Rock Has Teeth!

I can't believe how big my baby is getting.
On November 20th, he got his first tooth. Now he has two little teeth--they are so cute. It's nearly impossible to get a picture of them, though. Every time I try, he sticks his tongue out and won't let me.
Life with teeth isn't as bad as I thought--his teeth are super sharp and they hurt if he bites my fingers, but I haven't had any bad bites during nursing yet, and he hasn't been terribly grumpy or miserable. There were a few days where I worried that we would all die, but it could also have been the drastic change in the weather and the freezing cold and everything that caused his stuffy nose and general unhappy disposition. Now he's back to normal, just with two adorable teeth.


It took a lot of doing, but I kind of got a picture--SO cute, huh?

Six Months Old

Can you believe my baby is six months old? Unreal. He is so good at so many things: sitting, standing with support for balance (not strength--he is STRONG), smiling, laughing, crying, staring, spitting, reaching for toys and picking them up, eating oatmeal cereal (not green beans so much), and so many things I can't possibly count. He is the sweetest boy to ever live.





See?

Four Months Old Today

I can't believe Rock is four months old--I really can't believe that, today, he sat up by himself for the first time!

How sweet is he? He's getting so big. At first, I didn't have my camera and didn't think I would get a picture of it today, but, lo and behold, he can just do this whenever. I can't wait for him to get really good at it!







He is just too sweet for words. He's grabbing everything and putting it in his mouth--what a smart, sweet, loving, chivalrous baby I have!

Saying Goodbye to Size 1 Diapers

This morning, I put my baby in the very last size 1 diaper he will ever wear in his life. I can't believe how big he's getting. I probably should have moved him up a size over a week ago, but I just couldn't bring myself to admit that he's so big.

Watching Rock grow has been the highlight of my life for the past 16 1/2 weeks. I can't believe it's been than long! Who would have thought that time would pass so quickly. I was afraid he wouldn't even resemble a baby when he was 4 months old, but now that it's only a week and a half away, I am happy to say that he still will be a baby (just don't tell him that).

In the past weeks, Rock has learned to:

Suck his thumb (since he was about 2 weeks old)
Stick his tongue out
Blow raspberries
Grab toys and put them in his mouth
Stand on his own two feet (with help, and since he was about 7 weeks old, maybe a little younger, even)
Coo and scream, even--he's a good yeller
Do some serious mini pushups
Hold an excellent flying Superman pose
Sleep through the night (every night since he was about 7 weeks old)
Understand and love praise--and getting his picture taken
Smile and laugh
Grin mischievously after he poops

And a million other things, and he only gets better and better at them as time goes on. What a sweet, adorable baby. He's brilliant and he is the best thing that ever happened to me--with the sole exception of marrying Michael.

After 4 Years

Four years ago (yesterday), I married Michael--it was not easy to resist using the lame cliche, but he is my best friend and he will be forever.
I can't believe it's been four years, and I can't believe it's only been four years--it feels like four seconds and eternity at the same time; strange how that happens.

We had a fun anniversary--we even went to Sonic and got a cream slush and onion rings, just like we did on our wedding night. That was so fun.

Knitting Again!

It's true, after an almost-six-month hiatus, I am able to knit again. I'm working on a couple of little projects (actually pretty ambitious projects, but I was just so excited to jump right in). The gestational carpal tunnel was the least of my worries during my pregnancy, but I am just SO happy that I am able to knit again. I have a million projects to work on--and I decided to make everyone's Christmas gifts again this year, if I can finish in time.

Here is the coolest wearable thing I've ever made in my life:






A flapper-style dress and matching hat for my new niece, Eliza. It won't fit for a little while, obviously, but it's just so cute and I'm really proud of it. The ruffles are just so sweet. And the little medallions are the perfect finishing touch.
I made it with KnitPicks comfy yarn in flamingo and fedora (the vintage pink is just too beautiful). The patterns are from Tot Toppers--she's got lots of cute stuff, but this set is by far my favorite.


I can't believe I finished it already. And, since then, I've moved on to Christmas again. This time, I'm making something for my own baby:





It totally looks like I made it, obviously, but it's okay. It'll be fun for Rock to play with when he can grab things and play with them. This is just the first piece in a whole transportation set. I still haven't embroidered the spokes on, but, really, whoever thought of making the horrible, slow-going, tedious part last was an imbecile.

