IS NESTING THE SAME AS TWEEKING?
Husband: I think you'll make a wonderful mother. Sarah: You do? Husband: Yes,
and so does everyone else on the internet. Then again, everyone on the
internet thinks Ron Paul would make a good president so...we'll see.
My husband is getting impatient. He wants to hold her and be with her. Me, I just feel nervous. I have begun to get frightened of the pain. I am in a cranky mood and want to be simultaneously left alone and completely taken care of. I hurt a lot of the time. I want the hurt to turn into labor, so I try to stoke it. But it doesn't; it's just pointless pain.
I am not nesting so much as freaking out that I have wasted the past eight years of married life. Why didn't I clean the garage or finish that quilt or sort through worthless old college textbooks? What if today is the day and I still haven't gotten the oil changed in my car?
I don't feel like a good mom. I feel like I'm already starting out on the wrong foot.
1
it is totally normal to panic and worry! If it makes you feel any better, you'll probably spend a good amount of time once she's here in panic and worry mode about all kinds of things....maybe that doesn't help!
Posted by: sharona at February 27, 2010 09:55 AM (BeRta)
Don't worry! Your ducks are in a row. You and the babe are more important now. Chores and projects can wait! Try to enjoy these last days of having a baby without all the work at the moment...do you get what I mean?
As far as labor goes you can handle it. Have hubby remind you that there is a very wonderful result of this labor. (hint: hubby, encourage but don't be too pollyannish! pick your moments,you'll get what I mean.)
Last but not least do what is good and right for you and don't listen too much to all of us. Not everyone has 80 hour labors! They just like to tell stories, kinda like fish stories. I liked the shower and I had a rocking chair in the room that I spent most of my time in. You will know what you need when you need it.
Eat you favorite things, read a good book, watch Dick Van Dyke reruns whatever...enjoy.
cindy h.
Posted by: cindy h at February 27, 2010 10:14 AM (gcBP7)
3
Ian arrived so quickly that the phrase "muzzle velocity" was bandied about. No drugs, not TOO much pain (she says). Sometimes it's easy.
Sig
Posted by: Sig at February 27, 2010 02:58 PM (/Mv9b)
4
You got all the important stuff done already. It's fine. I promise. The rest of it will all get done one day. You can always assign those jobs to people who come over and ask you what you need help with, And labor, honestly, it's different for everyone, but you'll handle any pain that comes your way. I promise, none of it will matter to you in the long run.
Posted by: Ann M. at February 27, 2010 05:28 PM (+GQ3g)
5
Honestly, I think you're right where you need to be. Life isn't life without "what ifs" and second guessing. I believe it's what gives us our second nature. 4 hours before we were supposed to leave for China to bring Olivia home, I had not yet been to bed, was blogging and then finished packing.
You're going to be a fantastic mom...the internets will back me on this one.
Posted by: Susan at February 27, 2010 09:07 PM (URuXw)
Heh... Ron Paul works his way into a parenting conversation. Sweet.
On the chores note, you'll be asking yourself, "why did I think I was so busy back ___?" for the next few decades... so no worries.
Gotta leave something home-chore-ish for you to do with her!
Kids LOVE to help (especially when they're little)!
FWIW, I had an OB PA (who's had kids) tell me that if I could handle those "clean it out now" tablets, I can definitely handle labor. I haven't been through anything to test that hypothesis yet, but I like to believe her.
You'll do great.
Posted by: Krista at February 27, 2010 10:58 PM (sUTgZ)
UP AT 6 WITH NOWHERE TO GO
When my husband has been home for a while, I get used to sleeping with
him. I can sleep through his movements and even his early departures.
But I'm not used to him yet, so his 6 AM wake-up is now mine. Fortunately, I'm not having any of the insomnia problems that I had when he returned last year. I pretty much want to sleep when he wants to sleep. But I'd just like to sleep a little longer in the morning while I still can.
You've been quiet....Have you looked her in the eyes yet? I remember...well, that is my story. I wanted to be super mom so when my babe slept I used that time to get chores done. What I learned was to be a super mom I needed to nap(at least take a break) when he did so at night when it was just the two of us it was also a time for snuggling and learning about each other. You know...I think I am feeling jealouse!
