Ruby in the Press

kisses

Ruby LOVES getting kisses. She loves them so much that she makes this cute little face whenever she gets them or wants them. Last night John & I were kissing her over and over and then we put her mouth to our cheeks like she was kissing us and she would giggle. I don't think I've ever heard a better sound than that. Giggling for kisses.

Don't ask how the packing is going - as Brianne said, we're on track to move in January. We close Monday! We keep getting distracted by the giggling, kissing Ruby, who can blame us?

Ruby reading her first book

Ruby turned 3 months old a couple of days ago. She blew us away by turning pages in her soft book. We thought it was an accident, but she has done it several times...even from left to right! Now, not only can she turn pages, but she can read too. This kid is brilliant.

We have a bunch of other videos posted here. We're posting a link of this site on the right side of this page(under links). But, we think it will always pull up the same video, so to look for others or newer ones, you'll have to look on the right side of that page and choose the one(s) you want to see. Have fun!

green acres is the place to be...

Our friend, Lane (check out her shop) gave us these cute iron-ons. I can't wait to decorate Ruby's onesies.

Today Ruby and I went to visit the school I was teaching at. The teachers are working, but the kids don't start until next week. So we made our rounds and Ruby was oohed and ahhed at by everyone. She was passed around and overstimulated by all the colorful back-to-school bulletin boards. She was so patient with it all. She's such a great baby. It was a little much for her, so I promised her an afternoon by ourselves at our place - no more people and new places today. We had a fun visit, but I'm so grateful that I don't have to get wrapped up in the back-to-school stress this year.

sleepy girl

our trip to the big city

On Saturday, we packed up the car to head to Portland for the day to meet Brianne, Eddie & Eddie's Dad. Brianne embroidered Ruby this cute little onesie - so crafty! Ruby did really well except that she was battling a major tummy ache from some bad Thai food I ate the night before. Whoops. Sadly, she was not at her most pleasant self. I think if she had been feeling better, we all would have had a great time. We did manage to pick up some great baby forks & spoons that are made of bamboo! Then, we had a great dinner at the Kennedy School. When we got home, John & I decided that Ruby did really well, considering her troubles, but it was a little much for us. Traveling with a baby that is screaming is not fun.

guess where we are?

Today was the inspection of our new house. Everything seems pretty good so far. We get the report tomorrow, but nothing major was wrong. Our realtor (who is also an inspector, but not ours) said this is the best we could have hoped for with a 97 year old house. We're so excited about it all. This was also John's first time inside the house and, phew, he loves it too. We have some more pictures to see. But you really just have to come in person to take it all in. The built-in cabinet might be my favorite part, no maybe the window seat. Oh, I don't know, there are so many things about this house I love.

i'm the mother-flipper

this is how i entertain myself when ruby naps.

grrrr....

I was having a lovely little lunch of soup & salad with Ruby & a friend when the mean old meter maid crept up behind us and left me this present on my car. We were sitting outside maybe 20 feet away! And, the worst part is that the meter had been expired for about 5 minutes. Boo.

monkey business

Ruby is all dressed up in her hoodie. Yes, she needed to wear it, its been a bit like fall out here lately. In fact, some of the leaves are already starting to change color! It's probably harad to believe if you're reading this from FL and its 8000 degrees outside. John knit Ruby those bright red booties she's wearing. He used some of my Grandma's yarn that was passed on to me.
Ruby is getting so strong. We sat her up in the rocking chair and she stayed there on her own for quite a while. She loved it! She is such a happy girl - she smiles at everyone she meets and is so patient.

I have FINALLY finished making Ruby this monkey. I began knitting it before I found out I was pregnant with her. There were many other projects that took priority over the monkey, so it just sat for a while. I found the pattern in The World of Knitted Toys. This was the baby monkey...there was a mama, but I thought this one would be big enough. It's as big as Ruby is! Hopefully she will like it. At least its not a toy made in China with lead paint. I guess I need to learn how to become more efficient at my toy making.

New home

It seems as though we are moving soon! Our bid on this adorable house was accepted today. Now we're on to the bank and to jump through the legal hoops. We never thought that we would be able to find a house this great and be able to afford it. Stay tuned!

carrots in love

Look at these adorable little carrots we got in our CSA box yesterday. One of the many benefits of having farm fresh produce is the fun colors & shapes we get that you would never see in a big grocery store. Ruby loved investigating the carrot tops. She stared at them and reached out for them. I took her in closer and she batted at the tops and grabbed ahold of them. Other big news, for me anyway, is that Ruby will FINALLY fall asleep in her swing. Yay!!! I can actually have my hands free for a little while!

she giggles!

Ruby's Grandma & Gramps Gainer just left. We had so much fun together. They baby-sat one night so that John & I could go out on a date. A good time was had by all. Ruby is so happy and easy-going. The day before the grandparents arrived, Ruby giggled for the first time. It was the absolute cutest sound we've ever heard. Luckily, both John & I were there for it.