But, for the time-being, I have set aside this fun transportation set and am working on some fun socks. I have a ton of sock yarn (maybe not an actual ton, but a significant number of boxes of the stuff) that I have decided I will use before I do anything else. I'm going to start making ankle socks--I, personally, wear those way more than long socks, and they are faster, and they are cheaper to make, so they are just better all-around.

I am currently making a great pair of socks with a cable-needle-less cable pattern for my new sister-in-law. Pictures will follow (if I ever finish this project). Then I am on to my ankle socks! Yipee!

Introducing Rock Layne Walbridge

Oh, because I never posted it, here is the 38-week picture, taken three days before Rock was born.




So, obviously, Rock is here now.
After an emergency induction on my birthday, almost 30 hours of labor, an emergency c-section, a day-and-a-half stay in the NICU and a more-than-5-day hospital stay for me, Rock is here and we're home.

He is the sweetest baby ever, and he does a great job with eating, playing, sleeping, and pooping. I'm happy that the playing part is lasting longer and longer every day. He's super strong for his age and he has the most adorable smile I've ever seen. He is so happy and fun.


Right after he was born--before I was even conscious or coherent


Just a few hours old


Having a little moment with Daddy


Big yawns


What a sweet baby


He's so alert, even when he's only a couple days old


Did I mention he's a thumb sucker? And he has been from birth. He only gets better and better at it


He hated getting his shots


And here he is today--10 weeks old! What a big kid.


I can't wait to make the trip out to see my family so they can all meet him.

Week 37

So, now the baby is full-term. What an exciting and scary thing!

We've had a total of four baby showers--all so much fun and one a complete surprise! We still have to order the changing table and the crib (which can wait, as the cradle will work for at least a couple of months) and some sheets and stuff, but, other than that, we are totally ready for him to come. Plenty of clothes and blankets and even some bath stuff.

I am ready for him to stop squishing me and I'm ready to lose some of this weight (or all of it). I'm tired of being so huge and achy and tired.

I tried really hard to pack my hospital bag, but I just can't seem to get more than a couple things in it before I freak out and have to stop. I don't want it to be that real. But I do. Things will be easier when I don't have to go to work every day anymore. Just three more days of work--and that is if I decide to not call in sick on Thursday as is my plan.

The non-stress test went really well on Monday--I'm hoping for more good news next Monday. But I'm also hoping for them to induce before the new date of May 8th. I'm thinking May 1st works for me. Everything is coming so fast, though, and it's kind of unbelievable. I'm so excited for everyone to meet this sweet little baby. He's such a good baby.

Week 36

Hooray! The home stretch. The baby is due in just 28 days. Isn't he so adorable?

We haven't gotten any farther in packing our own bags--but I have packed the diaper bag for the trip to the hospital. It has two little blankets and one outfit and two diapers (that we got for free as samples) and some wipes (also free samples) in an adorable Paul Frank wipe case and that is about it. I don't really know what else he'll need at the hospital--they are supposed to have everything there for him.

The baby shower on Saturday was so much fun! I had a blast, and I was amazed at who came. It was nice to have so many of Michael's friends' family there--I didn't expect them to come, or even want to come. But it was great and there was so much good food there. I loved every minute of it. And we got so many homemade blankets--and they are so much nicer than anything you can buy in a store. Bigger, too. I am so excited to get to use everything. I really can't wait. If only this baby would cooperate!

We move in like a week and a half and I have so much packing left to do, I can't imagine getting it all done in time. Good thing I'll still have a day or two after the actual move to finish packing and cleaning and everything. It's mostly just the big stuff that we have to move on the 24th, and I am so glad that we'll have help, because I won't be able to do anything at all.

I don't know how I'm going to make it for the last week and a half of work. My legs are so incredibly swollen and I am gaining so much water weight every day. I hope it's all just water weight! But, considering how much more swollen every part of my body is, it has to be just water weight. I really hope! That will also make it easier to lose later, which is just what I need.

I think he's dropped a little bit this week--I noticed today that he isn't kicking me in the ribs as much as he used to (like yesterday and the day before), which is really nice. I still don't have room for my internal organs, and my "heart burn" (if that's what it is) is still totally in my throat. Please just let him be born with hair! That's all I want right after his being healthy and not too big.

