D(ax) Day

And we're off ... we'll be meeting Our Boy today!

Whew!

I'm glad our 400th blog entry is a happy one ... even if it's not a "THE BOY IS HERE (FINALLY)!" entry.

It does look like we've beaten the virus. Julia was back to her old happy, chattering self yesterday. I'm feeling tired, but it's the same old pregnancy tired that I was before. Dave's been hard at work and probably had the worst time of it since he didn't get any IV fluids to speed his recovery and his work load has been particularly brutal. Some fun stuff did happen before getting sick ...

1) Aunt Bev came to stay Thursday while David was in New Orleans. We had a good time together, ate some yummy food and entertained ourselves watching Julia play. Bev brought Julia a great puzzle that Julia keeps playing with. We are constantly being hounded by her as she brings pieces over one by one for us to hold and then takes them back to the puzzle board. Bev also declared that Julia needed a real tunnel instead of a box so after dinner we headed to Target and she bought her one. Julia loves it and goes back and forth through it over and over and over ...

2) Christopher watched Julia while Bev drove me to my doctor's appointment. It was nice to have someone else in charge of Julia for a bit and also not to have to drive myself. Quickly turning to check my blind spot is getting more difficult! :) The doctor visit went really well. Next one is tomorrow.

3) My friend, Carole, made an emergency grocery run for us on Sunday. When I called to tell her what had happened and request that she get us some Pedialyte from the store, she immediately agreed. When she showed up, she had a TON of good groceries for us to eat as we recovered. I'm so thankful for our friends here in Knoxville.

4) My parents came up all the way from Mississippi for Monday and Tuesday. They took over and did all our daily housekeeping chores and cooking and cleaning and laundry and disinfecting and taking care of Julia. We were able to rest and relax and recover. It was so great to get up this morning and just have to worry about getting Julia's breakfast and nothing else. It would have taken me weeks to get myself and our house back in shape. Thanks!!

5) Dave's family burned up the phone lines keeping track of us and how we were doing. It was obvious that we were at the front of their minds all weekend as we toughed out our first "All Family Sickness." :) We felt so loved!

6) Even though we were really sad Christopher caught the bug, we were happy to have a "dry run" of "Please meet us at the hospital NOW" before Dax's arrival. It probably won't go exactly the same, but we learned some things to do. You know me and my plans. I like to have as detailed of one as possible ... so I'm reworking steps in my mind based on our experience this weekend!!

7) I used an entire bottle of Clorox Anywhere Hard Surface Disinfecting Spray cleaning Julia's toys. Hopefully after the disinfecting Mom and Dad did along with this, our home is safe to visit again!! Our next visitor should be Dave's mom to help out us when Dax arrives!! OH BOY!!

Hospitals

My general dislike of hospitals in no way diminishes my gratitude for the services provided there when needed. I just don't like to be sick. Yesterday was no exception. However, I had caught Julia's stomach virus and went down like a brick. For over 12 hours I could keep nothing down and the less said about my more than hourly visits to the bathroom, the better. We called the emergency line for my doctor and were told to go ahead and come on in for some treatment. Christopher met us at the hospital to take over with Julia.

5 hours, one shot, two doses of Immodium and 3 liters of fluid later

I was released to come home and rest. Of course, now Dave has it! Oh boy oh boy. The good news is that Dax wasn't fazed at all by the rough treatment. He was happy as a clam.

I am feeling better this morning, but still very tired and worn out. Julia still has bad diarrhea, but no more throwing up. We'll be calling the doctor tomorrow to make an appointment if it hasn't cleared up. She's already downed a glass of Pedialyte today so hopefully we won't end up back in the hospital with her! (Poor Christopher changed his first diaper yesterday ... he had a baptism by fire with a nasty poopy mess ... ) I just pray all of this finishes up before Dax comes along. I have to admit to being frustrated that I don't have my baby here yet, but now I'm so glad he's still safe inside me and not exposed to this virus!

Update (1:45 pm) Dave's still in bed, wiped out. Poor guy has to drag himself into work at some point today to finish up some things. Julia's been super cuddly and spent most of her day lazing around on the couch with me. She was up toddling around for about half an hour, but that's been the most active she's been all day. I'm trying to get some things done in spurts. I rest, then unload the dishwasher, rest, then put the dirty dishes in the dishwasher, rest, stick a load of Julia's clothes in the washer ... etc. We've just heard that Aunt Bev caught the nastiness, too. She was here on Thursday so I would have company (and a Just In Case Ride To The Hospital) while Dave was in New Orleans. Great way to repay her, right?!? My parents are on their way up to help get everyone back on their feet. They'll arrive sometime tonight. I've got to go bleach the toilet, tub, and sink in our hall bath to hopefully help keep them from catching anything!

