
The next day, we opted for a different beach, Sand Key Beach, near Clearwater. While there, two people got stung by stingrays, which prompted our decision not to stay in the water too long. It also didn't help that it was 90 degrees that day and our Midwestern bodies weren't quite adjusted to such heat.
When we got back to our hotel, John, the concierge asked us if we had dinner plans. Being our last night in Tampa, we wanted fresh seafood. He recommended and called a place called Mitchell's Fish Market. We arrived to find they had a "special" table for us and incredible food (and the best hand-squeezed lemonade I have ever had!). At the end of our meal, we found that part of our meal was "on John" from the hotel. Matt decided at dinner that when we win the lottery, he is going to hire John to be our personal assistant to make all of our reservations and trips for us, paying him a $1 Million a year. Anyone else interested in applying :)
Sadly, all good things must come to an end, as did our trip. Due to a mechanical issue on our first flight, we almost missed our second of three connecting flights to get back home. When we finally got home at midnight, we were welcomed home to reality: water in our basement, a Corolla that needed a new brake job and a cat so happy to see us.Gosh, I miss that mustang....
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Preggos everywhere!
Being pregnant makes everything a little more challenging. I've had to learn over the past week that I can't easily do many of the things that I used to do without thinking...
Putting my pants on
Putting my shoes and socks on
Shaving
Painting my toenails
Sleeping
And most recently...hugging other pregnant friends!
We went up to Minnesota this weekend for the Baby Shower of a great friend. She is due May 22, but could deliver any week now. We quickly found out that we can't hug each other as easily as we once could!! :)
Angie and I have been fortunate enough to be 8 weeks apart in our pregnancy, which has made things so much fun. When our hubbies (who are actually VERY similar) really don't want to hear our pregnant drama or strange conversations, we know the other one is only a phone call away. Angie and I try to keep a pretty close tab on each other's appointments and usually call the day of, to check in. It is funny, looking back, how much life has brought the two of us through since college.
Some of my funniest and fondest memories of Luther days are running with Angie, followed by the two of us trying to do the Buns of Steel tapes. We will need those again after our babies are born! We also have quite a few pictures together ranging from Halloween parties to formal dinners that are now getting added to with our "Mommy Coldren and Mommy Wogs" pictures.
In church this morning, Pastor Mike talked about the importance of friends...true friends. I am so thankful to have Angie (among others!) as one of those friends for life..and now especially to be pregnant together. I have no doubt our babies will be friends for life, too!
Putting my pants on
Putting my shoes and socks on
Shaving
Painting my toenails
Sleeping
And most recently...hugging other pregnant friends!
We went up to Minnesota this weekend for the Baby Shower of a great friend. She is due May 22, but could deliver any week now. We quickly found out that we can't hug each other as easily as we once could!! :)
Angie and I have been fortunate enough to be 8 weeks apart in our pregnancy, which has made things so much fun. When our hubbies (who are actually VERY similar) really don't want to hear our pregnant drama or strange conversations, we know the other one is only a phone call away. Angie and I try to keep a pretty close tab on each other's appointments and usually call the day of, to check in. It is funny, looking back, how much life has brought the two of us through since college.
Some of my funniest and fondest memories of Luther days are running with Angie, followed by the two of us trying to do the Buns of Steel tapes. We will need those again after our babies are born! We also have quite a few pictures together ranging from Halloween parties to formal dinners that are now getting added to with our "Mommy Coldren and Mommy Wogs" pictures.
In church this morning, Pastor Mike talked about the importance of friends...true friends. I am so thankful to have Angie (among others!) as one of those friends for life..and now especially to be pregnant together. I have no doubt our babies will be friends for life, too!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
99 days to go!
We have broken the three digit mark for the countdown! Today leaves us with 99 days until Baby Wogs' due date! YEAH! Tomorrow marks the beginning of week 26 for us, and yet, it seems again like we just found out we were expecting our little Mustard Seed.
The past few weeks have been filled with unexpected blessings and we are so thankful to have been given the gifts we have. Here is our top ten list of things I am celebrating today, in no particular order:
10. We have a new nephew on the way who is due within the week!!
9. My Aunt who had a stroke last week is doing amazingly well
8. We have an amazing "contractor" working to finish our basement
7. Plans are being made for my five year class reunion and a group of my close friends from college and the three of us will be staying in cabins in Decorah for Homecoming
6. It is finally Spring, and with Spring comes sandals!
5. I get to see one of my favorite people in the world this weekend who is also pregnant. We shared so many things at Luther and now we have been blessed to share our pregnancies.
4. Easter at our church was amazing. Right when I was feeling pretty homesick for missing my family at Easter and wishing that we would have gone to the "traditional" service for church, the organ got wheeled in and played "Jesus Christ is Risen Today." Matt had to console my pathetic, emotional and crying preggo self in church!
3. We are going to Florida soon!!
2. After my fall on Monday, I went to my doctor's office to find "my" doctor on call who gave us a perfect bill of health..minus my incredibly sore right side
1. I am married to the most amazing man in the world who will make the world's best Daddy to Baby Wogs
The past few weeks have been filled with unexpected blessings and we are so thankful to have been given the gifts we have. Here is our top ten list of things I am celebrating today, in no particular order:
10. We have a new nephew on the way who is due within the week!!
9. My Aunt who had a stroke last week is doing amazingly well
8. We have an amazing "contractor" working to finish our basement
7. Plans are being made for my five year class reunion and a group of my close friends from college and the three of us will be staying in cabins in Decorah for Homecoming
6. It is finally Spring, and with Spring comes sandals!
5. I get to see one of my favorite people in the world this weekend who is also pregnant. We shared so many things at Luther and now we have been blessed to share our pregnancies.
4. Easter at our church was amazing. Right when I was feeling pretty homesick for missing my family at Easter and wishing that we would have gone to the "traditional" service for church, the organ got wheeled in and played "Jesus Christ is Risen Today." Matt had to console my pathetic, emotional and crying preggo self in church!
3. We are going to Florida soon!!
2. After my fall on Monday, I went to my doctor's office to find "my" doctor on call who gave us a perfect bill of health..minus my incredibly sore right side
1. I am married to the most amazing man in the world who will make the world's best Daddy to Baby Wogs
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