But don't you just love how sweet he is? What a good baby.


(Did you notice how small my paper chains are getting? Yipee! Just eight more days of work! That is the most exciting part ever!)

Week 35

Well, another week down. It would be nice if I could go to the dr. just once in these last few weeks and not have some other new complication arise. It's starting to wear on me. I can't wait to just be done with all of this.

But good things are happening, too. I ordered a ton of stuff for the baby and it all came (except for two little things) but now we are all ready for him to come--except for the baby wash and lotion and diaper cream and other bathing and toiletry stuff, but we have diapers and wipes and clothes and blankets and toys and towels and washcloths and lots of love just waiting.

And I only have 13 more workdays until I go on vacation and then I go on maternity leave for 12 whole weeks--that makes 14 weeks of absolutely NO Overstock--no Lacy, no Deborah, no SKUs, no templates. And I can go and visit my friends and we can hang out at Totem's and it'll be fun--like we used to have at work before everything went wrong.

The baby is so squirmy lately--much more active than he used to be. I hear he's supposed to be just as active now that he can't roll around, but he just doesn't stop moving. It's cute, because I can tell his sleep schedule so well (and it isn't between midnight and 5 AM at all). Well, soon he'll be crying at that time and not just kicking me, so that will be ... different. It's funny how ready I am for this to just be over. But we haven't even started our birthing classes (they start tomorrow--and I'm so excited!) and we have so many dr appointments. Thursday, we meet with Dr Lash, but then we can hopefully go back to just seeing Margy. Having to go to a regular OB makes me a little nervous. But Michael will be there for Dr Lash's appointment, and that is good.

We've started packing our hospital bags (I haven't gotten that far yet, and Michael only has the extra batteries in his so far). But it's a start. We still have so much packing and moving to do.

But this week is my baby shower! I can't wait. Everything finally seems like it's happening so fast. In just five weeks, we should have our little baby home with us, if everything goes according to plan--maybe even sooner, which would be so awesome.

But now I'm really starting to worry--what am I going to do with a baby? What if he hates me? What if I don't feed him right? What if he hates the way I change his diaper? Crazy, right? But it doesn't seem that way to me right now. These are all very valid concerns.

However, I am so huge right now, and I just can't wait for this baby to be outside of me instead of squishing me from the inside. That is worth it just by itself.

Week 34

Week 33

Our apartment flooded on Saturday because some punk kid thought it would be funny to break into Cathy's apartment right after she moved out and turn on her water full blast. Very funny. Water was coming through the light in the hall and there was almost half an inch of water in the bathroom. Books, clothes, everything soaked. Things I had spent months packing, soaked. I have never been so sad and upset. What a hard day. But Cory was awesome about it--came right over and vacuumed up the water and took one of my dresses to be dry cleaned. Now we just have to inventory the other things that were ruined--just a few books, I believe.

But, after that, I needed a treat. A lot of really big treats. And I am still needing them.

It is really hard to be so pregnant and have to clean and wash and re-pack everything. But there are only seven weeks left--can you believe that? I'm getting so excited and so nervous all the time.



Just 49 days! Hooray!

And 45 days until my baby brother's wedding. I hope I can make it. He's only getting married once--I would hate to miss it.

Week 32

I can't believe it's getting so close!

But I am so sick and I feel awful and working full-time is getting really hard.
But it's only seven more weeks (well, 6 1/2 before I go on maternity leave). And the baby is due in just eight weeks! That is less than two months...it's overwhelming.

And so exciting! Hooray for having a baby!

Week 31

So, with the realization that I have cankles and how much they hurt, I have decided that I am pretty done being pregnant. I can't eat what I want, I can't knit, I can't be comfortable in my own body.

And then I realize that the baby is due in NINE WEEKS. He is already so big there isn't enough room for him in my body and I think he's going to break one of my ribs any day now. I don't know how I'm going to make it nine more weeks, but I also can't fathom having a baby in only nine weeks! So exciting, and I really love feeling him roll around and kick around and jab and everything. He's just so cute.

And I'm so huge and uncomfortable, but it's only nine more weeks, and I can do anything for nine weeks...

The Countdown Begins!

Hooray!

So, to celebrate the end of two big things that I can't wait to be over, I made my favorite things ever:

I love paper chains! I can't get enough of them. I love making them and I love taking them apart.