Oh What A Night!

No, DLB 3 still hasn't made an appearance ... the doc says everything looks good, I'm progressing slowly and may not make it to my appointment next week, but who really knows! Thanks for all the prayers that he might stay in place while his daddy was out of town.

**This next part is gross. I nearly threw up ... Welcome to Motherhood (Again)**

I thought I had mentioned last time Julia was stopped up how blessed we've been that she hasn't been really sick during her first year, but I can't find the post. Well, she's decided to change all that during her second year! I heard her crying a little last night, but it sounded like her usual "I'm awake in the middle of the night, maybe if I make some noise someone will come play with me" kind of whimpering. It went on for about an hour until she worked herself up into a good cry. At that point, I went to get her and see if anything was wrong. Boy was it! I walked in and the room smelled like a sewer. I was still half asleep so I went and just picked her up. About that time, my brain caught up and remembered that I hadn't put on my glasses so I couldn't see A THING. And there were chunks all down the front of Julia's PJ's. Not a good sign. I managed to get my glasses on and get Julia cleaned up (during which I found out that she had exploded out of both ends ...) I took her to our room for Dave to watch while I cleaned everything up and tossed the whole lot in the washing machine. Afterwards, all Julia wanted to do was sleep cuddled up next to Mama ... leaving my night's sleep practically nonexistent. (It was one of the few times I have been frustrated close to tears about being so hugely pregnant right now. I just could not lay there and snuggle her in one position for very long at all.) She's still asleep on our bed and we'll see how she feels this morning.

I'm doubly grateful Dax stayed put. It would have been a horrible night for Julia and her babysitters if Dave and I had been at the hospital! Eek!

Tunnel Vision

Dave and I have decided we need to get Julia a tunnel. She will turn her laundry basket on its side and try to crawl through only to get upset when she discovers the bottom keeps her from making it out the other end. Yesterday after rearranging her room to make space for a second crib and unpacking the travel crib Mom and Dad got for us, Dave cut the ends off the box to make an almost too small and rather unsturdy tunnel. She crawled through over and over and over ...




PS - Great game UT!

What Does He Know ...

I went to my doctor on Thursday. He seemed pretty shocked when I told him that David had to go out of town for work next Thursday! He asked if I wanted to move my appointment up a day "just in case" HA! He seems to think the arrival of DLB III is fairly imminent. Of course, when I went to the doctor the last time with Julia I was told, "Well, she won't be here before Christmas, but probably before New Year's!" And she was born that night! So, who knows?!?

Dr. McKeown did say, "I'll be shocked if you make it anywhere close to your due date!"

There you have it ... you can begin guessing date and time of arrival in the comments :) Next appointment is Thursday afternoon (It doesn't matter when I schedule it, Dave can't get out of the trip. And I've got lots of help. Aunt Bev is coming down from Nashville for the day and Christopher will either be hanging out with us at the house or on call during the day! No worries, right?)

Hee

We are on "Standby Dinners" here at the Bouldin House. This has a double meaning ...

1) Dave might get a call at work telling him to pick up dinner on his way home

or

2) He gets home to find I've tossed some chicken breasts in a pan and dumped BBQ sauce or spaghetti sauce or salsa on top and baked them. Not fancy, but it gets the job done!


In other pregnancy news, my next doctor appointment is Thursday afternoon. This time when he asks if I've felt any Braxton Hicks contractions I can say "YES! and I don't like them!" HA! I didn't feel them at all with Julia, but was warned that they are often stronger with a second pregnancy. This is true for me! They kept me up for a couple hours last night, but faded away after drinking some water and walking around. Apparently dehydration can bring them on. I'll be foregoing my usual drink of iced tea during the day from now on and sticking to water. Hopefully that will help keep them under control. We'll see.

Now Stop Bothering Me! :)

Bouldinness

1. Everyone seems to be on the mend. Dave went to work yesterday and Julia's been much more active and cheerful. Both are still VERY stopped up. Julia's even developed a new way to eat. She still stuffs her mouth as full as it can be with food, but she can't breathe through her nose so she has to chew, chew, chew very fast. Then she opens her mouth super wide and takes three or four gasping breaths then chew, chew, chew very fast. Repeat. It's really funny, but also kind of sad! I try to "squeeze" out her nose before meals, but it just fills up again. Oddly enough, she doesn't mind the squeeze bulb part, but she now runs if she sees you headed her way with Kleenex.

2. Julia is now tall enough to crawl herself up on the couch. We'll have to re-think our "safe" zone again ... the back of the couch is no longer a good spot to set things out of reach!

