Blogging Vacation

I'm taking a little vacation from blogging over the next few days to a week. Everything is good- just going to try to limit my time online, relax, and take it easy...I'll be back soon and will update if anything happens regarding the baby. For now, baby is still busy gestating...we have about 8 more weeks to go! Yea!

Our Saturday

OUR SATURDAY WAS



VERY



VERY



VERY



FUN!!!

Friday At The Park

Yesterday I took Paprika to the park. I parked over by the rose garden so that we could have a a low-key park day. The playground is about 1/4 mile from the rose garden, and usually when I park by the rose garden we never make it to the playground because Paprika gets too distracted exploring the park's gardens.



We happened to get out of the car at the same time as a father and his almost 4 year old daughter. The little girl was adorable, with long braids, and was exactly the same height as Paprika. The moment her feet touched the ground, she started running at top speed for the playground, 1/4 mile away. Paprika happened to get out of our car at the same time, and when she saw this little girl, she immediately wanted to be best friends with her. So, naturally, when this little girl started running, Paprika did, too.



The little girl was very fast, but of course, Paprika can keep up! Paprika ran faster than I have ever seen her run. The little girl's dad (who, by the way, was not 8 months pregnant), was keeping up with the girls pretty well. But, I was not. I was waddling, and yelling after Paprika to come back. But, of course, she would not listen to me. It was as if I didn't exist or she had gone temporarily deaf!



Paprika buzzed right past the rose garden, right past the open field, and was at the playground in a matter of minutes. Once I made it over there, I sat Paprika down and had a very firm talk with her about running away in public, and how we behave and don't behave. I also told her that if she did that again, we wouldn't be able to go to the park anymore. Mean mommy!



On one hand, I choose to take Paprika to places where I know she will be safe if she runs off because I know that in my current state, I can't catch her if she runs. This park is fenced off from traffic, and even as far as she ran I could keep eye contact with her so that I knew no one was going to snatch her.

On the other hand, it's not okay for her to run off like that. In times like those, I have to play the enforcer role, and be the disciplinary parent...which is hard, because I want her to feel free, and be able to run...but I also absolutely want her to be safe. It's a tough balance- I don't want to say "no" all the time, but I also want her to listen to me. So, I try to say "no" only when it's really important- like a safety issue.



After our big talk where I was very stern, she stuck by my side the whole rest of the park trip. No more episodes of running away, thank goodness.



We went home at sunset, hung out at our house for awhile, and then Mr. Mustard came home from work. We put Paprika to bed, had a good dinner, and watched Slumdog Millionaire. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. The movie was pretty eye-opening, and heartbreaking...I think even more so if you're a parent.



I went to bed feeling so appreciative for what we have, for our life, for the life we are giving Paprika. It made me never want to complain about anything again...especially stupid things like wanting a backyard or a new lens for my camera. We have a roof over our head, a warm place to sleep, the love of family...what more is there we could want?

30w 5d Appointment & Ultrasound

I had a wonderful doctor's appointment on Thursday. It was your basic "check-up" and everything is looking soooo good. I am trying not to let it go to my head, but man, it was nice to have such a smooth appointment!

My blood pressure was way down to pre-pregnancy levels (100/70), which is much lower than it has ever been during pregnancy (the nurse was so surprised she checked it twice). I only gained 7 pounds last month, which is GREAT! Before I was gaining about 12 pounds/month. Now mind you, most people gain about 5 pounds/month during the third trimester, so I am still "above average" in weight gain, so it's not like I'm starving myself or anything. ;-)

I had an ultrasound, and the baby is looking beautiful! The baby is no longer breech, and is now in the head down (vertex) position. The baby is now just under 4.5 pounds, which is a great weight for this gestation! The baby is measuring about three weeks to a month larger than an average baby, which is just where Paprika was (good thing I kept this blog back then so I can remember these details)! The ultrasound tech and Dr. K both commented on how long the baby's legs are. We've got a long-legged babe here! And, of course, the most important and wonderful part of the ultrasound for me was seeing the heart beating away. Such a beautiful sight!

When I got home, Mr. Mustard and I took Paprika out to Islands (a hamburger joint) for lunch. I am still anemic, so I had to get some iron for me and the baby in the form of a juicy burger...a little reward for a wonderful appointment!

I go for appointments now every two weeks, and then in a few weeks I'll start to go weekly. I'm getting so excited. Is it June yet?

