A quick link to pix on Baby Day

The Grand Lunar posted some very early (1st hour) pix

Sorry for the lag in updating here, I'm glad to see someone did for me :)

Welcome, baby 'Seven'

"Seven"
7:13 pm
7# 11 oz
19.5" long
and quite a bit of dark hair

Mom, Dad, and baby are POOPED. :) Baby quite literally as well as figuratively LOL

more news tomorrow.

Still with the labor

I'm not stalled, exactly, just not making progress much. What's up with that. It's like all my strong contractions are fake ones or something.

I've been here 24 hours (in the hospital) with almost nothing to show for the contractions I've had.

I got some tylenol for my headache, four crackers, and some more water.

We're starting a little bitty bit of cytotec orally to hopefully put a move on the contractions.

I am, otherwise, very very very tired of all this and if there were a way to *quit* I'd take it.

Still here, still waiting ...

ugh, it's the worst kind of report.

Yes, we're making a little progress.

No, it hasn't kicked in to high gear or started moving any faster.

We've tried walking, the shower, changing positions, lather, rinse & repeat. It's not like things are totally stalled. Just not really moooooving.

So ... that's all I've got to say for now. :) Thanks for your prayers and things!

We'll check in now and then. Writing "not much happening" reports isn't much fun, though. LOL.

The Last Pregnant Pic of the Season

BETTER be the last, anyway. 39 weeks, 1 day.

We have a plan now, midwife (she did start the mental clock after all) said she'd really like to seeeee me in by 4 pm, and we'll "see how things are going" which I'm sure translates to "we'll admit you and watch the clock" ...

So that's the plan. For now we're still piddling around. I did take a nice warm shower and maybe my contractions picked up some since then ... kinda hard to tell, sometimes, really. Certainly nothing I can't talk or type through yet. But there's some there ...

Anyway. Keep watching the tweets, I'll let you know if there's any news!

~~p.s. for the record, we'll have wifi at the hospital, so you may even get some pics fairly quickly, if all goes well and there's nothing too out of the ordinary after the birth.

I'm a little (or a lot) frustrated that things still aren't really moving, despite some hopeful times. Sure, maybe there's a lot of quiet work being done in there, but ... I'm not really feeling like I'm making any progress. So, as before, I'd still appreciate prayers that things would really kick in. I don't want to piddle all night through a slow labor ...

Shhhh let's keep it quiet for the moment

I think today might be baby day.

Wouldn't you think that after 6 other deliveries I'd really *know* ??

Two of my concerns are arriving at the hospital too soon and having to hang out while they "start the clock" because they don't like for one to labor on their time too long ... and also that them starting the clock will lead to the push for interventions.

I actually ran through a few scenarios with my midwife and was told they'd be okay with the fact that I'm not calling and rushing in right away ... so I'm not. I'm going to hang out here and keep an eye on things and wait for labor to progress a bit.

But if you happen to see this and would like to pray that things would move along in a timely no-intervention-needed sort of way, and that I wouldn't (ahem) wait TOO long to decide it's "real" and go in (who would do that?!?) I would appreciate it.

Don't worry, I'll keep you posted. At the very least, check the tweets over there in the little twitter box on the left. You can even go to twitter and sign up for the RSS feed. There's even away, if you're signed up there, to have any posts go to your cell phone. No, really.

Thanks!