3. Before she got sick, Mekenzie and Laura came over for a play date. Julia's green chair was a big hit with both girls.
4. Our Mardi Gras girl wasn't as willing to take pictures as she was a year ago! Which is pretty funny considering her beads are one of her favorite toys and barely a day goes by that I don't end up hopping up and down muttering to myself because I've managed to step on one in bare feet!

5. I am growing, growing, growing. And I know I should take more pictures, but I'm the main picture taker in the family and forget to ask Dave to take a picture on those rare days I manage to make it out of my pajamas! (I still hold myself to the cleanliness standard of showering every day, but most days we end up having "Casual" Wear Day at our house!) I did ask Julia to take a picture, but I think maybe she misunderstood which part of me her little brother lives in right now ...

6. This Friday marks the 36-week point for me. This is when my doctor says he won't do anything to stop Dax from coming if he tries to make an early appearance!! Differences between this pregnancy and Julia's ... we still don't have a crib for the New Baby and haven't even washed his sheets. But I'm planning on packing a bag in advance this time! Learned some things ... hee.

7. Everyone keep their fingers crossed on February 28th. Two reasons ... 1) My sister-in-law, Laura, has an interview with the Navy for a spot in one of their Medical and Clinical Psychology PhD programs (I don't remember which one)! Go Laura! ... 2) Dave is headed out of town to New Orleans for the day on a trip for work. I know every pregnancy and labor is different and the chances of Dax arriving on that day are slim, but that is two weeks before my due date which is when Julia made her appearance. So, I'm a little nervous! Fortunately it is a Thursday so Christopher isn't working and would be able to watch Julia. And I've talked to my good friend Carole and told her that she is on Race To The Hospital and Picture Taking Duty if anything happens! I've done all I can to prepare and now am just praying that Dax stays put!!! :)

Doctor, Doctor ...

We've been doctor visiting these two days. I had my 35 week appointment on Thursday. Everything looks and sounds a-okay. I'm gaining more weight than I would like, but my doctor doesn't seem too worried :) Since Christopher watched Julia for me, I was able to go by the hospital and take care of all the pre-registration stuff. I felt extremely accomplished getting at least one thing checked off my Baby Preparation To Do List!

Julia's congestion has been getting worse so she is now taking an antihistamine/decongestant. No, not an over-the-counter one ... I've read all the news reports! Her doctor phoned in a prescription. Hopefully she'll get some relief soon and we can keep the gunk from moving into her lungs. She also had to get her second flu shot today. What a trooper!

Doctor

I've visited two docs in the last two days and both say things look good. Perfect score! Julia wasn't really excited about the visit today, but afterwards I let her play in the long hallway with the stroller. Don't think we'll be letting her push Dax around just yet ...

A Weekend

We had an odd mix of a restful weekend during which we accomplished quite a lot! Some funny Julia bits ...

• She has been SO cranky lately. Friday and Saturday seemed to be her peak days. Wanting something, but not really sure what except that she's positive it's not what you're doing. If you're holding her, she wants down; if she's down, she wants to be held; If you're in the other room, she wants to be there, too; if you're in the same room, she doesn't want to be there with you; if Echo is across the room, Julia wants to play with her; if Echo is laying next to her, Julia wants Echo to move ... etc. It has been VERY frustrating, but a little funny. We've seen some examples of tantrums that make me shudder in fear.

• We put Julia in the toddler room at the nursery on Sunday. She's always been in the infant room before, but she's walking all over now and we'd like to get her interacting with some children that are more her age and skill level. Plus, last Tuesday night (01.15.2008) was the last time she had a bottle. She's been off the bottle during the day for several weeks, but we still had her on the bedtime bottle. But on Tuesday we ran out of formula and weren't going to open a new can so we switched over to a cup with milk. She did fine. We thought that maybe fewer of the kids in the toddler room still took a bottle which might make it easier on her if she didn't see other babies still getting a bottle. She did well in the nursery (of course), but it was the first time that we've gone to pick her up after church that she immediately made a beeline out the door trying to get to us! :) The room was maybe a little overwhelming for her (lots more crying from the other kids and very noisy).

• Last night we made the Ham and Gruyere Potatoes for dinner. We made about four pounds of potatoes so we could freeze some for when Dax makes his appearance. I cooked a tiny potato for Julia to try as well as some of her usual dinner favorites (chick'n pattie, pear slices, ketchup packet). She LOVED the twice-baked potato. I thought the cheese would be too strong for her, but she kept signing for more.