2 months old

Ruby is officially 2 months old (and a few days now). Yesterday she had her check-up and shots. Ugh. Our doctor is great, he was with us for over 30 minutes, answering questions and looking at Ruby. She weighed 7 lbs. 9 oz. and was 21" at birth. Now, she weighs 11 lbs. 14 oz and is 23". Ruby did so well for her shots. Even the nurse commented on how quickly Ruby stopped crying. I think it was harder on Mommy & Daddy. She has been great the rest of day too. We spent a lot of time outside, which she loves. She slept really well last night, longer than usual, but she had a big day. I, however, was up several times checking on her.

Check out these adorable new mary janes for Ruby to grow into. Our friends, Lane & Sam gave them to Ruby along with some other cute clothes, but I have a weakness for mary janes, so I had to take a picture. I can't wait until Ruby can wear them with some tights.

Master John

DSC_0331.JPG
Originally uploaded by meg+john=ruby

John officially has his Master's degree in soil science!!! We took this picture on the day of his defense. He had to make a powerpoint presentation and defend/present his thesis. There was a room full of people there, including the 4 members of his committee and the department head. After his 30 minute presentation, we all had to leave. John stayed in the room with his committee for a couple hours for his oral exam. They could ask him anything, so it was pretty intimidating. After this, the committee gave him some changes to make in his thesis, which they expected would take several weeks. John did it in less than one, got it all turned in and is official. He may be the first person in the soils dept. to do all of this so quickly. He has completed his M.S. in 2 years and wrote his thesis in just a few months. His major professor, Dan, introduced John for the presentation, then introduced us and said that John has been working on his own project with me at home (meaning Ruby).
We are all so proud! Check out the flickr site for lots more photos of our visit with John's family.

mud bog

Here is one of the kinetic sculptures going through the mud bog.

DaVinci Days

We attended the annual DaVinci Days festival this weekend (davinci-days.org) which is always so much fun. Ruby finally agreed to hang out in her front-pack which made it so much easier to spend our time outdoors. Her stroller, that we love, does not do so well on anything besides pavement unfortunately. Ruby loved being outside looking at the trees, and we all loved looking at the kinetic sculptures. The race through the mud bog was especially interesting. We also got to ride a segway (see Jenna above). Fun was had by all.

Video of our cute girl

big girl

getting tired, falling over
Originally uploaded by meg+john=ruby

Ruby is such a cutie! I set her down and she stayed sitting for a minute, I couldn't believe it. She holds her head up really well and likes to stretch her legs out and stand on them. She smiles at everyone and loves having her nana, papa, & cousin here to cuddle with.

peaceful sleep

peaceful sleep
Originally uploaded by meg+john=ruby

This was taken a couple days ago, but a lot has changed since then. Ruby hit a growth spurt and has been eating twice as often as she usually does! I thought this would mean she would sleep a lot, but no.
Ruby is also trying to talk a lot more. It's really cute. She moves her mouth around, trying to make different sounds and she seems very proud of herself when she does. She smiles a ton. She's a happy girl.
John's parents and niece arrive this week to meet Ruby for the first time. I know they'll fall in love with her; she's so much fun right now.

so hot

crashin
Originally uploaded by meg+john=ruby

I wasn't a fan of temperatures over 100 before - especially without a/c, but poor little Ruby just can't deal with it. We've been spending our days out and about finding places with air that will also welcome a baby who might fuss for a bit. Ruby is over-stimulated, over-heated, and over-tired.

Last night we snuck into the soil science student lounge after hours and hung out there while John worked on his thesis with us. Ruby and I crashed on the couch until about 10 pm when we thought our apartment might have cooled off enough (it hadn't - it was 90 inside).

On a positive note, when Ruby is not hot and tired, she is so happy. She smiles a ton now - especially at books, which I can't get enough of. She makes a new little sound everyday, it seems. And, she is getting chubbier by the second. She couldn't be cuter, I think and then she proves me wrong.

5 weeks old

Ruby is facing her first heat wave. Now she really loves her nightly bath time, she's so nice and cool afterwards.

Aunt Brianne & Uncle Eddie came to visit this past weekend. We all had a lot of fun staring at and holding Ruby. We went out to eat and went out walking and I actually had my hands free for a few hours! Bri & Eddie just moved to Seattle from KY and we're loving being so close now. Bri and I haven't lived in the same time zone for several years.

Ruby is starting to stay awake more often during the day and sleep a little longer at night. She's begun making some new sounds, more like coos. It's really cute. She LOVES John. When he comes into view, she just stares at him and when he is walking around she turns her head to follow him. Also, every morning when she wakes up, I pick her up to nurse her and she looks out the window and smiles - so cute!

smiles

DSCN0842.JPG
Originally uploaded by meg+john=ruby

This has been a big week for us. We went to my classroom and cleaned all of my stuff out, which was pretty strange. We went out to lunch a couple of times. Ruby decided it was time for her to eat too when our food arrived at the table. Ruby & I took our first shopping trip alone. She slept the whole time! And the best part is that she has begun smiling at us!
We weren't sure she meant it at first, but she seems to smile at appropriate times and at other things she likes - a lamp that she has spent much time staring at and some pictures she looks at while we nurse in bed. These little smiles are the best!