The two things I'm celebrating? The end of work and the day the baby is due!!!!! I really can't wait.







Only 37 more days of work and 63 more days until the baby is due! What an exciting time for all of us.

Week 29 (a little late)

So, this week's post is a little late. I was devastated this week to learn that I have cankles. HUGE cankles. This is not my body. Everything is huge--my thighs, my fingers, my no-longer-existent ankles, my feet, my acne problem, my back pain, my foot pain, my carpal tunnel problem and tennis elbow. There is nothing that is not killing me. Well, my belly is huge and sometimes I need Michael to hold it up for a little while, to relieve the pressure on my back, and that is nice. And whenever the baby moves and he isn't kicking me in the ribs or so hard that it hurts, that is nice. And when he jumps and wiggles around at the sound of Michael's voice, that is just so cute. So there are a lot of good things still going on. And the countdown is down to 11 weeks now, so there is a definite end. But I just can't imagine getting any bigger than I am right now.

Week 28

Welcome to the 3rd trimester! How exciting is that?

The baby is growing well and he's getting so strong. How cute.



I've slowly packing everything, getting ready for our move. It's nice to know that I have all the time it will take--as I'm really only able to pack about five boxes a week before I feel like I'm going to die, I've been working so hard.
I can't believe we've lived here for 11 months already. It seems like such a short amount of time, but it also seems like much longer.

And, even though I hate it, I'm getting excited to move. And I really do love packing. I love boxes. It's so fun. Even if I'm too huge and tired to do anything very fast.

Week 27

So, today my baby brother texted everyone individually to let us all know that he is getting married. May 7th. I could be in the hospital, having a baby then, missing my only brother's wedding. Let's hope that doesn't happen. My brother is getting married! I can't believe it. The only part I can believe about it is that 1) he texted instead of calling or anything else, and 2) he didn't let any of us know he was even dating anyone until after he was engaged (even though he's been down to see us at least three times since he started dating her...maybe more. I don't know. How would I know?).

But here we are at week 27, so close to the third trimester, I can't stand it. I'm getting more and more excited. And bigger and bigger. And my back is hurting more and more. I feel like I can't stretch my lower back enough. Lizbeth Garcia and her wonderful 10-minute pilates are the only things saving me from a fate worse than death.

I can't believe people actually live through their third trimesters. I am already so huge, I can't bend down and pick things up, I can't roll over in bed very well at all, and I can't walk up a flight of stairs without having to spend the next 15 minutes catching my breath.

But soon, we'll have a sweet little baby, and it will be so much fun.

I feel like I can actually see my hips spreading. It's unreal. And kind of sad--but also amazing.

Knitting...in the past (and packing)

I really miss knitting. I have so many WIPs that I would love to be working on, but I can't even hold a book for more than 10 minutes because my carpal tunnel is so bad. I will never take my ability to knit for granted ever again if it comes back to me. I will say a prayer of gratitude every day that I am able to sit and knit. (Sure, that is probably a lie, but I really feel it sincerely right now.)

Today is the perfect day for knitting. The sky is just right and I am tired of trying to pack clothes and books to get ready to move. In about a month, we'll actually start moving things. I'm hoping for another easy-ish move.

But my knitting is calling and all I can do is sit and look at my yarn that is waiting to be packed, in the hope that I'll be able to pick it back up in about three months. I have some great projects waiting for me. I'm designing some little pants for our baby--to match the little jacket and hat I made. I would love to finish at least one of my WIPs before the baby is born. I would love to be able to finish Nina's scarf. But it's barely started and it's an intricate pattern. Maybe I'll see if I can pick it up later today when I finish packing my 10 boxes for the week.

Week 26

Another week.

It's a busy one.

But everything is going just fine, so far. My carpal tunnel is getting worse along with my poor skin.

And I want to eat pizza. A lot.

But the baby is kicking away all the time, and he's just so cute. He was tickling my ribs on the way to work today and I just kept laughing because it tickled SO much. Sweet, huh?

Kicking Feet

Last night, as I was reading before bed, the baby was doing the sweetest thing. He's been doing it for a little while now, and I just think it's adorable. He starts applying a little pressure on the side of my belly, then slowly more and more, like he's...I don't know, but it ends up being about as much pressure as a soft kick, except that it's constant. Then he'll stop.

