My Little Punkin

And here are the tummy pictures from the wonderful day at the farm that I mentioned yesterday. Look at that belly! I'm certainly looking forward to the wonderful weight-loss side-effects of breastfeeding. Wow. Wow, I say.

Count-Down

Did you notice? Did you see? 10 days left! As my hubby pointed out, that's 10 as in "I can count on my fingers OR toes! OR! Fingers OR toes!"

FMLA Lessons... continued...

Michael also learned his own FMLA lessons. He is planning on taking a bunch of his vacation to help take care of the baby during the initial few weeks. However, he learned that since there is a baby involved, he needs to get approval from the VP to use his vacation. Apparently since there is a baby involved, it is suddenly FMLA. If he chose to go on a 3-week backpacking trip, then no big deal. But he needs permission to take off 3 weeks for the baby. What gives?

FMLA Lessons for the Family Priority

It's been a frustrating week for me because I've been discovering all sorts of misconceptions I had about my maternity leave. I'm tired of going into HR to clarify things and leaving feeling like I asked a lot of questions and am understanding the policies correctly... only to find out that I was completely wrong.

Here are the lessons I've learned for wanting to maximize the time you have with your family, for those of you who want to benefit from them:

1. Those who use all their vacation time AND THEN have a family emergency that requires unpaid personal time off deserve more total time with their families than those who are dedicated to their work and chose not to take their vacation before having said emergency.

2. Those who use all their vacation time AND THEN have go on FMLA for their precious new-born baby deserve more total time with their families than those who were purposefully saving vacation time in hopes of spending more time with the baby.

3. Those who are unfortunate enough to give birth to a baby at the very end of a planned vacation (before returning to work) deserve the least amount of time with the baby. Their babies aren't as cute as the others and thus don't deserve the same consideration.

4. If you expect HR to explain things like this to you, then you're just an idiot who doesn't appreciate how good you have it. Who are you to be nit-picky with your priorities and how much time you can be with your family? You're no one. Suck it up and get over it.

5. When ironing out the finer details of maternity leave, it is wise to remember to bring a box of Kleenex and remind everyone that you're hormonal and pregnant. Remember, HR isn't attacking you personally. They're just attacking your baby. Obviously they would have no reason to do so if you were smart enough to have the baby at the beginning of the year instead of towards the end. It's your fault. Not theirs.

Two weeks

Some time in the next two weeks I get to find out if I have a son (or, of course, if Ellie has a little sister). Deep. For whatever reason, I find the concept of having a son to be incredibly foreign to me.

Naming Baby II

At least she's consistent:

Mommy: If our baby is a boy, what should we name him?
Ellie: Umm... Ummm... I call him "Little Girl."
Mommy: What if our baby is a girl?
Ellie: Umm... I like Kyle!

Just about every time we ask, the baby's name should be Kyle if it's a girl and "Little Girl" if it's a boy. Go figure.

P.S. Today Baby is officially full-term. Wow!

Too Much

Well, I got the lecture from the doctor about gaining too much weight this time around. She wants me to try to not gain any more weight between now and when the baby comes. Hmm... I'm not sure how that's possible. She suggested 30 minutes of exercise every day.

This is a sore spot for us. During my first pregnancy, we paid close attention to how much weight I was gaining. We went out of our way to make sure we were eating healthy and all the right stuff. Michael would cook for me and even had time to make special lunches for the two of us. We also went on daily walks in the evening.

Unfortunately, and we both feel quite guilty about it, those things haven't happened this time. Our excuse, if there is one, is that we're so busy with Ellie. If Michael comes home and cooks then we're not done with dinner until 6:45 or 7:00, and with Ellie's bedtime being 7:45 (bed time routine starts at 7:10 or 7:15), then where's the time? And who really wants to cook when you're so tired or when it's so much fun to play with Ellie instead (she's a lot of fun this age)? And I know I haven't been keeping as close eye on my weight gain, I think because it bothered me that I started out at a higher number to begin with. Lastly, it was a lot easier to take evening walks when you didn't have to worry about a 7:45 bedtime - I suppose I could go alone.

So... there you have it. We feel guilty - perhaps this is the first real difference between the kids. We fear that we've given Ellie a better head-start in life than this baby. Maybe that means she'll be smarter? Maybe that means she'll be more healthy? Maybe... maybe... maybe...

I'd like to know how common this is. I know the average weight gain during pregnancy is 25-35 pounds, but what is the statistic for second pregnancies? Is it higher? Is it the same? I gained 30 pounds with Ellie and I'm up 37 pounds with this baby. What will that do? The doctor says it could mean the baby will be bigger and thus it might be a more difficult birth (I somehow doubt it can be as bad as my first birth, when she was posterior). But what about longer-term effects? Does anyone know?