Father's Day

DSCN0798.JPG
Originally uploaded by meg+john=ruby

My first father's day today; it's a strange experience with different feelings associated with it. First, its an amazing thing to be holding your new baby and loving her so much even though I just met her. But, how did I get here? Am I really a father now? It seems very surreal at the same time. What is this force that compels us to have babies of our own? Where does it come from? I suppose all living things will fill their biological space as long as the environment and resources can support them. But why? Is it just to continue the species? I can't deny some kind of genetic impulse for producing offspring but I don't think that's the main driving force behind it. For me I think it has more to do with sharing the human experience. In my case it is with Megan and Ruby. I never thought about having kids much before Megan, but as soon as we were together I knew that she was someone who I wanted to share my life with and beyond, all the way to having children together. And now we have Ruby in our family. There are so many things I worry about that lie in the future, mainly war and greed, that have the power to shape her life in ways that I wish with all my might I could change. But at the same time there are so many things I can't wait to experience with her. And most of all, I feel so lucky that she is in my life.

A noisy morning

oops

Okay, I'm obviously a little sleep-deprived and it's showing. I forgot to mention in the last post WHY the dr. told us to slow down Ruby's eating. It's not because she has gained too much weight. Nobody is at all concerned about her weight - it's not an issue at all. He gave us this advice because Ruby was vomiting after feedings a few times. She did this after really long feedings. I was feeling like she may be getting too much food for her little tummy, but I didn't know how to figure out how much was the right amount. This is why her dr. suggested burping her every 10-15 minutes or so to see if she wants more or not. So, I'm not feeding her any less often, just sometimes (and only when Ruby decides it, of course) a little bit shorter.

Hopefully all of my breastfeeding friends will be a little less worried now. We love the fact that Ruby eats as well as she does and is getting a little chubby!

2 weeks old already

It's hard to believe that Ruby has been in our lives 2 weeks already. It's even harder to remember what our lives were like without her in them.
We went to the pediatrician today for her first check-up. She weighed 7 lb. 9 oz. when she was born and now weighs, drumroll please, a whopping 8 lb. 3 oz! This may not seem huge to you, but she lost quite a bit of weight in the hospital for some odd reason, when she was discharged from the hospital at 2 days old she weighed 6 lb. 11 oz. So, obviously she has no problem eating and gaining weight. The doctor told me to slow down her eating. I didn't know I could control how fast or slow she eats, but he told me to stop her every 10 minutes or so and help her rest and then she can decide if she's still hungry or not. I guess this is instead of her eating until she passes out...good advice for us all!

ugh

projectile vomit at 2 a.m. in our bed is not fun.

a good day

DSCN0786.JPG
Originally uploaded by meg+john=ruby

We are surviving without Grandma here. It's tough, but Ruby makes it pretty easy on us. She just loves to be held every second and who wouldn't want to hold her??? John has been working from home so far this week which has been great. It's nice to have someone to pass Ruby to when I want to take a shower or need a little break. I think John is going into work tomorrow for part of the day, he's easing me into this full-day mom role. It's so strange to be needed so much, but after only 12 days, I can't imagine my life without her.

Happy girl!

DSCN0778.JPG
Originally uploaded by meg+john=ruby

We have been having some great nights lately. (Hopefully this doesn't jinx us!) She sleeps for 3-4 hours, feeds for 1 hour and then back to sleep. Today the girls didn't get up until almost 10:30! This is really helping us catch up on some much needed sleep. A few days ago this was not happening with nary a wink to be had. On a sad note, Lynn is leaving us tomorrow. She has been wonderful, spending time with Ruby and us, helping cook, clean, and shop. Its been great! So this week will be a big test for us as we are on our own. Wish us luck!

Ruby's a week old

We made it through the first week! Things have gone a bit easier than we thought despite all the lack of sleep. Lynn (Mom) being here is helping us get more sleep than we would have on our own that is for sure. So a few milestones; the cord fell off, she rolled up onto her side, and she looked into megan's eyes for the first time. Not bad for only a week old. And her head, she can hold her head up for seconds at a time all by herself. Amazing kid we have here! So next week is looming. I'm going back to work. Probably not full time but pretty close. Lynn leaves on Monday so we better get our act straight. My parents and niece are coming in the middle of July which will be a big help since I am trying to finish this thesis paper. I know my mom can't wait to meet Ruby, it must be tearing her up. Megan is doing an incredible job. Ruby just loves her so much. She is up at all hours of the night feeding her and soothing her. And best of all, Meg loves it. Not to say times aren't rough now and then but overall she is so happy to be a mom, and feels so lucky to be one.