This time, as he was doing it, I was trying to see what body part it was, and I could have sworn that it was the outline of a little foot (by feeling it, not yet just by seeing it, because the pressure isn't that hard when he's just pushing). But his TINY little foot! How cute is that? I mean, I figured it was a foot, or maybe an arm, but this was the shape of a well-defined foot. He has really cute feet.

And I love him.

And being pregnant isn't horrible all of the time.

Week 25

So, here we are, just 15 weeks left. Less than four months. Crazy--it still seems kind of unreal. Except that I keep bumping into things with my huge belly, yet I can't remember what I looked like before I was pregnant. I hope I don't look like this forever!




And, yes, the Christmas tree is still up. It's still alive, and I just can't bring myself to dispose of it.

A New Game

So, the new thing is kicking me really hard in the ribs when I'm trying to sleep. So hard that I actually teared up in pain. This little boy is so strong. That's a good thing, of course, except that I also like to sleep at night. And I'm so tired. I can't believe I still have about four more months of this and he's only going to get bigger and stronger.

That is nothing like the fun game we played the other evening for like a whole hour--he would kick me somewhere, then I would poke him where he had just kicked me, then he would either poke me in the same place or a different one. It's kind of silly how fun it was, but I never got bored. I just sat there, watching him kick me, and then poking him back. That was a really fun game. But it was so much work for him, he had to go to sleep.

Sometimes being pregnant is so hard.

Week 24

Work was exhausting today--I didn't even have time to eat my delicious orange. I ate it right when I got home, though.

It's so sweet how he is so quiet and sleepy sometimes and then (like when I'm trying to fall asleep) he just can't seem to get enough exercise.

Today, for FHE, Michael and I did a really fun 10-minute Prenatal Pilates workout. It was really relaxing and fun.

And then I ate two more oranges. Delicious!

Week 23

Just watching my legs spread--who knew thighs rubbed together? How uncomfortable!

But everything is just perfect. Our sweet baby is really big, but so healthy.

Isn't he just so sweet?

They Came!

I am just so excited! The baby's stroller and car seat got here. They are just perfect. He's just going to love them.

I put the stroller together myself. It looks great and works great (as far as I can tell).

But how fun!


Doesn't it just look wonderful?

And notice how well the wheels are put together:




And see how well the car seat fits into the stroller?




Nothing could be more perfect. And the colors are amazing. Perfect, really. I love the grey/blue and the chocolate brown together. And just a touch of tan. Beautiful.

Kicking--a lot

Last night, as I was going to bed, Michael and I sat talking on the bed. Then our sweet little boy started kicking, and I noticed for the first time that you can totally see him kicking. It's adorable. So we sat quietly for a very long time, just watching him move and kick. What a miraculous thing.

I can see that I won't be getting much work done today during his active times. I'll be too busy watching him move.

Presents for the Baby

Choosing baby announcements was a really difficult task. But it's done. And they are just beautiful. However, now that we've chosen the ones we want and decided how many we need, it's becoming impossible for me to not order them right now. I know it's a bit early (try four months at least), but I am just so excited to get them, I just can't wait.

I did, however, order his car seat and stroller today. That was what I was going to do the very second our Christmas checks were deposited in the bank. And I also had to wait until my paycheck came in. But now they are ordered and I am so excited to get them. The car seat will get here maybe sometime next week or the week after, and the stroller won't get here until maybe March. That seems like SO long to wait, but we really won't need it for two months after that, so it's still plenty of time. I just can't wait to get everything set up. Now that we have some little clothes for him, I can't imagine having to wait four whole months for him to get here.

Why can't he just hurry up?

Week 22

So, another week, eh? The baby keeps moving so much--he woke me up yesterday morning at about 1 with all of his kicking. What an adorable baby.

Our next appointment is next Tuesday, when we'll go over all of the measurements and everything they did at the ultrasound last month--I can't believe it was almost a month ago. I guess it's been just three weeks.

It's so great, though, that now that I'm feeling him move all the time, I'm so much less worried that something bad will happen to him. I'm not nearly as worried that he'll shrivel up and die because I feel him rolling around and dancing and kicking and occasionally shivering. What a sweet baby I have!

And, in this week's picture, Michael caught me mid-laugh (as he made a really funny joke I just had to laugh at)--bless his heart.