Cindy H.
Posted by: Cindy H. at February 26, 2010 07:21 PM (gcBP7)
I MEAN, THE MAN HAS HIS OWN CURVE
If you love Art Laffer the way I love Art Laffer, might I recommend watching his ideas for how to fix the ecominy? He laid them out on Glenn Beck last week; check out clips two and three here at Glenn Beck Clips.
Posted by: Sarah at
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SORRY, MOM, THE MOB HAS SPOKEN!
We interrupt my boring posts about not having a baby yet to bring you this...
OK, Republicans, take a deep breath. Or at least I need to take a deep breath, before I slap you senseless.
Scott Brown? Really? Really?
Hey, Obama sucks because he wasn't vetted and he'd only been in government for five minutes. He just won because he was charismatic and had some good slogans during the campaign. Hey, I know, let's do the exact same thing on our side! Let's get behind the flavor of the month!
I don't even think it's possible to type the amount of sarcasm I want this post to be dripping with.
Maybe Scott Brown would make a fine president someday, I don't know. But not now. Are you people insane? Does the entire electorate just get distracted by something shiny and lose their everlovin' minds?
I can't help but feel lately that we're all as dumb as the people of Springfield. We're all set to spend our money wisely to fix potholes when the flashy monorail salesman promises us hope and change.
And then we just follow like lemmings right off the cliff.
Well, except we don't even have the fix-the-potholes plan. 42% of us have no idea who we'll support next. It's a pretty barren field.
But not Scott Brown, for heaven's sake. Just let's kill that idea right this instant.
I'm part of the 14% on this poll. What is this world coming to--a Playboy centerfold as our president? I guess they think he's cute! Everyone thought Obama was, and look at what we got! Ugh!
Mama
Posted by: Nancy at February 23, 2010 09:59 AM (gWUle)
2
I'm actually relieved the Brown figure is only 4%. I would have guessed that it was higher. Nonetheless, I'm glad you and your mother are speaking out against the Scott Brown craze. As somebody asked, how many Scott Brown supporters knew anything about the guy? At least Romney, Palin, and McCain are known quantities.
Right now, I support no one on that list. And I still think the wrong Sarah is running for president.
Posted by: Amritas at February 23, 2010 11:52 AM (+nV09)
3
Was this poll taken before that jobs vote? And before Romney endorsed McCain? I think Romney is a little too slick. I have no idea who I really trust as president, I'm still waiting for the man on the white horse.
Posted by: Ruth H at February 23, 2010 01:24 PM (KLwh4)
4
Totally a barren field. I'm frustrated about that beyond belief.
And I'm with AWTM - every time I see Scott Brown on tv the J. Geils Band starts rotating through my head.
Posted by: airforcewife at February 23, 2010 01:39 PM (uE3SA)
5
I just read earlier that Romney endorsed McCain. What's with that? Honestly, there are no really good candidates in the poll, but I hate to get someone else again who nobody knows. Scarey!
Posted by: Nancy at February 23, 2010 05:09 PM (gWUle)
6
They better find someone who is not polling more than 1% on that list. Otherwise we are guaranteed four more years of His Highness. PIMM.
Posted by: wifeunit at February 24, 2010 12:05 PM (4B1kO)
Palin and pro-Porkulus II Scott Brown campaigned for McCain. So one could consider the top four to be one bloc. Or five, given that Huckabee endorsed McCain in 2008.
Do Republican leaders want a McParty?
Is the elephant obsolete? Soon Meghan McCain will declare its new symbol to be the rhino. Her kind of animal. A meek creature with a plastic horn. No real threat to the Democrats. Token opposition.
Posted by: Amritas at February 24, 2010 02:56 PM (+nV09)
NOT QUITE MENTALLY PREPARED
The good news is the bed rest worked. The bad news is the bed rest worked. I am stuck at the same dilation and effacement that I was at two weeks ago.
And really, other than the fact that life is exponentially more painful now than it was then, I guess I am OK with that.
Last night I had a bit of a freakout. I somehow feel like I am still not ready. I don't feel anxious to
get the baby out (other than because of the pains) because I am still
scared to death of having to take care of her. I feel like everything
I've read about labor and newborn care is not enough and I still feel
overwhelmed and unprepared. I am feeling the weight of the awesome responsibility that is motherhood, and I am OK with postponing it for another
week or so.