Day 4

So last night (#5) was a bit rough. I think we were spoiled by the night before. That night she slept for streches of 3 -4 hours just waking to have some food and then pass right out again. Last night she didn't fall asleep until 6 am after a night of feeding every hour or two and having some stomach pain. I guess the new milk is taking some time to adjust to. But we made it through and now Meg and Ruby are passed out together. Once she has a full tummy she can sleep though just about anything. This morning I made us some breakfast and I took some time to listen to "This American Life" podcast over my eggs. It was nice to take a few minutes to myself and reconnect with the life around me. This is something I need to keep doing so as not to totally lose my pace in completing my thesis. One more day of adjustment and I think I'll set up the laptop and try to focus on potatoes for a while. But this is hard as Ruby is so awesome and consumes me. Thank you for the visits in the hospital and the food and gifts everyone brought. We ate everything and it really came in handy and made us feel good. We love you all! Don't forget to check the flickr site and as soon as Google Video starting allowing me to embed video in the blog I'll put up another short clip, or if you can't wait go here and watch it: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7275974803186919546&hl=en
John

New photo site for friends and family

We have set up a Flickr photo site for the baby photos. You can download any of these for free and then print or upload to Snapfish or whatever for buying prints. The webpage is http://flickr.com/photos/8692775@N06/ and I'll put a link on this page. If you want to download a print quality photo, click on the photo from the main page, at the top left of the image click on "all sizes", choose the largest size and then right-click on the image and save for a pc or control-click and save on a mac.

Everything is going great! Feel free to call us whenever.

Our Rubylove

She's here!!!

Ruby Gainer McQueen was born Thursday, May 31 at 9:51 am after 22 hours of labor. She was 7 lb 9 oz and 21 inches long. Mommy and baby are happy and healthy. We are now all home and enjoying our new life.

(Video quality will improve with time but this is the best we have right now.)

one more day

We went back to the doctor today (Tuesday) and the baby is still doing very well-happy and cozy. This time when I was hooked up to the fetal monitor, I had several contractions, but none strong enough for me to feel. I'm still only 1 cm dilated, so we're going to induce tomorrow morning. The doctor said she'll hook me up to Pitocin (a hormone that mimics the natural one that stimulates labor). We were hoping she could just break my water and that would be enough, but she said because I'm only 1 cm, I need something stronger.
I'm not quite sure how we'll sleep tonight, but hopefully I'll get some rest.
Wish us luck! The next time you check the blog you should see some baby pictures...finally!!!

Enjoying the sun

Today, since the weather is so beautiful, we went down to Avery Park to see the roses. Around the neighborhood most rose bushes are blooming but at the rose garden in Avery Park most of them were still buds. Some were blooming though, and they were bursting with colors and smells.
Megan has been growing more tired the last couple of days, hopefully a sign that things are beginning to happen, although she's not keeping her hopes too high. She's napping right now and maybe the baby is sending her signals that they are ready to be born. I really want the baby to come on its own time, but that time is now. Things are different today, let's hope they continue. Meanwhile, we continue to wait and learn patience. What lessons we are already being taught!

no update

I don't really know what to write about, but I know that if I don't write some of you will assume we're in the hospital or have had the baby. This is definitely not the case. For the past 2 weeks or so, I've woken up every morning wondering, "Is this it? Is today the day?" I've kind of given up on that. It seems as though I will always be pregnant. Our baby will just stay inside of me until it should be about 12 years old. I had stopped making plans for dinners or activities, but now I'm back to discussing the next few days without saying, "We might be having a baby then."
Wednesday cannot come soon enough.

1 week overdue

We just got back from the dr. She monitored the baby's heartbeat and contractions (I had none while hooked up), then she did an ultrasound to check the amniotic fluid levels. The baby is doing very well and there's lots of fluid left. So, the plan is that I will go into labor on my own soon! If not, then I'll go back to the dr. on Tuesday to monitor again - if I need to be induced then, I will. If not, then I will definitely be induced on Wednesday. The dr. said she will break my water first and see if that does the trick, if not, then she'd hook me up to pitocin.
My parents are disappointed, I think, that we have to keep waiting. But they got to hear the heartbeat for quite a while and see the baby on the ultrasound, which was exciting.
My doctor prescribed eating gelato tonight and making plans to go out of town and then maybe the baby will come. I love my doctor - she also wrote me a prescription to go part-time at work about a month ago.

update

Well, no baby yet. I went to the doctor yesterday and not much has changed in the last week. So, the doctor said that we could induce now or wait a little longer. We don't really want to induce if we don't have to. I'm going to the doctor tomorrow (Thurs - which will be one week from the due date) to have an ultrasound and do some fetal monitoring to make sure the baby is still happy. If so, we can continue to wait for the baby to start labor, but if there are any concerns, then we'll induce, of course. As anxious as we are to have this baby, we would rather do it on the baby's schedule. There would be a lower chance of complications during labor and I'd be able to move around and take advantage of the jacuzzi tub during labor. If we induce, I'm pretty much stuck in bed. So, we're really hoping that the baby figures out what to do here pretty soon. My parents are here now, so we're all just staring at my belly and telling the kid to push down. I'm hoping that the baby taking it's time means that it is laid-back in nature. We'll see!

anticipation

Today is the due date! So many people predicted that the baby would come before today. Yesterday I got another phone call from a friend that had her baby. I began to wonder if our baby would ever come. I must admit, I got a little jealous & depressed. I know the baby will come when it's ready, but its so hard to wait! I'm usually a pretty patient person, but this is tortuous. I know I should enjoy this time and rest up, but I just want to hold the baby!!! When friends see me now, they say, "I can't believe you haven't popped...you're huge!" That about sums it up.

2 more days??