One month

That means a MAXIMUM of 4 weekends left. ACK!

The names

So, are you excited to hear about the names we picked? If not, then go away. I don't want your negativity rubbing off on this post. lol.

Nearly from the start, we were set on the girl's name. We had a much easier time picking a girl's name last time too. I'm not sure why that is, but we had a couple great names the first time we started talking about it.

Adel.ine Rayne

Adel.ine was Michael's grandma's name and we love how it has multiple nickname options like Ellie's name does. We can go for Addie when she's younger (like Ellie) or Adel when she's older (like Lori). Adel.ine also means "Noble" and it's always a plus to have a good meaning.

There is no story behind "Rayne." I just liked how it sounded and I've always loved the rain and the smells that come with it.

Our second choice for a girl would have been Danica. We love the nickname "Danny" but don't like the names Daniel or Danielle because they mean "Judged by God." I know that can be taken in different ways, but as a non-super-religious-person I don't want my daughter to be continually judged by God. I want her to be loved by Him. Danica, on the other hand, means "Morning Star." Isn't that pretty?

The boy's name was much much more difficult. Since we were picking a name from Michael's side of the family for the girl, I wanted to pick one for my family for the boy. My Grandpa went by the nickname of Nikki and so we searched for a suitable "Nikki" type name. Dominic, meaning "Belonging to God," was our favorite option, but it is also more popular than either of us care for (as Jennifer and Michael... we're anti-popularity... our kids will have to rely on their personalities to get them through high school).

There were a couple names that have stuck with us for quite some time and Asher was one of them. In fact, I think we can both say that Asher is our favorite boy's name. The problem with it is that I fear it's more popular than I think it is (I've heard too many people say "I know an Asher who was just born"). In the end, we decided to keep Asher as a middle name because it would be neat to have the siblings have similar names (Ellie's middle name is Ashlyn) and to keep the initial A (we all have A middle names). I didn't want to risk naming my boy with a popular first name.

Then what is the name?

Brennan Asher

I'm not sure where Brennan comes from but it was really the combined meaning with Asher that got me hooked. Brennan means "Tears" and Asher means "Happy" or "Blessed One". When my husband pointed out that the combination of the names would be "Tears of Happiness" I was hooked. No, it doesn't have nicknames like Dominic would, but a recent note from Cracker's Mom made me question whether or not nicknames were a good thing. So Brennan it is. It's not too common and not too funky - perfect.

So for now... and for the next 31 days (give or take)... our baby is either:
Adel.ine Rayne
OR
Brennan Asher
It's official - I've even made the scrap book page to finalize it!

There is a part of me that likes Dominic better than Brennan, but mainly for the Nikki nickname. I've heard of parents who go into the hospital thinking one name and leave with a baby named something completely different. I'm sure that both Michael and I will keep an open mind and will change the name if we feel like a different option would fit better. After all, the scrap book page can be redone, right?

Sunflower Baby

I believe that forever more, whenever I see daffodils or cherry blossoms (both, unfortunately, are more abundant in Maryland than here in Colorado), I will think of my little girl, Ellie.

Chances are that I will think of my next baby whenever the late summer fields are scattered with sunflowers. Some of them are grown in the local farms and grow to be huge! However, the wild ones seem to be happy just about anywhere. I like them both for different reasons. I'm not sure there is anything prettier than a field of sunflowers under a bright blue Colorado sky (sadly it was raining this day). Of course, the local hot-air balloons don't hurt (this picture was taken by Grandpa, aka Bob).

Here are some pictures that Grandpa took of us a couple weeks ago... the only thing that could have made them turn out better is if it wasn't rainy and cloudy that day! lol. Make sure you click to see the larger version of the panoramic ones - they just don't have the same feel of being surrounded by flowers when you see the small version.





I can't wait for our little Sunflower Baby to arrive! Only 5.5 weeks from now!

Naming Baby

Daddy: Ellie, our baby is a boy, what name do you think we should give him?
Ellie: Uh....
Daddy: What names do you like?
Ellie: Uh...
Daddy: If you have a baby brother, what should his name be?
Ellie: LITTLE GIRL!

Red Hot Mama!

I have been waiting for the approval to post this for quite some time, but I had to wait until Iman said it was OK. See the Boulder Women's Magazine article that I'm in (I'm told it's also delivered with the Boulder Daily Camera)! Once again, Iman has made me famous. Once again, I'm going to say that Iman is just fantastic! I was a little nervous about how this photo shoot would go because I was feeling so much bigger with this pregnancy than the last. But I look AWESOME!!!