Plus we still need to paint her bookshelf. And a million other
things.
1
Sounds to me like you are right where every first time mother is before the birth, feeling overwhelmed. You are going to have complete responsibility for a new person. It is an awesome responsibility and if anyone is prepared it, you are. Its not the books you read, it what is in your heart.
Posted by: Ruth H at February 22, 2010 02:22 PM (JCV5R)
2
I remember reading up mere hours before checking into the hospital like I was cramming for a test. You're never "ready," just willing. Like Ruth H writes, "what is in your heart" matters more than what you know.
Posted by: Lee Anne at February 22, 2010 03:01 PM (FXhFB)
3
If you can feel the weight of motherhood mentally as well as physically, your heart has what it takes.
Posted by: Amritas at February 22, 2010 03:19 PM (+nV09)
4
I'm just so happy for you that all is in place and ready to go. So looking forward to reading that She has arrived. Welcome your hubby home from those of us that have been following this journey that the three of you have been on.
Posted by: Laura, A Military Mom at February 22, 2010 03:24 PM (oLHZ3)
I was so happy to hear that he made it home in time! I know less than zero about how deployment works, but I was wondering when he has to go back, if he does.
You never feel ready, but the most important thing is that when she comes all she'll really want is you, a clean onesie and a dry diaper. So, if you have those things covered, the rest is gravy.
I remember with my first feeling that first day home from the hospital that he was a stranger to me, this new little person I was getting to know for the first time. Once I realized that it was a relationship (meaning, two-way) and that we both needed to get to know the other, (what he liked and didn't; for him to know he could depend on me) it seemed much easier.
Good luck! And although it will likely be the last thing you'll be worrying about, do you think you could leave the keys to your blog to a friend who could give us an update when the time does come?
Thanks!
Posted by: Christa at February 22, 2010 04:04 PM (2qSbp)
6
Christa -- The absolute soonest he'd deploy again is November. And that's not so likely. Hopefully we'll have him home for a while.
And AirForceWife is already prepped to spread the word on my blog once I'm in the hospital!
Posted by: Sarah at February 22, 2010 05:31 PM (gWUle)
7
Just wait until you carry her out of the hospital! I remember feeling like it was all surreal and couldn't believe they actually trusted me to take my baby home. By myself. To care of all alone. Hee-hee!
You're never really "ready", IMO. It's so much awesomer (yes, I said awesomer), profound, and breath-taking than you can possibly understand or expect ahead of time.
I'm smiling thinking about the joy that lays ahead of you and your husband. I'm so happy for you. :-)
Posted by: Heather at February 22, 2010 06:39 PM (9k/pz)
8
If you are feeling like you aren't ready to be a mom, you're a little late in the planning cycle.
Just follow the instruction booklet they give you when you leave the hospital and everything will be fine.
If you weren't worried, I'd be worried. It's natural. You are just as equipped as every other woman to be a mother, but your are phenomenally more qualified for motherhood and parenting than most of the folks dragging their brood around between peopleofwalmart photo shoots.
Really, what's the worst that can happen? This is a mutant baby. It will survive anything. She already overcame your (apparently) tremendously recessive genes; genes that are so recessive and hate reproducing so much that I'm in awe that you actually heal from minor scrapes! She will be fine, if not exposed to green kryptonite, and you manage to lay off the crack pipe and not huff paint while breast feeding.
As fare as raising her goes, given her parents--she'll be winning the hearts and minds of the other kids in preschool and building them a new, better and state of the art playground as soon as they inform on who ate all the paste, then blogging about how much she misses charlie when she is away at school and he's at home. I can see it now--Twying to gwok.
Or maybe you'll be on a "Very Special Episode" of Springer with me and my family. Either way, you do the best you can with what you've got and hope for the best.