We just got back from the dr. We supposedly only have 2 more days till the due date, but after today, I'm thinking the baby will wait a bit longer. I'm only 1 cm dilated (have to get to 10) and 25% effaced (have to get to 100%) , the baby is at -3 station (have to get to +5). So, even though things have begun to happen, we've got quite a ways to go. The baby has begun to drop, but still hasn't got to the halfway mark. My dr. said that I'm still getting around too well to have the baby soon.
So, in the meantime, I'm off of work, sleeping whenever I want to and reading. It's pretty nice. The weather is gorgeous right now, so I've been taking little waddles down to the park at the end of the street. Yesterday we went on a BIG walk. The walk used to take me 25 minutes before I was pregnant, but I haven't attempted it in quite a while. It's amazing what a little rest will do! I'm enjoying this time.
The teacher friend that had her baby on Mother's Day went into labor on Saturday. She had been to the dr. on Thursday and was only 1.5 cm dilated and the baby hadn't really dropped yet. So, who knows, maybe I'll go into labor in 2 days. One can hope.

counting down

There were 4 teachers (including me) pregant at school this year and now I'm the only one left. They've all had their babies. They've all been girls too! The most recent baby was born today and the due date was tomorrow. She went to the dr on Thursday and the baby hadn't dropped yet, but I guess it got itself ready in a hurry.

John and I are now feeling like this could really happen at any moment. Today we went shopping and picked up some last minute things that we think will come in handy. We bought a glider - spur of the moment decision. We found it at the consignment shop and decided that having rocking chair that is tall enough to rest our heads on will be really important when we are so tired. Plus, having an automan that glides too will be great. We brought it home and John hopped in it and cuddled up with a stuffed animal rocking it. I think he's excited.

last day of work

Yesterday was my last day teaching for a long time. It was very strange, I am excited, but also very sad. It's hard to imagine my life without a class full of kids in it. My class had a meeting at the end of the day and some of the kids were sobbing. They couldn't understand why I'm not coming back this year or even next year. I'm not planning on taking the baby to school to visit - it will be less than a month old before school is out and those kids at school are germy. One of my kids gave me a mother's day present and BEGGED me to come visit her at her house. It was pretty cute.

So now we just wait. John had his second baby dream last night. In the first, the baby was a boy and last night the baby was a girl. I feel like things are progressing and that I could go into labor at any moment. John said this morning that every night he wonders if I'll wake him up and tell him that my water broke. We're stuck in a constant state of anticipation.

baby shower #4!

This weekend, John's department threw us a cinco de mayo themed baby shower. It was great. There were 3 babies there ranging in age from 5 months to 1 yr., so we got to see what we're in for. We got lots of great advice and practical gifts. We got some money toward the diaper service, some board books, cute baby shoes, a baby/toddler cookbook and more.
I don't know if you can tell in the photo, but I am very swollen and big. People at work just laugh at me when they see me now. I don't think its funny. I look funny, I'm sure, but I don't feel funny! 8 more days till the due date.

less than 3 weeks to go

We went to the doctor today and the nurse seemed excited that I've been having contractions. I am too. The baby is continuing to drop. But the doctor said s/he hasn't dropped too low yet. She said she felt the baby's forehead and not it's cheekbones, so its still got to travel some. She also said that because I'm still smiling, working, and going to yoga, I've not reached the end yet either. I guess I need to start complaining more.

My class gave me 2 books that they made for me. One is titled "Baby Advice" and the other is "A Baby Needs...". They are both really cute and funny. I think my favorite advice is that Mr. McQueen should change the stinky diapers. Another student suggested that he take us out to dinner everynight. As cute as the class is, I'm glad to only have 7 more days of teaching left. My blood pressure was a little higher than it normally is for me and I know exactly which lovely children are the cause of that. Grrrr.

kid stuff

We're writing "how-to" books in my class. One of my students wrote a book titled, "How to Have a Baby". To all you teachers out there, yes, I know some of her letters are backwards, we're working on it. To all of you non-teachers out there who may not be able to read kid-writing, here's the translation:
1. Go to the doctor.
2. Have your husband with you.
3. Hold his hand tight. (yes, it says tight - the 'gh' is silent!)
4. Hold your baby.
My mom had a baby too.

Another one of my students came to me and said, "My mom says your baby is gonna come early cause its sagging down low." Apparantly the baby has dropped somewhat. The doctor said that it has begun to drop, but it hasn't DROPPED. So, we have less than 20 days until the due date. Hopefully this kid doesn't wait too much longer than that - I am exhausted and HUGE. My feet & hands have swelled up a bunch in the last couple days, probably because it got up into the 70s. I don't know what I'd do if I were in FL now. I guess I'd sit in the pool.

John & I are off on a fancy date. We thought we'd take advantage of the opportunity while we have it. We're going to get some yummy Italian food overlooking the river.

Four weeks to go!

