Our Little Mate is Here!

Note :: More details to come. The short of it is - I went into labor on Saturday, the 27th (my birthday), labored (naturally) for 20 hours. It was then decided the best method of getting him out would be by doing a c-section (ouch!). I have spent the last 5 days recovering and getting to know little Benjamin (or should I say BIG Ben - 8 lbs. 14 oz. - that's 2 whole pounds heavier than Annmarie). I'm at a wonderful hospital in Sydney and I'm entitled to stay 6 nights post delivery. I'm taking full advantage of that and since the food is half way decent it's not so bad. The nurses and midwives are also extremely helpful. Of course, I do miss the husband and Annmarie and I'm looking forward to going home tomorrow. He's a sweet little guy and looks a lot like his sister did as a infant, but acts nothing like her. We all couldn't be more in love.

The Bump :: 38 weeks

The wedding ring came off some time last week. The puffiness has started, but it's still nowhere near as bad as it was with Annmarie. Buba is facing down, but is not engaged yet - let's hope this changes soon. Feeling well, just really tired by the end of the day. Who knows - this may be the last bump post?

The Bump :: 36 Weeks

The countdown is on. My parents will be here in 3 weeks, if he can wait until then, but not much longer...that would be awesome. Still feeling good, sleeping well. It's all about slip on shoes. Total weight gain - 12 kg. Not really sure how I am managing this, I feel like I am eating all the time. I was looking at a picture of me two days before I had Annmarie and my belly is smaller then than it is right now. I'm grateful that it is winter here, not sure how well I would be able to handle a summer pregnancy in OZ.

I've also been thinking a lot about how Annmarie will no longer be my only child. It's still something I haven't completely wrapped my head around. I know everything will fall into place, but I have been trying to savor these last moments together. Even today when she was a little sas and refused to get her shoes on and I may have gotten a bit cross with her; she told me and I quote "I want you to go to Daddy's work and for Dad to come home". By this point that little comment just made me laugh. There are days I feel the same way :).

I know AM is excited for her new role as big sister, but I can also feel there may be some challenges. I can also feel that it will all be worth it.

The Bump :: 34 Weeks

It's going so fast, yet I'm starting to forget what it's like not to be prego. I'm pretty wiped out by the end of the day, but typically have a good amount of energy to get through the day. I have been skipping out on taking naps, as this will usually ensure I sleep well at night. We've pulled all of Annmarie's baby gear out of the garage and it's in the house. We have done a few things to prepare for the little guy, but still have a lot to do. We are going to hold off on getting his room ready until after his arrival. He'll be in our room for a while anyway. Plus we are going to have some visitors - first my parents are coming out (again) a few days before the guess date and then a little while later Nana is coming (again). Therefore, we will keep the guest room available for them. So, if anyone else wants to come out and babysit and help out, oh I mean, visit the beautiful Northern Beaches of Sydney, now is the time (of course, we will always welcome visitors, you may just end up on a air mattress or the sofa bed). I haven't wanted to jinx myself, but one great thing about this pregnancy is that I have had very little swelling. I had a lot with AM and by the end of the day my feet, ankles, and hands would be so puffy and at one point I couldn't wear my rings. I think this probably happened because I was working and was sitting for long periods of time. I am a lot more active this time around and that has helped. While my weight gain has been very similar to AM, I'm carrying it all in my belly, it's big, heavy and round. I felt that I filled out a lot more with AM, maybe because of the swelling. Well, six weeks to go, if not sooner.

The Bump and The Weekend

This buba moves; like all the time. Last week at my doctor visit I've put on a total of 6 kilos for this pregnancy and we'll just leave it at that. Seeing your weight in kilos makes you feel pretty good, but then you do the math and it's all the same. I feel big and Annmarie graciously tells me every morning "your belly is getting bigger and bigger every day". Night time is getting a bit uncomfortable. I'm waking up to use the bathroom more often, but still feel good during the day. If I need to I will take a afternoon nap. I'm loving this banana bread at the cafe near AM's preschool and usually pick up a slice after I drop AM off. Not really sure if it's a pregnancy craving, or if it's because bananas still cost a billion dollars and that makes bananas more appealing. It's good stuff though. And only ten weeks left, where does the time go. We really need to get our act together.

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We enjoyed a three day weekend thanks to the Birthday of Queen Elizabeth II, even though it's not really her birthday. Whatever, we'll take it and this is the first time Jamie hasn't had to work on a holiday. So what did we do? Pretty much nothing and I didn't take a single picture. It rained and rained all weekend and is still raining. We had some friends over on Saturday and Annmarie had a nice play with Will. Annmarie tried Vegemite and then proclaimed that she liked it. She had talked to Will about it and a lot of children at preschool bring Vegemite sandwiches, so she kept asking about it. I'm not a fan of the stuff, but we had some sample packages, so we let her have a go at it. What can I say she's becoming a little Aussie and is starting to pick up the slightest of accents.