Posted by: Chuck at February 22, 2010 07:31 PM (bMH2g)
9
sarah, like the others have said, I think it's natural to feel nervous, anxious, excited. PLUS, you've had quite a ride over the last few years getting to this point PLUS your husband has been deployed for the better part of the year... I'd say that qualifies to feeling a little unsure of all of this. I think you just do what feels 'right'. Consult the books, doctors, friends and parents when you need to (and everyone will have a different opinion), but at the end of the day, just give her alot of hugs, and make sure she's fed. She will thrive and so will you.
Posted by: Keri at February 22, 2010 10:10 PM (dtvJC)
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You are going to do great! You can do all the reading in the world, but then your instincts just kick in and you figure things out! You and your man will do a great job and she will know she is soooo loved!
Posted by: Stacy at February 23, 2010 12:02 AM (oubiR)
11
Think of this; throughout most of history women haven't had books or doctors to help them. It would never occur to husbands that they should help with the baby or to wives to expect help. Women relied on their Moms, other female relatives and friends for answers to parenting questions and even though a lot of those answers were just old wives tales, most of the new Mamas and babies managed just fine.
Then think of the resources you have at your finger tips, any question you have can be answered either by doctors or books or bing. But, my guess is that most of your questions will be answered by your Mom, your female relatives and your friends. Because, they've already been there, done that, and have the drool on their best clothes to prove it. Plus, you have a husband who is ready, willing and able to help with the baby any time (as soon as you show him which end to burp and which end to diaper). You are both intensely focused on doing everything possible to make your new baby know she is welcome and loved. Mama, daddy and baby are gonna be just fine!!
Posted by: Pamela at February 23, 2010 02:03 AM (f+d6l)
12
P. S. My granddaughter is 15 months old, when she was 12 months she weaned herself. My mother said when a baby weans herself like that she's getting out of the way for the next one. My daughter is 9 weeks pregnant with their second. It was not planned. Could be something to those old wives tales!!
Posted by: Pamela at February 23, 2010 02:11 AM (f+d6l)
13
You will figure it out, and then she'll change the rules. You'll figure out the new game, and she'll change it again. But you're a smart woman. You will always figure it out, or know the right person to ask.
Posted by: Ann M. at February 27, 2010 12:17 AM (+GQ3g)
A FAMILY AGAIN
My husband laughs when he touches my belly.
I stayed in bed until the very end. He was supposed to arrive late Thursday night but ended up here Friday morning instead. I passed many excruciating Hours In Between dreaming crazy things like that his flight had been diverted to Cincinnati or that he had to hitch a ride on Noah's Ark to get home.
When I saw him, I thought his beard looked a lot nicer in person than in pictures. He thought my belly was much smaller than he imagined it would be.
He likes getting kicked. But he says he's ready to meet our baby on the outside already.
I got out of bed after two weeks, and my legs are weak. The baby also seems a lot bigger and heavier than she did previously. I can't believe how much she's grown while I was just lying there.
And I now officially understand lightning crotch. I wish I didn't.
But I promise I won't complain. I got everything I wanted: a healthy baby, a safe deployment, and my family all together again before baby arrives.
I will remind myself of that when my legs go numb with pain.
1
WOO HOOOOOOOOOOO. Cant wait to read the post when the little one is born. Enjoy your time together before babygrok arrives.
Posted by: Keri at February 20, 2010 08:52 AM (dtvJC)
2
Wooohoo!!!! I am so glad to see this post! Enjoy your time together and I'll be sending thoughts and prayers your way for an uneventful labor and delivery! I'm so happy for you two!
Posted by: Stephanie at February 20, 2010 09:24 AM (AksCG)
3
Yay! So glad you two are going to get to share this experience in the same room! As Stephanie said, prayers for a safe, healthy labour and delivery.
Posted by: Linda at February 20, 2010 10:50 AM (krOs7)
I'm so happy he's home, safe and sound and that you're sweet little girl has managed to wait for him. :-)
Posted by: Heather at February 20, 2010 11:26 AM (9k/pz)
7
Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay! I'm so glad he made it home before she arrived. I'm so happy you will be able to share that experience with each other!
Posted by: sharona at February 20, 2010 12:13 PM (SSnIN)
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Sorry sweetie, but your new nickname is lightning crotch.