Amazing, we have only four weeks (or so) to go. Megan is hoping that the baby is ready to be born early. I, however excited I may be, wouldn't mind if it was on time. There's this little thing called school I'm trying to finish up. But, no matter, whenever the baby comes then that is the right time. Today we went downtown to the farmer's market. Its so exciting to have all of the farmers there and their wonderful food. Megan was having a contraction that wouldn't go away so she sat down for a little while. She asked me if I was happy about this contraction she was having because I was smiling, while she was in some pain. A little guiltily I said that I was, its hard to contain this anxious excited feeling of knowing our baby is so close to joining our little famiily. Its pretty intense to be adding a new member to our lives. For the last few years its just been us together and now our whole lives will be shared with someone we don't even know yet. And everything we do, every decision we make from now on affects our child in ways we may not even be aware of. But knowing how much I love Megan makes it all seem less stressful and very exciting. I used to be wary of what the future was going to be. Now I have so much to look forward to.

baby shower take 3

Yesterday my class hosted a surprise baby shower for me. It was so cute. They gave me baskets full of my favorite comfort foods (5 boxes of mac & cheese, 2 boxes of chocolate chip cookies just to mention a little bit), made me a card, a quilt, and one student even gave me a build-a-bear bear that she made for me with a little message from her that plays when you squeeze its paw. We ate chocolate chip cookies and milk and they gave me lots of suggesed names for the baby.
The teacher I job-share with planned it with our room mom. They're also working on a book for me, but it wasn't quite ready yet, so I have to wait to read that. I think its full of advice, which should be pretty entertaining.
John was there for the festivities, which they LOVED.

Baby shower

On Wednesday, the staff at my school hosted a shower for us (and the 2 other pregnant teachers). The gifts in the picture were just for me - the other 2 girls had just as many. It was completely overwhelming. I can't belive how much stuff we got. We got a swing, tons of clothes and so many beautiful handmade gifts. It was amazing. Someone made us a "crib caddy". It hangs on the side of the crib and can hold things like diapers & wipes. She even sewed pockets around the outside for baby powder and things. We got an amazing quilt, a blanket, a crocheted blanket, a knit peace crane mobile and a very hungry caterpillar blanket - all handmade! And the other two teachers got the same (or similar) handmade gifts.
We're ready for the baby now!

7 Weeks Left

We are getting so excited to meet the baby. It's kicking and moving like mad now and I'm hoping that means it wants to come out a little early. I'm really enjoying preparing for the baby, and I don't want to go back to work...I wish I could take the next 7 weeks off too! It's so nice being able to sleep in, wash baby clothes, nap, read, walk, etc. Yesterday John and I took advantage of the sunshine and had a little picnic in the park. We are cherishing our moments of relaxation - the calm before the storm. Check out John's new glasses.

Spring Break...Party!!!!!

We are officially on our spring break. It is so wonderful waking up in the morning whenever I feel like it and taking a nap during the day. I love knowing that I have a week more of this ahead of me. Instead of our usual travel plans, this year we are getting things ready for baby and (I am) sleeping. Those are the only plans we have.
John has been busy. He's set up the crib, assembled new bookshelves, re-arranged furniture...and its only Sunday! There won't be much left to do if he keeps up at this rate.

On the way to yoga class

Meg was on her way to yoga class (I usually go, but stayed home to grade papers, its finals week) and I grabbed this quick photo op. I love the way this shirt hugs her baby belly. She looks so good. The other night we were out at a reading and we saw some friends of ours who are also pregnant, very much so, like they could be having the baby right now. I was taken aback at the size of her baby belly. I can't believe that Megan's will like double in size from what it is in this picture. Lately we have been taken to watching the baby move in Meg's belly. You can practically see it rolling over in there! Its really cool to watch. The baby is so active. I wonder if it will stay that way after its born? Chances are it will. There are so many babies being born around here right now. A fellow student of mine in the soils department just had his first two days ago, its really an exciting time. My new office mate Gesa has a baby girl seven months old. Everywhere we go, babies!

happy st. paddy's day

Instead of the day's usual activities, we decided to celebrate in a g-rated style. We are starting to get the baby's room really ready now. I got all excited to have everything done and then realized that I couldn't really do a lot of what we need (moving furniture, painting, assembling the crib, etc.). So, John has taken advantage of our sunny day and is sanding, scraping, and re-painting our bookshelf for the baby's room. It is bright white now, which we think will look great against the green walls.

Shopping Spree!

Grandma and Grandpa-to-be are here visiting. When we picked them up at the airport, we decided to stop at Babies-R-Us and we stocked up on all kinds of things that we think we will need. I feel much more prepared for the baby now. I'm feeling more excited than anything else. I have 9 weeks left!

I asked my Dad how long he thought the baby is now. He guessed 10". It's actually over 15! So, I guess I'm not as big as I thought I was. I feel pretty huge, but I'm amazed that there's something that big inside of me.

Everyone at work knows that I'm going to stay home with the baby next year. It's so nice to be able to talk about my plans openly. I don't like keeping all these big secrets from people for so long.

We'll have a new belly picture coming soon...be patient!

fire drill

We had a fire drill this afternoon at school. The baby heard the alarm too and jumped. I thought that was kind of neat, but then I hoped the alarm didn't scare it too much. When I was teaching in FL, I took it for granted that our fire drills usually had decent weather. The biggest problem I had was if I didn't have my sunglasses with me. But to have a fire drill when its 40 degrees outside and to have no coat is miserable. The poor kids in their t-shirts and some in shorts were freezing.

