Hockey, Birth Plans and Hospital Tours... oh my!

Tom has been doing a ton of work around the house to get ready for the baby. He put together the crib and it looks great. It is kind of strange to have a crib in the house a few months before the baby, but I figure we should get used to seeing it. Gi Gi and my Dad bought us a sheet set to decorate the crib and we are anxiously awaiting it. I bet it is absolutely adorable.





We received the baby shower cards that Tom designed, from my Uncle Keith, the printer, and they are so cute. They are one-sided postcards and Tom set up the rsvp link here on the blog! I will be addressing them and sending them out (hopefully) on Monday. So, check your mailbox and reply back here!
Speaking of Thomas, he is getting really big! I measured 24 inches at the doctor this week and have a ton of new pictures that need to be scanned and posted here. We are going to a maternity ward tour of the Good Samaritan Hospital today. We are very excited and hope that it meets our expectations of our birth experience expectations. I plan on delivering naturally as long as there aren't any complications that would require me to have a C-Section. I am vehemently against the C-Section and medicated birth, so I hope everything goes as planned.


Tom and I are looking into getting a doula for the big day, so we can focus on each other and our doula can focus on supporting our birth plan and talking with the Doctors. I also do not want to deliver on my back, I would prefer alternative positions that allows Tom to be a part of the experience and have gravity work with my body to help deliver, such as squatting, kneeling and on all fours.

Two neat things happened last night, Thomas went to his first hockey game. I think it was a little to loud for his liking because he kept flipping and turning. I have never felt him move so much! We also got confirmation from the Rabbi, Rabbi Berger, that he will officiate our ceremony. SO exciting! This means we have a date and a Rabbi. The two hard things are done, now onto the million small things that have to be accomplished.

xoxo

The Crib is Here!

The crib has arrived!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited to watch Tom put it together tonight ;) . I have the newest ultrasound pictures of Thomas's foot. He is getting so big!

The Kick That Could...

Well, it has been pretty uneventful around here the past week. Tom and I were both swamped with work, snowed in for a part of the week and working from home. While stuck at home, I had the chance to make some super yummy banana bread and knit Thomas the most bad ass skate booties ever! I altered the pattern to make them low top, speed skates and they are adorable!

Once the weather cleared up, I showed up to Sunday scrimmage practice. The Cincinnati Rollergirls are looking fierce and I would not want to mess with us this season!

Great Grandma Elsie bought Thomas a crib and we are excitedly awaiting its arrival! We took forever deciding on cribs and reading the consumer reviews. I hope this one is great.


On more exciting news, Thomas is kicking HARD now. Last night for the first time, Tom was able to feel it and he was really excited. To give you an idea, I had my phone in my jacket pocket today and Thomas kicked me so hard he speed dialed Kelly! Silly baby. He is definitely going to be technology savvy.
Our weekly appointment is on Weds this week, so I will let you know more then!

xoxo

The Pictures I Have Been Promising

My Belly 22 Weeks:

Our First Hospital Trip-- Hopefully Our Last Until Delivery!

Yesterday was a rough day for Thomas and me! So far in this high-risk pregnancy, I have chosen to ignore the possibility of "risk" involved with my pregnancy, but I was definitely reminded that I was not on the road to a normal pregnancy when I was sent to OB Triage at Good Samaritan Hospital...
Earlier this week, I started developing back pain and I thought nothing of it until it intensified and included stomach pain and shortness of breath. I decided to call my doctor who told me to immediatly go to triage. Tom rushed home, in the blizzard, to take me to the hospital where they immediatly put me on a fetal monitor and ran EVERY test that you can imagine. (I still feel a little violated!) It turns out that at 21 weeks, I was having contractions. Luckily, I did not dialate or have any other complications. They ran tests to see if it was my kidneys or liver having problems and made sure my pap came back fine. All the tests were clear, so I was sent home after 5 hours when the contractions stopped and told to immediately come back if it happens again.

I think I need to stop telling Thomas that I can't wait to meet him because I'm not ready for him to take me seriously ;) This hospital trip really put my situation back into perspective and I have been really nervous about everything since.

On a slightly happier note, I think we found our Rabbi. We had a phone conference last night and he assigned us some reading homework. I will let you know more as soon as we do!

I will post pictures as soon as I find my camera! Pesky thing likes to disappear!

Thomas Thomas Thomas!

I am getting excited for my baby shower. We are still deciding on the date and once we don, we will have the invitations out soon! Since I am high risk, we are planning the baby shower earlier than usual just in case he decides to meet us early.
My close friend Rebecca has taken on the saintly task of organizing my baby shower. We both agree that we want to avoid the whole super baby-centric baby shower and go with a more adult feel and celebration. We plan on having some good food, good company and hope to have my friends and family collaborate in making a plaster belly cast of my stomach. Rebecca suggested using all of my weekly ultrasound pics and making a game with the goal of figuring out what we are seeing. I have my ultrasound technician in on this, so it should be pretty funny. We are also thinking about having people make onsies for Thomas. He is definitely going to be a styling baby!

I am even more excited for Thomas to be here! I cannot wait to meet him. Our weekly ultra-sounds are going great so far and he almost has the same sleeping schedule as me. He loves to kick me all evening, but he usually falls asleep when I do. G. Grandma Elsie has told us that she is buying us a crib, which for me starts the beginning of really preparing for the baby and getting his room ready.
Well, Thomas and I are tired early. I think it is because I grew 3 inches around last week alone!

--Lauren

It official-- Sept 5th

Our spot is confirmed at the arboretum!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited and nervous about all the planning and details. A big thanks to my mom and dad for reserving it for us!
We still do not have an officiant. Rabbi Gruber is more than perfect for our wedding, except he charges 3 times more than anyone else. le sigh. We are still in conversation with another Rabbi and if that doesn't work, we will talk to my Uncle who is a christian pastor. It would be nice to have my uncle marry us, but I am really holding out for a Jewish wedding.

As for the apartment, we are almost moved in! Whew. Linda and Barney came over last Sunday to join us for lunch and help us settle in. It was very nice. I think we are going to love this space. As soon as everything is in place, I will post pictures. This reminds me: we have a NEW ADDRESS. Make sure you email me to get it!

Thomas seemed to be kind of sleepy at his last ultra-sound appointment which didn't stop him from being a big mouth breather! He was cracking me up with how wide he had his mouth open. The technician joked that it looked like he was singing. No new pictures this time though.

Ok, it is time for me to head out the door to help coach the rookie practice. I miss skating more than anything right now. I need a low- impact exercise substitute stat! Who am I kidding though, there is no substitute for derby. I feel like I am going to turn into one of those people that start watching videos of their old games.

Ta ta for now!