I don't think you can get a more perfect pregnancy picture than the one above. I feel like it really conveys the feeling that a mother has for the baby growing inside. I can not express how nice it is to realize that I look good this pregnancy just like I did with my last. Again, thank you, Iman!Ellie joined in for the photo shoot too. Daddy brought her by a couple hours after I showed up and she knew exactly what the drill was. "Mahn take pictures an Lor-ee-elle get candy an go to park!" Once in the studio, she was quite the camera ham. She did absolutely everything that Iman asked her to do and LOVED the attention she was getting. We got tons of pictures out of her, which was just fantastic. Then she suddenly decided she was all done and in an instant, she started heading for the stairs to go play outside.

Really, we could not have asked for more out of her.

You ***MUST*** check out the other photos. There are so many cute ones!

Translating Pregnant Nifferese

And by "fork" I mean "milk"
And by "table" I mean "fridge"
And by "book" I mean "keys"
And by "dog" I mean "door"
And by "27" I mean "9"
And by "Alex" I mean "Me"
And by "cat" I mean "daughter"
And by "moon" I mean "milk"
And by "car" I mean "store"
And by "doctor" I mean "dog"

There is so much more where that came from, but I'm sure by now you have lost your interest in learning this new language. Sadly, so have I.

I fail to see the humor

Just now, I was talking to some colleagues of mine in the hallway about the issues we're seeing with our project. Along comes a guy (who sits close-ish to me, but isn't part of my team) who has a smug look on his face. He comes up to our group, stands close enough to me and another coworker that I'm already a little uncomfortable, and says, "I'll tell you something that will make your problems seem small," with a big smile on his face.

One of us asked what and his response was "My daughter is one of the confirmed cases of Swine Flu from CU and I'm her primary care-giver." We all take an unconscious step away from him and he laughs "See? Imagine the work I'm going to get done in the next week or so when everyone is avoiding me."

Now, mind you, I do think the whole Swine Flu scare is going a little over-board. I do think it's silly that just because my daughter happens to take a flight on a plane, she has to stay away from daycare for 3 full days.

That being said, though, I'm standing next to this guy as a 7.5-month-pregnant woman with a 2 year old daughter. I fail to see the humor in the situation and found the guy to be particularly rude. Let it be known that I will be avoiding his area for a while AND ***IF*** I come down with the flu while pregnant, I will know whose @$$ to kick.

50 Days

50 Days. I repeat 50 days.

Random Baby Observation

Baby Vincent II gets quite active when I'm frustrated.

Buddha Belly

In the wise words of my hubby, but incredibly unwise words of nearly everyone else (Iman is excused): Buddha Buddha Buddha!

Check out my henna tattoo! Iman took this picture (of course - it's fantastic) when the henna paste was still on my belly. I love how it looks so striking, even if the paste is cracking. I find it stunning. Strange, but stunning.

I have to say that getting a henna tattoo was one of the more bizarre experiences I have had. The lady who did it was more hippie than anyone I have ever spent time with in the past. It looked like it had been 10 years since cutting her hair or even shaving. She didn't wear a bra and wore a long flowy skirt. She was nice enough, but could have used some deodorant. She handed me the tube of henna and asked that I say a prayer to tell the henna what kind of experience I was requesting from it. I silently told the henna that I just wanted a tattoo and wasn't looking for anything more serious out of our short encounter with each other. For the next hour, she painted on my belly, which in itself was a strange feeling because no one has ever done that before.

I showed her some pictures of tattoos that I liked, pointing out that the spirals going to the belly button called to me. She agreed that they were powerful images. I also told her that I liked trees. So... you see the result. I love it!

Baby loved it too! The henna had eucalyptus in it, and though I don't know for sure if that's what caused it, the baby was suddenly more active and strong than I have ever felt to this point. Of course, Ms Henna Lady attributed it to the magic empowering nature of henna and claimed that this will definitely give the baby a head start in life. Ummm...

All in all, I like the tattoo a lot but I've discovered that working with a bunch of engineers makes it hard to find people to show off my belly to. And I'm glad that baby is active, don't get me wrong, but the idea that a henna tattoo will give my baby a great head start in life doesn't mesh well with my own engineering mindset.

Happy tattoo everyone!

Inspiration from the French II

It was my trip to Paris during my last pregnancy that led to the final decision on a nursery theme. We decided to go with the Sweet Vanilla bedding and this little guy was the one who inspired that decision.

