Nathan's messy day

Yesterday was Todd's first day back at work since Nathan was born. We were both bummed, as it has been so great to spend so much time together as our new little family unit. Unfortunately, we still haven't hit the lotto jackpot, and there are still bills to pay, so real life had to intrude.

Overall our day was pretty mellow, but Nathan decided to make things a little more interesting by exploring all of the ways that a 12-day-old can make a mess. He started right after breakfast by spitting up all over his blanket and pjs while I was pumping. This was followed by an explosive and leaky diaper that soaked through diaper, pjs, sheet saver, and sheet. During one of his evening feeding sessions (thankfully conducted in just a diaper), he decided to drench himself in milk--face, chin, chest, armpits and hair! To cap off the day, while Todd was changing the diaper, Nathan peed all over Todd's hand and all over himself! Needless to say, I am very thankful to have a washing machine and dryer in the house; I'm not sure how people with a new baby and coin operated laundry avoid going broke.

In other news, yesterday was also a big day, as Nathan lost his umbilical cord, and the plastibell from his circumcision also came off. He's getting to be a big boy! He seems to enjoy being awake after his 8:30 am feeding and his 5:30 pm feeding, and loves to stare at the quilt on the back of the couch, the ceiling fan, and his friend cow who magically appeared on the side of his crib thanks to mommy.

Nathan loves his new friend cow.

Daddy and Nathan were both worn out by the busy day yesterday.

Nathan appears to have inherited Mommy's flair for the dramatic--clearly, he is finished with dinner!

Merry Christmas!

I've got a lot of blogging to do, including Nathan's birth story, but I wanted to wish you all a Merry Christmas and post a few photos of our little man!

36 week appointment

We had our 36 week appointment with the midwife today, kicking off what will now be weekly appointments until I deliver--eek! We met the new midwife on staff today. She is really nice, and I'm relieved that I like all three of the midwives, so I don't have to worry about who will be on call when I go into labor. Everything looks good with the baby; his heart rate was 168, and he is still head-down. The midwife said that most likely he will stay that way, as he's running out of room to move around!

36 week belly pic

Productive Weekend

This weekend we made further progress in crossing pre-baby tasks off the to-do list, and also managed to fit in some fun! Friday night we went to a holiday party at Joellen's house, which was very nice. It's always fun to see co-workers outside of the office setting.

Saturday morning I headed off to Discount Tire and got a bunch of paragraphs proofed for work while I waited to get a set of new tires put on the Subaru. When we bought the car we knew that we'd need to get new tires put on, and decided to take care of it before we start driving the little bambino around. The roads cleared up, so I haven't had a chance to really test them out yet, but Todd assures me that I'll REALLY love my Subaru with the additional performance of new tire tread! After the tire installation, I met up with Suz at Super Suppers, which is this great business that has a number of meals ready to assemble for the freezer (so no looking up recipes or shopping, you just show up and pick from the 15 or so options that they have on hand). In less than an hour I put together eight dinners to have on hand in the freezer for when the baby is here and the last thing I want to do is cook. Suz and I had a blast chatting while we worked, a great combination of fun and productivity! I also had the chance to spend some time with Suz's parents afterward--they are great people and it had been awhile since I've seen them, so that was really nice.

While I was busy with all of that Todd took Deuce on a big long hike through the woods, which was much needed--Deuce has already been pretty stir-crazy, and it's only the beginning of winter. Then he also gave Deuce a bath (it was becoming essential, especially after spending 2 hours collecting burs in the woods!).

Saturday evening we went out to Aries with Jordan, Dan and Nancy to celebrate Jordan's 27th birthday. It was a delicious meal, as always, with excellent company! :)

Sunday morning I brushed all of the knots out of Deuce's fur, and then handed him over to Todd, who spent the entire afternoon giving him a haircut. This is a very time-consuming process, made even more so because Deuce is not thrilled about the grooming process and therefore does not cooperate very well. I spent all afternoon braving the Portage crowds and getting all of the Christmas shopping done. Needless to say, Todd, Deuce and I were very happy to collapse on the couch last night and watch the movie Get Smart!

My now well-stocked freezer.


Deuce showing off his sassy haircut.

Miles of pink files

This is our busiest application reading time, so I feel like I've been buried under a mountain of pink folders! I do really enjoy reading applications, especially for the students that I have met during the fall recruiting season, but the to-do list feels a little overwhelming at the moment!

Absolutely in love...

...with my Subaru!!! We got about 8 inches of snow this weekend (which is beautiful, especially on the weekend when I don't have to be at work on time). My Subaru handled it like a champ!! I was able to drive up the driveway with no problems whatsoever, even before Todd plowed. The thought that I won't be spending the winter sliding backward down my driveway while spinning in circles will do much to improve my attitude toward the snow. :)

35 weeks

Today I'm 35 weeks pregnant--wow! Only 5 weeks (give or take) to go until we finally get to meet our little guy! Just in the last week I've been getting pretty uncomfortable. The hardest part for me is finding a comfortable position to sleep in. At the moment there are six pillows on my side of the bed that I arrange myself on in various attempts to take pressure off of my hips and my big ol' belly. I feel a little like the princess and the pea, but it does help somewhat in allowing me to get some sleep! The other recent development is that my ankles and feet have started swelling. Not only does that make it uncomfortable for me to wear socks and shoes (rather important on a snowy December day) but it hurts the vanity that I never knew I had about my formerly attractive ankles! Ah well, I guess that's a small price to pay for the privilege of growing a human!

This week we took the last of our birthing/childcare classes, so theoretically we are certified and ready to go for all of the labor and delivery and parenting adventures! Haha. I guess we'll see. :) In the last two weeks, two of the couples from our natural birthing class had their babies. Both are healthy little boys--Pacen and Thomas. Todd and I are next, as far as due dates go, and then there are three other couples due in the last few weeks of January. Exciting times!