Annmarie turned three and half over the weekend and we celebrated by letting her watch her first Disney princess movie - Snow White. She liked it, but I think liked the animals and dwarfs (doc being her favorite), more so than Ms White, as she started calling her.

Monday, we needed to get outside, so thankfully there was a little break in the rain and we went to the Collaroy Beach Club for lunch and let AM run around for a bit. Jamie and I found one of our new favorite foods in Australia the Moreton Bay Bug, or better just known as Bugs. They are like little lobsters.

Hopefully, this weekend we will see some sun.

Random Stuff

Morning tea at play group.
We have been having a lot of rain, but also a lot of rainbows :).
Tulips.
28 week bump.
A sick Annmarie. She is all well now, but it wasn't pretty for any of us.
Doing crafts while stuck in the house.
And my favorite, a cuddle with sick Dad.

Port Douglas :: The Bump

View from our room at the Hibiscus Resort and Spa.

The Bump :: 24 weeks

24 weeks and a belly full of boy. I feel big, but not too big. Meaning I can still get around and do everything that needs to be done. However, having my parents here, I haven't really had to do a lot. The bump has grown a lot in the last two weeks. He is crazy active and strong. I wasn't this big with Annmarie at 24 weeks and I don't recall her being as active. I'm sleeping fine and if it wasn't for this stupid annoying cold that I have had forever, I would have nothing to complain about. At this point I haven't had any heartburn or swelling. I am more well rested now than I have ever been. I'm hoping for this cold to be over soon. And if that doesn't happen we are heading to Port Douglas next week and that should do the trick.

The Deets

Here is a little Q&A re our buba.

How far along are you? I’m 21 weeks and my guess date is August 23rd.

When did you find out? We found out in December, right before AM’s birthday.

Gender? Boy. No question in our minds. We have pretty compelling evidence.

How are you feeling? I’m feeling good. Besides this cold I have been fighting for the last week, everything has felt good and normal. I had some nausea and exhaustion the first trimester, but I would just nap when AM napped – like all the time. And then like clockwork during my 13th week I started feeling a lot better and had way more energy. The best part - all our ultrasounds and tests have shown that all is healthy and well.

Do you like being pregnant? Yes. I think it’s a pretty awesome. With Annmarie I never felt any signs of pregnancy until I started feeling her move. With this one I am way more aware of being pregnant. I’m also playing the pregnant card a lot more – just ask Jamie. I rest when I need to and let people help whenever they offer. Annmarie and I never try to do more than we can handle.

Can you feel the baby move? Oh yes. A lot. He is very active. I started feeling flutters around 15 weeks.

Cravings? During the start of the pregnancy I was craving cold cold fruit, smoothies and milk shakes, this probably had more to do with it just being ridiculously hot this summer, rather than being pregnant. I haven’t had any other real cravings.

How is the health care system in Australia? I have no complaints so far. I found a great OB and I’m really happy with him. All the same tests and protocols they have for pre-natal care in the US are the same here. Also, you are given more time in the hospital post delivery for a ‘normal’ birth - four nights for a vaginal delivery and six nights for C-section. And word on the street is the hospital food is supposedly great, in like people have babies at this hospital just for the food. We shall see.

Will he ever be president of the USA? Good question. If you know any immigration people have them give me a call. I’m guessing we’ll find out about all this immigration/citizen stuff pretty soon. We’ll need to get the little guy a passport pretty quickly after birth, because we are hoping to make it back to the States for the Holidays. Weather he’ll have dual citizenship or whatever, I’m not really sure. I’m guessing he’ll have some residency rights to OZ?

Have you got a name picked out? No. We are working on it. We’ll probably come up with a short list like we did for Annmarie and then once we meet the little guy face to face we will see what suits him best.

What does Annmarie think? Annmarie gets it. She likes to kiss, hug and rub my belly. She likes to pretend that she has a baby in her belly. She called it from day one that it was going to be a boy. She also likes to talk about it and asks a ton of questions. The other day she asked me how it was going to come out and I thought, oh my, but I told her the doctor was going to help me and she seemed happy with the answer (she idolizes doctors and thinks they can do anything). She is going to make a great big sister. I know it’s going to be a huge change for her. Ever since moving to OZ we have had a lot of togetherness, but she also has become increasingly more independent since starting preschool and this should hopefully help things. She’ll almost be 4 when the baby arrives, so she’ll understand a lot and I’m hoping a lot of help. She’ll also increase her days at preschool when she turns 4 and this will give the baby and I some good one on one time. I think I may have a harder time with missing Annmarie

I think that sums up the basics. We couldn't be more excited.

Annmarie wants to tell you...

A lot more details to come.