• I gave Julia some ketchup at lunch on Friday. She's not a big fan of having a bit squirted on her tray (she just whines and pokes at it until you wipe it up), but when I handed her the ketchup packet, she sucked it dry. Does that count as a vegetable? :)

• I'm trying to find the cord so I can charge our camcorder battery. I know you'd love to see film of a Julia Tantrum, but I also really want to share her newest noise. She walks around making a very odd sound. It's like she's practicing to be the World's First One-Year-Old yodeler. The first time we heard it, I turned to Dave and asked, "Do you think she's trying to speak Japanese?" (We've been watching too much Ninja Warrior.)

• And I posted some pictures. None yet of her walking in her new shoes, but other small happenings from previous weeks.

Pregnancy Update: I should really take some more baby belly pictures ... I'm feeling good. I have a bit of dizziness most mornings. Nothing where I pass out, but I have to lay down on the couch for a little bit until the room settles. I think it's a mixture of just a pregnancy thing and my having fairly low blood pressure (96/65 usually). If I'm very careful about what I eat, I do better. For now that means that I don't eat things with sugar unless I have time for a nap :) Hip still hurts, but that's just another pregnancy thing. Otherwise, I just keep getting bigger and bigger each day. He's definitely growing and loves to be moving around. He seems to especially love shoving his enormous foot into the bottom of my right ribs! So things are going well and it is hard to believe we've got less than two months before he arrives!

Feeling Overwhelmed And Yet A Little Prepared

There is still a "To Do" list of things a mile long to prepare the house for Dax's arrival and my stamina has gone downhill to such an extent that I can take care of Julia's daily needs, sometimes my own daily needs and every once in a while accomplish a household chore. I'm finding this extremely frustrating and usually end up taking it out on poor David. He comes home from work only to be confronted nearly daily with a raving wife. He handles it well and just tends to grab Julia and keep her occupied ... that helps a whole lot especially in the evenings giving me a chance to make dinner so we're not eating take out every night.

HOWEVER, lest you think I've turned into a slug, I learned a bit of a lesson from Julia's birth and have actually been sneaking in some extra cooking (brown an extra pound of ground beef, make a double batch of sauce, or simply making recipes that can be easily halved with the second half going into the freezer). So far our freezer has seen the happy addition of one meal of lasagna, two meals of chicken and macaroni casserole, two meals of Husband's Delight Casserole (from my Seasons of Santa Fe cookbook) and two meals of spinach and chicken enchiladas (also from my Santa Fe cookbook). We'll eat for at least seven meals after Dax shows up. This next week I hope to add half a dozen Ham and Gruyere Twice Baked Potatoes and two meals of taco casserole. If anyone has any meal suggestions, I'm open. It works best if it's the type of meal I can prepare in stages (cook the meat one day, make the sauce the next, assemble the meal the next) or else is so easy to prepare it only takes about 20 minutes. It also obviously needs to be a meal that freezes well. And bonus points for non-casserole options ...

I also managed to post the rest of the photos from Christmas. You can click to see pictures from Christmas afternoon at Grandma's house and Christmas with Grandad at Keith and Kathy's house. Now I've got to get the 30 or so random pictures off my camera and get those up and I'll be all caught up ... unless we take more pictures ...

You Look A Little Pale ...

The other day at the pediatrician, the receptionist asked if I wanted to go ahead and make Julia's 15 month appointment. When she started reading off dates and times available, I said, "You know what? The New Baby will be here then so maybe I better hold off a bit and see how our schedule looks after he arrives." Then I thought about what I said and realized OUR BOY WILL BE HERE IN ABOUT TWO MONTHS! Eek!

Doctors

Last Friday we had another ultrasound. Checking on some things and looking in on Our Boy. The Bouldins were in Tennessee and able to come with us. Their first glimpse of their grandson :) Everything looks good. The Squirt is on the "big side of normal" according to the doctor. Somewhere around 3 lbs 5 oz or some such. I don't remember the exact numbers. So maybe he'll get his size from his daddy as well and I won't have to worry about having a 6'2" Julia with a 5'2" brother! :)

His heart rate is around 135 bpm and the ultrasound tech said she could see hair growing on the back of his head! No bald babies for us! He had his little foot sticking up and, according to measurements, it is 2 inches long ... it feels much, much larger when it is jamming into my ribs!

During the ultrasound, Dax was in a head-down position with his face turned towards my back. Which meant we couldn't get a look at his handsome mug. We tried and tried to get him to move, but he refused. He moves ALL the time normally and wiggles much more than I remember Julia doing, but this time he couldn't be budged. Those Bouldin males. Don't try to push them into doing something they don't want to do! Hee.

