Note to Self

This is a note to myself if we decide to have another baby sometime in the future.

Dear Bean,

Don't forget:

Labor hurts.

Random people you have never met and will never see again will see you naked and at times put their fingers inside you.

The epidural can never come early enough.

Be prepared to watch someone sew up your vag, while your new baby is getting weighed and measured.

Ice packs in surgical gloves can be your best friend.

Someone will come in every four hours with the drugs and to check your stitches.

A very cheery nurse will wake you up one morning saying "I have to check your bottom," this means she will be looking at your ass.

Your boobs will be chaffed. very chaffed, get the nipple guards in advance.

The squirt bottle will become your best friend.

Two words: stool softener.

Please remember,

You did this before, you can do it again.

The lack of sleep and general delirium will eventually wear off.

Your husband can actually do dishes, laundry and change the baby, remind him of this down the road when you are back to doing it all, but don't forget to tell him how much you appreciate it now.

Having friends and family around is great, rely on them as much as you can, but take some time for yourself and to just hang out with the babes.

Throw away your old nursing bra, it is gross and milk stained and you can afford to buy a few new ones.

That a 2 year old yelling "baby awake?" in the infants face three to four hundred times a day is much better than her hitting, rocking or squeezing too hard.

Getting out of the house is going to be pretty hard at first. No more throwing a diaper in your purse and heading out down the stairs.

Napping is not going to happen.

That this little life is in your hands and that everything you had to endure for the baby to arrive is well worth it, even if you haven't slept in what feels like days.

And finally, you can love another baby as much as the first, even if you have to let her cry a little more because the Lady need to be changed, read a book, do a puzzle, eat lunch, take a nap, or wants to run, run, run, really fast around the house.

love,

Your delirious, sleep-deprived, haven't showered in two days self.

The Little Lady

Last Friday we added another little lady to the family.

I was able to go into the hospital for induction on Thursday night and once the pittossin kicked in at 5 a.m. and the contractions seriously started by 7:30 it was a pretty quick labor, as the littlest lady was out and about at 9:37 a.m. She weighed 8lbs and 1oz and was 19.5 inches tall.

I won't bore you with all the gruesome details of labor and delivery, but I will say that it is probably a good idea not to have your two-year old in the room when the nurse is using a catheter on you and she keeps asking why mommy is wearing a diaper.

We are very glad to be home and I am really trying to get to know this little human being that I helped create and who is now living in my home. I haven't thought of anything clever to call her yet on this blog. The little Lady seems like a cop out and I want her to develop her own sense of self outside of her big sister. I will think of something once I come out of this fog of lack of sleep.

Here is a pic of the Lady and her little sister. She has been great, but we will see how it goes in the next few weeks, when she realizes that this little person isn't going anywhere.

I will say that although I am tired and it has been an adjustment here, I am grateful that the baby is finally out and finally a part of our family.

And We Are Still Waiting. . .

I don't want to be one of those complaining pregnant ladies who feel that they have such a huge burden to bear. I just really want to meet this kid.

Granted, being 6 days overdue isn't great, but it isn't so terrible that the Lady and I haven't been out and about this last week trying to spend some QT together and getting things organized.

We got a chance to see my brother and sister-in-law's new house that they just bought, visit a sprinkler park, play with the Wild Man, and bake a cake together. We also hit up a few daycare centers to see what they have to offer us in terms of part time availability when I go back to work mid-September. (Remind me to blog about this after the baby comes--I can't believe some of the pricing that is out there!!!)

The Lady has also learned all about traffic signals this week and likes to shout out that a stop sign is red and is an octagon, this I think is better than shouting "fuck you doing" from the backseat.

So overall, we have spent these past six days living our lives and waiting very, very, patiently for this new little one to arrive.

However, in the next half-hour I will be calling the hospital and seeing if they can take me tonight for a scheduled induction. Do I feel like this is a cop out? No. Do I feel justified in making this decision? Yes, because this time around I really do have a reason to be induced. This kid is late and is getting bigger by the minute. I am predicting it weighs between 8.5 and 9lbs. It has to at this point it has been cooking for a while now.

I am going to try not to post every tiny detail on facebook, or twitter my way through delivery like this woman did, but I feel it is important that my family and friends are involved, because they too have been waiting along with me.

So, hopefully to the hospital we will go this evening and hopefully, I will be able to share with you all some good news at some point tomorrow.

BTW. . . if the hospital can't take me tonight, be prepared for an obscenity laced tirade in about an hour on this blog. I can only be so Zen for so long. . .

Still Waiting

I am trying to distract myself from the fact that this baby hasn't come yet. Not working so well. Going to the dr. this afternoon and we will see if there has been any progress.

Trying to figure out what to do with the Lady in the meantime. Right now she is glued to a Dora episode, and yelling Spanish phrases at the TV, but I am turning it off in ten minutes. We will probably head out after that. UGH. I am tired of waiting!

US Weekly Coming To Me

Here is a small article I found in the local paper today.