hm. I suppose I should use this time productively, if I'm not going to lay down and try to sleep more?

~~~~

8:30 am update

well, I've been up for more than 4 hours.
I'm feeling a little - or a lot - frustrated and discouraged right now.
My water broke this morning, for sure, but labor hasn't really kicked in in earnest. I'm certainly having some contractions - some strong, even - but not all that regular or strong or getting closer together. I suspect baby is posterior and not really settling down in or turning, yet. There's some techniques I could try, but many of them suggest doing something for 3 contractions, or 5, or 10, and that in itself seems kind of discouraging to try when the contractions aren't regular and close together.

So anyway. I don't know. Prayers that things would start moving, or that baby would turn, or whatever, would be appreciated. I really don't want to end up being sent in, do nothing, and be labeled "failure to progress" - done that once before.

Quick! Before I forget!

It's fading fast but I have to quick write down my dream ~ for your entertainment purposes, of course ~ before I forget. After all, it's Thanksgiving morning and I'm sure you'll all be thankful for my dreams.

So ... we were living in my parents house. I was an adult, though, and in my dream the house was actually *my* house, and my current family (you know, husband and kids?) all lived there with me. My mom was there, too, but she had come to hang out with us for the afternoon.

And we were sitting in the family room watching a Seinfeld episode. Well, actually, the dream earlier was that *I* was Elaine and was actually IN a Seinfeld episode. Not a very clever one, either, at that. It had something to do with the hallway Jerry lived on, and not really knowing Kramer yet. For some sort of a 'practical joke' I (as Elaine) was knocking on the doors of Jerry's neighbors and running away when I heard them coming to answer them, because Jerry's neighbors were weird. There were two neighbors. And apparently the door peep-hole things didn't work, or I didn't know about them, because I was confident they'd never know who I was. Like I said, it wasn't a clever episode. But all that is an aside, because by the time the part I want to tell you about takes place I was just *watching* the lame episode, which was now about Elaine starting a new job in a big building in California and for some reason the business was having a naked or topless day. And I was actually letting my children watch this episode on TV. And Elaine wore clothes on her first day, and that made someone else mad, so Elaine and this woman were ripping pieces (like sleeves) off each other's clothes. Uh ... yeah. And one of the guys who worked there was Jerry's neighbor and Elaine was hoping he wouldn't figure out she was the one who had been knocking.

SOoooo anyway, back to the 'real dream' ... we were watching that incredibly stupid episode. And we had a pet horse. Yes, me, the (for this season) AntiPet Mom, had a horse. In the house. For a pet.

So we're watching TV and Tobi-wan Kenobi was upset that we couldn't remember what happened in some library book he really liked. And Moogie and I were trying to reassure him that we could go to the Library in a few days. But he wanted to right now, which we couldn't, because Seinfeld was on which meant it was late at night and past kids bedtimes. So he went up to bed in tears and the phone rang.

Now I can't really remember what happened when/after I went to answer the phone, but it had to do with someone ... tripping? falling? And the horse maybe falling, too. But the horse was very careful NOT to fall on the person. It did some amazing acrobatic twist to keep from crushing someone. And we were all saying clever things like, "Good horse! Very very good boy! You're a good horse! Yes you are!" like you talk to a dog, you know? And petting the horse's head. Who was loving it, I tell you. You could see the light dawn in the horses eyes, that it's amazing acrobatic twist had earned it this praise. And I suppose right then and there that horse decided it wanted to be more than he had been.

He started talking - kind of like Astro, or Scooby Doo. You couldn't understand everything he said, but you could tell me was trying. He leaned his head over to lick me happily, you know, like a dog does, and me being the Matron Of The House and all, but I did dodge the Horse Kiss. Apparently even though I owned a horse for an indoor pet I still didn't want any pet slobber on me. Who can blame me? But the horse understood (phew!) ...

So the horse moves on with his plan to bedazzle us, because now it's more than a common house-horse-pet. It stands up on it's hind legs, and balances! And starts walking around on it's hind legs. Of course, we are all very amazed and shower the horse with even more "good horse!" praise. And somehow the horse gets himself dressed. We don't actually see this, it's more one of those blink-of-an-eye-dream-things, but it's not like WE dressed him up, it's just that one minute he's a regular standing Rastro Ralking House Horse Pet and the next minute he's wearing some sort of Colonial American Revolution Officer Uniform. Of course, I can't remember the details of the costume, so I can't vouch for it's authenticity, but it was clearly recognizable as a such. So the horse walks to the little bathroom on the main floor and is standing there admiring himself, in his uniform, complete with hat, but also with somewhat mixed feelings because he realizes that while he can stand and wear Officer's Uniforms, he's still really a horse, he's not a people like us.

And that's when I woke up, hurried to the computer (making a necessary pit stop at the bathroom, of course) to bring you this Thanksgiving Message of Hope and Thanks. And, really, it's a "true story" as far as that I really DID dream all that. Who could make that kind of junk up?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Kung Fu Baby Take 2