The Day After

Wednesday, the day after our big trip to L&D, we all slept in really late. We got up around 12:30, had breakfast, and felt mostly rested. It was a nice feeling.

Mr. Mustard took Paprika to do the recycling, and then to the Children's Museum. The weather is significantly cooler, and it was so nice for her to get out and run and play after being inside the whole day before!



While they were gone, I got a call from the preschool director at the preschool we want to enroll Paprika in for the fall. Registration was actually yesterday, but because Mr. Mustard had to be at work so early, he couldn't go register her and I was too sick to go. The director called to say there were two spots left, but I had to come in pretty much right then or else the spots were going to be gone! So, while they were out, I headed over to the school and registered Paprika for Fall 2009.



We wanted to put her in the three day/week class, but it was completely full...so she will be going two days/week. It's only for three hours in the morning, so not a big chunk of time.

I really think she is going to love it! She is so social and loves other kids. I really want her to stay home with me, of course, but I know she's just going to have a blast. If she doesn't like it, then we will pull her out so fast! But I'm betting she is going to want to spend the whole day there, not just three hours! It doesn't start til the Fall, so I still have some time to get used to the idea. ;-)

Our Wild Night

Mr. Mustard, Paprika, and I spent last night at Labor and Delivery. I had been feeling just awful all day. I had a horrible headache, sharp pains in my abdomen, I felt so dizzy, and my vision was getting really blurry and dark. I felt like my abdomen was contracting. Even my feet were swelling. All the classic signs of pre-eclampsia.

Also, the baby (who is usually quiet and moves very little), was being extremely active. So, of course, I was also worried the baby might be in some kind of distress. We checked the heartrate a few times and it was about 20 bpm lower than it usually is, despite the fact that the baby was being super active. That's not a lot lower...but low enough to start to be concerned, especially when coupled with the other symptoms.

I had pre-eclampsia with Paprika, and was induced early because of it, and so when the signs came yesterday, I had an idea what they could mean. I rested all day, as much as I could. I put my feet up, drank tons of water, and laid on the couch. I got Paprika up in the morning and let her entertain herself. I told her that mommy didn't feel very well, and needed to lay down, and she spent the day bringing me books, playing puzzles on the floor, and asking to snuggle.

By the time Mr. Mustard got home from work, I was feeling much worse. We called Dr. K and he said to take some more Tylenol but if that the headache persisted, and if the contractions/pain got worse, to go to Labor and Delivery immediately.

So, at 10:30pm, we woke Paprika up, loaded up the car, and headed to the hospital. Once at the hospital, nurse Molly checked me into a room, and started running tests. I was on monitors gauging heartbeat and contractions. She took some blood samples, hooked me up to IV fluids, and we got settled in the room. We had nurse Molly at Paprika's delivery, so it was wonderful to see her again, and she was just great to us.

Then we saw the doctor. She decided to do an ultrasound and run a few more tests that required some privacy, ahem, so I asked Paprika if she'd go get me a popcicle from the nurse's station. Mr. Mustard took her out of the room, and while she was out there, the nurses gave Paprika a doll that said, "Big Sister." It was really precious.

I don't know how to say this without completely bragging on Paprika, but I am so incredibly impressed with how she handled herself. At age 2 1/2, she knew exactly what was going on, and she was so incredibly brave and caring and sweet. Of course, the nurses were very surprised by her verbal skills, and could not believe that she is only 2 1/2. Paprika sat in a chair by my side and when they hooked me up to a machine to listen to the baby's heartbeat, Paprika said, "Oh, that's the baby! That's my little sister or brother."

Mr. Mustard was such a trooper, and as always, was there just when I needed him. His work schedule this past week has been insane due to a server crash at work, and he was functioning on very little sleep. But still, he was my rock...as always. He amazes me.

The room had a little chair that folded out into a sleeping bed. We set Paprika up to sleep on it. When Paprika saw how tired Mr. Mustard was, she came over and sat by me, and put her hand on mine and said, "Daddy you sleep there. Close your eyes and put down your head." She gave up her bed for her daddy! It was the sweetest thing. And mind you, by this point, it was 3am and we were all so tired.

Around 4am, the tests came back from the lab and the doctor determined that things were looking really good. The pre-eclampsia symptoms were not acute, the contractions I was feeling were not pointing to pre-term labor, and I did not need to deliver anytime soon. Yea!