Pregnancy Cravings

Currently I am eating Campbell's Healthy Request Tomato Soup nearly every day and drinking a mixed drink of equal parts OJ and Sprite. Not at the same meal.

Changes

After several months of researching and debating, Dave and I have finally chosen the cell phone provider, plan and phones for our family. We've been off-contract with Sprint for ... oh, three or so years. And recently had one or two occurrences that made us think that we each need our own cell phone rather than sharing one between us. We'll be switching to AT&T. I know I hear faint cheers from the many, many people in our families that now won't have to use their minutes to call us, but I'm sure the excitement will be short-lived as everyone remembers our well-deserved reputation for never, ever, ever having our cell phone on us. (Aside: We recently found our cell phone again and the only missed call we had was from my brother ... BEFORE THANKSGIVING!) We'll get the phones soon and one of our numbers will be the same. The other person will have a new number. Once we figure out who has what, I'll send out an e-mail.

As an added bonus, while he was doing all his research, Dave discovered that we could upgrade our cable/phone/Internet package and still pay the same price we've been paying each month. So we now have free long distance from our home phone. As well as voice mail that we don't know how to access yet. Fun.

PS-I went to the doctor today. Baby's heartbeat thumping away at 150 bpm. My belly measures a bit big, but not enough to worry about. And I gained three pounds between this visit and the last so I didn't get fussed at for not putting on weight! Go me!

Prayer Request

The doctor warned me second pregnancies were harder on the body than first ones and second pregnancies as close together as mine were even worse. He's right.

I've been having a lot of trouble with my left hip during this pregnancy. I usually wake up feeling good, but by the end of the evening have progressed to walking with a heavy limp. However, by yesterday evening after the game (Geaux Tigers! ROAR!) I could not put any weight on my left leg at all. Dave had to help me make it into the bedroom to lie down. This morning I'm feeling better, but am already feeling twinges in that hip.

We are moving rapidly towards the third trimester when things start to get very uncomfortable and at this point I'm asking for prayers that my body can keep it together through these last three months and I will continue to be able to take care of Julia!

Happy Halloween

Pregnancy News First:
Dave got to feel Our Boy kicking around last night for the first time! So cool.

Julia Halloween News:
We went to Trunk or Treat last night at UT. Jamie's Housing group was the sponsor of the event for the first time. They took it over from another group that was unable to organize it this year. Campus groups brought cars to Circle Park and handed out treats from the trunks. Most of the cars were decorated and looked really great. It was a short walk and another chance for Julia to wear her costume. Plus, since most of the students didn't have kids, they didn't know that Julia wouldn't be able to eat any of the candy. This made it much less embarrassing for us! :) Julia had a great time showing off her scary costume and talking to all the college students!

The hat stayed on the whole time! (She was too sleepy to protest)

With Aunt Jamie and Uncle Christopher

Ready to go!

Trick or Treat!

Julia didn't really understand the concept (of course) and kept trying to trade whatever she had in her hand for what was going in the bucket. No one was really interested in taking her drooly packet of mini Oreos.

Ready to go

Dave Halloween News:
Dave dressed up as one of his coworkers on his team. I wanted everyone to see his yellow 'hawk.

Nice costume!

Closeup

Family Halloween News:
Tonight we'll go to my friend Carole's house for Julia to watch the Trick or Treaters. We only get the four homeschool kids from down the block at our house so Halloween here is rather dull. Carole gets around 150 kids at her house, though, so there'll be plenty for Julia to watch!

Other News:
My dad will arrive today, and Julia and I will head to Mississippi with him tomorrow. It will be interesting to see how she does in the car since she is a much less complacent traveler than she was last time!

Our Hero

Christopher was our hero last night.

Around Julia's bedtime (8 pm), I started getting VERY sick. Dave got Julia ready for bed and fed her while I spent the time throwing up dinner. I had some pretty bad cramps as well so we were getting a little worried about The Squirt. Dave called Christopher and he came right over so we could go to the doctor if we needed to. Even after things had calmed down and it looked like everything would be okay, we asked him to stay for a while longer just to be sure. And he did.

What a nice man!

(And I had typed up this cute little story yesterday before getting sick ... )

Sunday morning everyone got up early to head to church with Nannie and Pa. We ended up taking up the back row on both sides of the aisle. Dave and I sat on one side of the aisle with Julia and Angela and Jaime sat on the other side of the aisle with Elena. Always planning for that quick getaway with a fussy baby! A some point during the announcements, Julia turned and saw her cousin. Her little arms started flapping and she SQUEALED as loudly as she could. And Elena squealed right back! :) The two of them held a little conversation across the aisle until Dave and Angela could get them to be quiet! It was really funny.