This time around, we toyed with the idea of re-using the bedding because we still love how calming the cream and beige colors were. However, we also want to make the nursery unique for this baby and couldn't quite figure out how to go about doing that.

In an attempt to simplify the decision, I decided to take advantage of the trip to Paris and search for a fuzzy guy for the new baby. Meet Bussie. Cute, isn't he?

So there you have it, we're going to re-use the old bedding but replace the sheep (grandma claims it will be easy) with bears!** We're also going to focus on the moons and stars and attempt to do a "sweet dreams" sort of theme.

I haven't figured out how it will all pull together yet, but I'm getting excited, which is good because baby comes in 10 weeks regardless of how much I try to hold her/him in!

** Similar to last time, please do not send bears. As it is, I'm sure I will have to control myself in order to avoid having an entire den full of growling bears. The only exception to this rule is Aunt Erin. Congrats, you have permission to buy a perfect, shaggy bear for the baby because you did so well at buying Ellie a fantastic shaggy sheep. Let me know if you want suggestions - I found some great bears!

I love Paris

I'm sure it comes as no surprise to anyone who knows me that I love Paris. Heck, I love all of Europe, but Paris does hold a special place in my heart because that's where Michael proposed. I was lucky to have had the opportunity to go when I was pregnant with Ellie (though it was with my mom and sister, not Michael), and I was thrilled when I found out that I could go again during this pregnancy. I was craving Europe badly, people! Michael went for work (he's now working on a project that may take him to Europe a couple times a year... Yay!) and I told him that there was no way in hell he was going to Paris without me joining.
It was interesting being in Paris again. I wasn't sure how it would be because we didn't feel like we needed to see any of the typical touristy things we saw during our first trip. We didn't even feel like we needed to go to the top of the tower, though that's where he actually proposed. Even so, we knew we had to at least SEE the tower again - no doubt about that one. In Paris with my soul-mate, some things just go without questioning.
But like I said, we didn't see any of the things we saw before. We walked by Notre Dame, but not inside. What took me by surprise, though, was how fantastic the sites we did see where. We went to the Orsey and Rodin Museums - both were top notch museums and much more Niffer-friendly. I apparently have a short fuse when it comes to how much museum I can handle at a given time and both of them passed the test. \

Another wonderful surprise was Saint Germaine Cathedral. Last visit, Saint Chapelle became my favorite church because everything was still painted like it was when it was first built (no white columns or statues). I found that it made the church more real, inspiring and warm and friendly (this coming from someone who absolutely loves churches). It turns out that Saint Germaine was the same way, only it was actually the oldest church in Paris. I LOVED it!
When I was in Paris during my first pregnancy, I got Ellie a stuffed sheep and decided that it would be the inspiration for the nursery. This time, I bought a cute teddy bear for the new baby in hopes of including it in the nursery as well (more on that later).
It was nice to focus a little on the baby during the trip and remind myself that the pictures we took in Paris will probably be special to the baby.
Me and Bussi Bear in Luxembourg Gardens. I don't know what it is about tummy pictures that makes my tummy explode as the day goes on. This picture was taken in the afternoon on the same day as the one below (taken first thing in the morning). Apparently unborn babies like their pictures taken a lot! They grow out of that quickly.

Hi there, Baby!

I realize that it has been way too long since I actually had my big ultrasound appointment. These were taken at 20 weeks, so they're easily 2.5 months old, but it's better late than never, right?

I recall staring at a similar picture of Ellie during my first pregnancy. I couldn't get enough of it. But this time, I don't feel like I need the picture to appreciate the baby growing inside me. Granted I don't notice the baby as much as my first, but it's comforting to know that I can usually feel movement within minutes if I stop and pay attention.

This baby is so much more active than Ellie was (watch Baby kicking!). In some regards it's comforting because it typically doesn't take long for me to be reassured that life is still present. However, in other regards it's stressful. You might ask how.

I recall complaining about the lack of ultrasound pictures I got with my first pregnancy. It took me by surprise that a typical pregnancy would only have a single ultrasound appointment from which one could take home pictures of the baby. I had friends who had higher risk pregnancies and was always jealous of the pictures they got (though never jealous of the reasons for needing more ultrasounds). I recall stating that I wish I had more ultrasounds.

I should have been more specific but I have had more ultrasounds with this baby. It seems as though the doctors just can't ever get a good reading on the baby's heartbeat so just about every appointment has resulted in an ultrasound that shows the baby happily active, just moving too much to ever get a good reading. As luck would have it, the baby also moves too much to get good pictures. I've gotten the additional ultrasounds that I requested, but still no pictures. Ugh.

But at least the baby is healthy. Life is good. And look! Baby feet! Adorable.