So, we packed up the car, came home, put Paprika to bed, and went to sleep! I'm glad we went to the hospital, and so grateful that things are still looking good. Whew! I go back to the doctor tomorrow for a follow-up, and hopefully things will still be looking good then. For today, I am taking it very easy and feeling very grateful that our night turned out the way it did.

Evening Walks

Since the weather is heating up, we have been taking advantage of the cool hours just before sunset to take walks through our neighborhood. We have gone a few times over the past week. Last week (when I took these pictures), it was even cool enough for a sweater. It's not that cool now, but at least it's not sweltering just before sunset.



Our weather here during the day has been staying in the high 90s. Today it is 97 degrees! All of this heat makes me really want to move to the coast (the other side of Los Angeles) where it's about 15-20 degrees cooler. Right now, for example, it's 97 degrees here and it's 68 degrees in Manhattan Beach and 73 degrees in Malibu! That's the difference 20 or 30 miles can make!



We are going to be house searching in the fall. Yea! I am so ready for a backyard! I figure if we have a big backyard, even if it's hot we can create shade with an awning, use the big baby pool, get some sprinklers, and have room to really run and play. Can you tell I've been dreaming about this a lot lately?

Being almost 8 months pregnant in 97 degree weather is less than fun! I want to lay in my backyard with a tall glass of lemonade and watch Paprika splash on the slip and slide! Doesn't that sound like the best? Dreaming...

Beating The Heat!

I checked the weather this morning, and the high today was supposed to be 98 degrees! Another hot one! So, Paprika and I spent the day in the air conditioned cool of the indoor playground.



I was nervous about going back since the last time I took Paprika, she threw up on everyone. I was worried they might remember us and her getting sick. But no one seemed to mind or care (or at least they didn't say anything)!



I expected it to be crowded, but we practically had the whole place to ourselves. Practically. A few minutes after we got there, two nannies showed up with identical twin girls, about a year old. I don't know why twins follow me everywhere! They looked just like Paprika did at that age, and Paprika wanted to play with them. I don't know when these encounters will ever stop being hard for me. I really want it to stop hurting me everytime I see twins, especially twin girls...but it hasn't yet.

It's hard acting normal and not letting it show how much this type of thing affects me. I know a lot of people think that because I'm pregnant that it erases the hurt of the past, but it doesn't.



But how can I stay sad for long when I look at this little girl, and know that I need to be strong for her? Love her so much, and she doesn't let me be down for long...

Heat Wave!

It has been SO HOT these past few days! Today I didn't quite know what to do. Mr. Mustard was working all day. It was about 100 degrees outside (okay, maybe 95). I couldn't take Paprika to a park when it was that hot...for her sake or mine! So, I improvised.



This morning we went to Target and bought their last water play table they had on the shelves. Before someone else could snatch it up, I threw it in my cart!



I also got Paprika a new baby pool. There is nothing wrong with her old baby pool. It's just that it more resembles an inflatable hot tub than a baby pool, and with our limited space, I thought a smaller one would give her more room. Plus, it was only $4.99 and I couldn't turn down a deal like that! We can always bring out the huge pool later if we want to do some "real" swimming! ;-)



We got home and set up the water table and the pool (thankfully the pump I bought last year was compatible with this pool, too). Paprika had a great time and we spent most of the day playing with the table and splashing in the water.



I brought out some drinks for both of us and an ice cream sandwich for myself, but when Paprika saw the ice cream sandwich, she wanted one of her own! So, what can I say...I obliged. If you can't have an ice cream sandwich on a 95 degree day, when can you have one?



I'd say she enjoyed it a lot!!!

Hot & Summery!

We had a wonderful time today visiting Brandon and his mom, Michelle! It was a hot, sunny, summery day- and we had a wonderful time playing in their backyard! The weather was perfect for playing in the sand, and splashing in the water!





When the sun got too intense, there was plenty to do in the shade! Paprika had a great time playing with Brandon's dollhouse!



And his easel! You could call their house a child uptopia...or a child oasis...or a child paradise! The possibilities for fun and play are endless- so fun!



Paprika and Brandon had the most fun jumping on Brandon's bed. They could have done this for hours! They were giggling hysterically the whole time.







Then they went to the playroom, where they had tons of fun imagining and playing!



As you can see, these two really like eachother!



Paprika had loads of fun in Brandon's kitchen. Whatcha makin', Paprika?



They ended the day with even more hugs! Thanks for having us over, Brandon and Michelle!!! What a great way to spend a Saturday!