If you couldn't view the previous ones ...

or if you realllly wished I'd wasted time putting it to music, so that you could waste a fraction of your time watching it put to music ...

I present:

Kung Fu Baby - With Music

Two Entries Will Spoil You

We got some nice snow today, and a little more coming, possibly 3-6" total, if you believe the weather advisories.

I had some go out and shovel, and a few more who "helped" by shoveling the cement pad under the basketball hoop in the back yard.

Pretty, isn't it? Well, the trees. Not so much the forgotten and now half-buried toy collection.

Here's the boys, hard at work.

I napped a little at Quiet Time and heard the older kids coming down a bit before I got up.
When I did get up, I found these pillow guys. If you know my children, you can probably guess which child thought these up. Hint, it's not the one who wanted to be photographed with them, although he did enjoy walking past and hugging them. I think it's the best use those bolsters have ever had!

I'm often amazed at what this particular child thinks up, although never surprised that the child has thought *something* interesting up.

Every Baby Was Kung Fu Fighting ...

38.5 weeks.

Baby is incredibly active today. Like trying to Kung Fu his or her way right out of my belly. That can't be done, right? Maybe I'll make history with the first baby to do so.

I thought I could settle baby down by pulling out the camera set to video, 'cause we all know babies don't like to perform. And baby did slow down, some, while I was reclining and trying to video my belly. Which is actually quite difficult to do.

But here's some video proof that baby is really super busy. Note, also, my favorite shirt.

Kung Fu Baby 1

Kung Fu Baby 2

A word to the wise -- if watching an 8.5 month pregnant belly squirm around isn't your thing, um, don't click those links, that's all it is. I realize it has limited interest to the peeps. But I know there's peeps who will be quite amused by it. Or, at least, I hope so. Surely at the least they will affirm my wasted time in this project.

Oh, and I know it would be much better if I had taken the time to put it to the King Fu Fighting song, but I'm a busy, busy woman and can only afford to waste so much time in a morning. I'm sure you understand. Sing it in your head while you watch.

oh, I made them mp4's -- does that work for you? Let me know if I need to upload them differently. Your whim is my command.

Two Firsts of the Season

Two first on the same day, even!

The first snowman of the season, scraped up by Eminoodle off the deck last night. He's only about 4" tall, and this picture was taken this afternoon where he's been liberally re-dusted with poofy snow.

And Iliacat had her first choir concert of the season. Her choir sang with another youth choir, the High School Girls choir, and the adult Chorale to perform John Rutter's Mass of the Children. They all sang beautifully. She's the one with the arrow pointing at her. :)

The Suited Mover Takes A Picture

Remember the suited brooklyn treadmill mover? Or perhaps the well-dressed window installer? An amazing Jack-of-all-Trades, he's also come through with a picture of The Grand Lunar and I at the dressy gala dinner thingie we went to on Tuesday. A grown up dinner date was nice. The Grand Lunar in a tuxedo? Priceless. :) (Don't forget to visit his blog in that last link, and tell him how sharp he looks, and maybe follow his twitters, too!) For the official record, I'm 36.5 weeks along in this picture.

We had a lovely time. But then, again, I always do when out with the Grand Lunar. He's the best date evah. Since we drove separately, I also got to hear others raving about the entertainment he apparently unknowingly provided on the way down. I think it's sweet, not only is he very funny, but he doesn't even really realize how funny he is. I love that Grand Lunar.

I do have to say, though, that besides the great date with my spouse, the thing I enjoyed 2nd most of the evening was the guy sitting at the table next to us, who laughed genuinely and heartily at all the jokes. I don't know why, but he made me smile every time he erupted in laughter. I'm glad he had fun, too, whomever he was.

Anyhoo, take a jump over the Amazing DeMo's blog and thank him for accomodating us with a picture from the evening. He's a much appreciated mover, installer, photographer, and friend.

And, if you're so inclined, since you're blog-hopping anyway, you could also stop by The Other Suited Mover's Blog, and tell him that you heard he pulled off quite the shebang -- he handled many of the logistics and details for the gala event and did an amazing job. I was particularly impressed that, when the Big Event came, he glided around smiling, taking care of details, never sitting down, but if he was stressed about it he didn't let it show. Being one who reacts like a chicken with her head cut off under the least amount of stress, I thought he did an amazing job of coming across calm, cool, collected, welcoming, and helpful, not to mention all the work he did for the event itself.

Maybe soon there'll be a picture

I get to go to a dinner tonight as my husband's date ~ dressed up and all!
So I'll try to get a picture of us dressed up, together.

But there's a more pressing concern. How should I wear my hair?

It's 1.5 hours away, so I'll change down there most likely ... but ... my hair is kind of finicky, I get a few hours a day it looks okay, some days, and then all bets are off.

some kind of updo is traditional for dressed up, but my hair isn't all that long right now, and I'm just not sure ...

Baby Names

I'm considering changing our approach.

Selecting baby names from Captchas.

What do you think of Sesquive? Warrygma?