Yesterday John & I visited some friends who have a 3 month old. She is adorable and big...14 lbs! It was pretty weird realizing that we'd have a baby like that in our lives in just 6 months.

childbirth classes

We are officially in the 3rd trimester and still feeling good. We began our childbirth classes this week. We knew we'd eventually have to watch a birth video, but I didn't expect it on the first night of class! It was great though. I actually got pretty teary-eyed watching it, because it was just so amazing. It got me really excited to meet our baby. I also felt like I can really do this and get through it. We learned some exercises and stretches to strengthen muscles that I'll be using during labor and delivery and they were all things that I've been doing for years in yoga. That gave me some confidence too, that those muscles are already flexible and strong.

I took the glucose test this week also. I had heard stories about how awful the stuff is that I had to drink, but I thought it tasted like orange "pop" (as they call it out here). My blood sugar was fine - it was a good thing I didn't take that test on Valentine's Day. It was hard enough resisting the boxes of girl scout cookies we got in the mail from mom a couple days before the test.

From the mouths of babes?

A couple days ago, I was walking down the hall at school and I overheard a kid ask another, "Who's that fat lady?" The other kid responded, "Oh, that's Mrs. McQueen." I thought it was pretty funny myself.

The baby is getting stronger...we can watch my belly move now when its kicking sometimes. I've even been able to figure out how its positioned - I can tell the difference between kicks and elbows. I love it!

My mission this weekend is to choose what type of sling I want to get. As every other decision is, this one is overwhelming...so many choices. This one is made even more difficult by my back issues and for the fact that John will use it to, so we need one that will adjust to fit both of us. We have a great consignment shop in town, so I'll hit that and try their's out.

Au revoir!

I'm huge!

John wanted to take this picture, since its been a month since the last one. Once I saw it I realized how big I've become. I don't feel this big, but I guess I am. According to my doctor, I'm right on track for weight gain, I guess its just so drastic since I'm so short. I don't know how I'll make it 15 more weeks!

I finally caught some of the bugs going around my school. Everyone has been really, really sick. I seem to have a bad cold, but no fever. I'm hanging in there, I'm more upset than anything that I caught it. I hadn't been sick at all this year and I was hoping that would last for the rest of the pregnancy.

6 months pregnant!

We drove up to Portland yesterday to get our little one's carseat. We really love it. Now its sitting in our living room with an ultrasound picture of the baby in it. I'm tempted to carry it around with me from room-to-room; having the car seat makes this all seem so real!

The baby is getting stronger and kicking harder now. Its suprising that it can make my hand move on my belly now. I love it. I took out my baby book yesterday and discovered that I was only 7 lbs. 1 oz, which makes me very hopeful. Of course, as John will quickly point out, I haven't grown that much since then. John wasn't that much bigger, so I'm still hoping for a tiny, healthy baby.

John's mom thinks the baby looks like John did when he was a baby. I'd be very happy if thats true. But some people think the baby has my nose & mouth. We'll see!

Baby McQueen, now in 3-D!!!

Can you believe these pictures? The ultrasound was an amazing experience. We were able to see inside the baby's brain! We also saw most of the major organs, counted the fingers, and even saw its mouth and tongue. Any comments on family resemblence? One thing we didn't see however was if its a boy or a girl. Even with steady pressure we are still committed to keeping it a suprise. Our doctor, Dr. Lee, gave us an overwhelming positive report about the ultrasound. In other news, Megan's belly is growing by the second (according to one of her students.) Tonight at our prenatal yoga class, Megan could feel that her belly was bigger than it was just last week. But you can't even tell she's pregnant unless you catch a profile shot. We have also taken possession of our new video camera, so soon we should have video links for your viewing enjoyment.

And so it grows...

We are now entering week 21 and Megan's belly is expected to grow by 1 cm per week. Lately she has been feeling really good (except for all of the sneezing) and we hope that continues for as long as possible. In four days we have our big ultrasound where we find out how the baby is doing. We could find out the sex at that time but we are still committed to not finding out until delivery. Sorry guys! We had a wonderful time with our friends and family over the break and want to thank everyone for their generosity in giving. I was able to feel the baby move for the first time when we were flying to Orlando! This was very exciting for me and really made things more real.

Half-way there

We've hit the half-way mark now. In just the last couple of days my belly button has begun to disappear. The baby is now 10" long from head to toe and I will gain about a pound a week now which may explain my growing appetite. We've put away most of our baby shower gifts in the "new" dresser we bought. It's starting to look like a baby's room in here.

under the sea

We went shopping in Portland and stopped at a mall on the way home. The first store I spotted was a Pottery Barn Kids and I asked John if we could go in. I said, "I know we won't buy anything, it's so expensive, but I just want to look." Their crib bedding is so cute. We were looking at it all and John found one he loved...sea creatures.
All of their bumpers are $70-100, just for the bumper! But this one was on sale. We asked the price and were told $11.99! So, of course we brought it home. Its adorable. It has a sea turtle, an octopus, a seahorse, a sand dollar, a sea star and more embroidered on it. We're planning to have solid sheets to go with it. We've already been asked and we're not going to do a sea life theme, we'll probably just use the colors in the bumper for the room.
We can't wait to see everybody in FL and share our new ultrasound pics that we'll have by then.