"Out there ... Who says million-dollar properties in Greenwich aren't selling? Grammy Award-winning pop star Justin Timberlake thinks differently. Seems that the former lead singer of 'N Sync and boy toy of actress Jessica Beil recently purchased a sprawling home in backcountry Greenwich. I wonder which golf course he's looking to play on?"

I have to add that I love that he is referred to as a boy toy. . .

Oh, JT you did bring sexy back and now you are moving to the area. My sister-in-law and I will be stalking you soon.

Other News Happenings

Just to expose the difference between the have's and the have nots. . . here is an article from the same paper. . .


A Greenwich man apparently felt guilty about practicing personal hygiene in a neighbor's home after he had broken into it, police said.

Manuel Gonzalez, 18, of 47 Locust St., broke into a Locust Street home Wednesday while the owner was away, cut his pubic hair and left the trimmings, police said. Remorseful about his actions, the man later confessed to the woman, who then called police.

Police charged Gonzalez Thursday night with first-degree burglary. He was released on a $2,000 surety bond and is scheduled to appear in state Superior Court in Stamford Aug. 14.

So You Think You Can Dance. . .

A winner was crowned last night and as surprised as I was that it wasn't Kayla, I was happy that it turned out to be Jeanine.

I love this show. The routines are great and with TiVo you can fast forward through all the crap the judges say. I implore you tune in this fall and if you get a chance Hulu.com the finale and just watch the highlighted routines from this season. I guarantee you you won't be disappointed.

Done. Done. Done.

So today is the due date. I realize that I am not overdue at this point, but if I haven't made it totally obvious in my last couple of posts, I am done.

This kid needs to make an entrance soon.

I am still holding on to a small glimmer of hope that my water might break in the next couple of hours and I will have this kid by the time the Yanks and Sox play again tonight. We will see.

The Lady and I are going to try and get out today if we can. I am going to try to get her to the pool. I also noticed that we have nothing in the house to eat and that I should probably at some point hit the grocery store for some basic supplies.

My sister has promised to make me an eggplant parm tonight, the recipe she found has promised to be labor-inducing. Not sure if it will work, but it sounds delicious and I will do anything at this point. Here it is for future reference:

Labor-inducing Eggplant Parmesan
Nearly 300 baby pictures decorate Scalini's old-fashioned Italian restaurant in Cobb County, Ga. All of the babies pictured on the Italian restaurant wall were born after their mothers ate the Scalini's eggplant parmigiana. The $9.95 plate of breaded eggplant smothered in cheese and thick marinara sauce is "guaranteed" to induce labor, the restaurant claims.
The eggplant legend began not long after the restaurant opened 23 years ago. "Two or three years after we began, a few people had just mentioned to us they came in when they were pregnant, and ate this eggplant and had a baby a short time after that," said John Bogino, who runs the restaurant with his son, Bobby Bogino. "One person told another, and it just grew by itself by leaps and bounds." To date, more than 300 of the pregnant women customers who ordered the eggplant have given birth within 48 hours, and the restaurant dubs them the "eggplant babies." If it doesn't work in two days, the moms-to-be get a gift certificate for another meal. We make no promises, but the restaurant has graciously shared the recipe.
Eggplant Parmigiana Alla Scalini's
Ingredients
3 medium sized eggplants
1 cup flour
6 eggs, beaten
4 cups fine Italian bread crumbs, seasoned
Olive oil for sauteing
8 cups of marinara sauce (recipe below)
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 pounds of mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 cups of ricotta cheese
Directions
1. After you wash the eggplant, slice them into 1/4-inch thick slices. You may choose to peel the eggplant before you slice it. However, you may want to leave the skin on since it contains a lot of vitamins.
2. Place the eggplant slices on a layer of paper towels and sprinkle with a little salt, then cover with another layer of paper towels and hold it down with something heavy to drain the excess moisture. Let them sit for about an hour.
3. Working with one slice of eggplant at a time, dust with flour, dip in beaten eggs, then coat well with breadcrumbs.
4. Saute in preheated olive oil on both sides until golden brown.
5. In baking dish, alternate layers of marinara sauce, eggplant slices, ricotta, parmesan and Romano cheeses, until you fill the baking dish, about 1/8 inch from the top.
Cover with shredded mozzarella cheese, and bake for 25 minutes in a 375 degree oven. Let sit for 10 minutes before serving.
Scalini's Marinara Sauce
Ingredients
2 Tablespoons of chopped garlic
3 Tablespoons of olive oil
8 cups chopped tomatoes (fresh or canned)
1 cup onions, chopped
1/2 cup of fresh chopped parsley
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper
1/8 cup of fresh chopped sweet basil
Pinch of thyme
Pinch of rosemary
One teaspoon salt
One teaspoon black pepper
Directions
1. Lightly saute the onions in olive oil in large pot for a few minutes.
2. Add garlic and saute another minute.
3. Add tomatoes and bring sauce to a boil, then turn heat low.
4. Add remaining ingredients, stir, cover and let simmer for one hour, stirring occasionally.