It's moving!

On Thursday, I was driving home from work and I felt like I drove over a big dip in the road. My stomach sort of flip-flopped. I realized I hadn't driven over anything and the feeling wasn't going away, it changed a little bit. So I knew then it was the first little flutterings of our baby. I felt it again a couple times on Friday at school too.
Its the most excited I've been since we found out we were pregnant.

More cute kid stuff and my belly

I read a book with them called, Our Teacher's Having a Baby. In the book, the class puts stickers on the teacher's belly. So several of my students made stickers for the baby with tape.

Cute kid stuff

My class is so excited about the baby too. Earlier this week, one of my students made a book, "for you to read to your baby." Just in case you're not used to reading little kid writing, I'll start you off. It says, "Hush little baby..."

Two hearts that beat as one

This week we went to the doctor and had a wonderful experience. We heard Charisma's heartbeat! (that is the baby's new name) The nurse pulled out this ancient looking piece of equipment from like Radio Shack or something, and through its crackling, scratchy speaker came a beautiful thump, thump that was our baby. At first she couldn't find the little thing, so I got nervous, but soon enough my fears were replaced by a big smile when I heard that sound for the first time. Megan almost cried, her cheeks were glowing pink with excitement. -John

The secrets out

This week I told everyone at school that we're pregnant. Some people (including my principal) were totally shocked but others said they suspected. My kids were really excited. They said they would write stories for me to read to the baby and make me a list of things I need. Several of them promised me they would buy me a bottle or toys. One boy asked if I would bring the baby to school. He promised, "We will not cough on it or touch it so it doesn't get our germs." I've trained them well. :)

We go to the doctor on Thursday, so we'll post the ultrasound picture then.

Boy or girl?

It is one or the other now. All I know is whichever one it is, its hormones are not mixing well with mine. I was sick a bunch this weekend. Ugh. I thought I was feeling better, I was rarely nauseous anymore, but it hit me all of a sudden. Now I've taken to wearing the sea-sickness wrist bands. They seem to help.

This week, week 11, begins "rapid growth". It's about an inch at the beginning of the week, and by the end, it will be double that! My uterus is about the size of a grapefruit. All of a sudden I have a little pooch. I put John's hand on it yesterday and he couldn't believe it. I swear, it came out of nowhere.

I'm off for a nap. First graders on Halloween can wear a prego out!

Check this out!

Most of you have heard me talk about 2 of my good friends that I used to teach with: Christy & Jamie. They both have daughters 2 and 3 years old. Now they're both pregnant again, which is so nice for me! They've sent me some really amazing links.

This one:
http://www.umm.edu/pregnancy/9monthmiracle/tools/fetaltool.html
is really scary to me when I look at where all of my organs will go....especially in my short little torso! This baby better stay small, but healthy.

This one:
http://pregnancy.about.com/cs/pregnancycalendar/l/blweek10.htm
is from a weekly pregnancy calendar. You can actually listen to a 10 week old fetus' heartbeat. It got me a little teary-eyed. That might have been the hormones though. John & I watched a sitcom a couple nights ago and one of the characters had a baby. I had tears streaming down my face. It's a little ridiculous.

There are about 15 classroom teachers at school and 4 of us that are pregnant right now. 3 of us are due in May. I'm the only one that is still a secret. My principal doesn't know yet. Any advice for when and how I should tell him? I'm thinking about waiting until after a big district-wide staff development day (Nov. 9). I have to lead 2 sessions, so I figure if all that goes well, it might be a good time to share our news. I'm thinking it might prove to him that I can still keep my head at work and be professional.

Week 9!

This week the baby will get elbows and start moving around on its own! So independent already!
John & I bought our first presents for the little buddy...books, of course.

Only 3 more weeks until I hit the 2nd trimester. Everyone is promising me that I'll have some more energy by then. I got sick this weekend, so now when I feel nauseous, I get very scared. I'm also fighting a nasty cold that's going around the adults at work, so I think it was a combination of the two that pushed me over the edge.

John has been amazing. He makes all of my food for me and doesn't seem to get offended when I have to leave the kitchen half way through the meal. He cleans, does laundry, goes grocery shopping, and encourages me to keep sitting around. I keep telling him to slack off a little so I don't feel so guilty, but he just can't. I'm having a hard time figuring out how this has zapped so much energy, but John seems to take it all in stride.

First doctor visit and pics of the larvae

Megan and I went to the doctor today for the first time. Everthing was wonderful. After being with Dr. Amey Lee for only a couple of minutes we were able to get a glimpse of our new baby who I was calling Squishy, but has now grown up to Larvae.

In the photo, the head is to the right and you can make out little buds that will become the arms and the legs. The heart is kind of in the middle and we were able to watch it flutter on the screen. So cool! Off the head, that looks like a stocking cap, is the yolk sack, which will disappear soon.

The baby is due on May 17th!