Posted by: Chuck at February 20, 2010 12:18 PM (bMH2g)
9
I vaguely remember the term "lightening" (with the e) but I can guaran-double-damn-tee you I never heard it referred to a crotch. Course, ladies in my day didn't use that word, at least if we weren't sewing up some pants. ;D We did refer to babies as having dropped and I know some still do. Only because I live on the Gulf coast and know people in the business do I know that an oil tanker sits offshore until it is lightered. I suspect there is something to grammar of the lightening crotch akin to a ship lightering. TMI? Lightering
- Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaLightering
is the process of transferring cargo between vessels of different
sizes, usually between a barge and a bulker or oil tanker.
Posted by: Ruth H at February 20, 2010 04:30 PM (4u82p)
As much as I love having these updates I DO hope this is the last we hear until the baby is about 72 hrs old. Enjoy these precious QUIET moments together.
And congratulations!! I am so very VERY happy for you guys!!
Posted by: LauraB at February 20, 2010 05:46 PM (F24xe)
11
Cheers from Virginia ~ so happy for the three of you! Deployment gremlins ha - no more! *poof*
Posted by: awiv at February 20, 2010 05:57 PM (4McD6)
Posted by: MargeinMI at February 21, 2010 08:20 AM (hYFF2)
15
Oh yay! I'm so happy to hear that everything worked out for you!
Posted by: Sespi at February 21, 2010 12:27 PM (pjsKA)
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I'm so glad!!! So glad he's home, so glad he's gotten to see you pregnant. I hope all continues to go smoothly for you (and I'm sorry you're not feeling super physically).
Posted by: Lucy at February 21, 2010 12:38 PM (uaK5D)
17
Three cheers for your husband! I'm so very glad he's home! And that you've gotten out of bed once! And I hope Charlie starts feeling better! Take care ... that baby will be bouncing around and causing sleepless nights before you know it!
Posted by: Darla at February 21, 2010 12:41 PM (XvIN7)
18
Thank goodness. You guys have been on my mind a lot lately. I'm glad he's home and getting to experience some of the pregnancy with you. He's there for the really important stuff.
I'm sorry your legs are so weak. Sounds like you're doing the right thing though.
Posted by: Sara at February 21, 2010 07:26 PM (PdlOu)
BROKEN WINDOWS
I think the broken windows fallacy makes perfect common sense once you hear it. Frankly, I don't understand how one could argue against it.
The idea that government spending creates jobs makes sense only
if you never ask where the government got the money. It didn’t fall
from the sky. The only way Congress can inject spending into the
economy is by first taxing or borrowing it out of the economy. No new
demand is created; it’s a zero-sum transfer of existing demand.
The
White House says the $300 billion spent from the stimulus thus far has
financed as many as 2 million jobs. Maybe. However, the private sector
now has $300 billion less to spend, which, by the same logic, means it
must lose the same number of jobs, leaving a net employment impact of
zero. But the White House’s single-entry bookkeeping simply ignores
that side of the equation.
Even
Washington’s transferring money from savers to spenders doesn’t create
demand, since the financial system already converts one person’s
savings into another person’s spending (as I detail here). A
family might normally put its $10,000 savings in a CD at the local
bank. The bank would then lend that $10,000 to the local hardware
store, which would then recycle that spending around the town,
supporting local jobs. Now suppose that the family instead buys a
$10,000 government bond that funds the stimulus bill. Washington spends
that $10,000 in a different town, supporting jobs there instead. The
stimulus has not created new jobs. It has merely moved them to a new
town.
1The idea that government spending creates jobs makes sense only
if you never ask where the government got the money.
We educators make sure that no one ever asks such questions. Question authority only when Republicans are in power!
It didn’t fall
from the sky.
Of course not. The money comes from eeeevil rich people who won't share their wealth with you! Demand your fair share! Vote Democrat! (At least until Communists are on the ballot. Who keeps them off? McCarthyism lives - even in modern Omerica!)
The only way Congress can inject spending into the
economy is by first taxing or borrowing it out of the economy.
But at least Congress is doing something, unlike the Republicans who can only say no, or the lazy libertarians who believe the economy runs itself - hah!
However, the private sector
now has $300 billion less to spend
Good. The more money in government hands, the better. The government has collective wisdom lacking in unwise greedy individuals.
The
stimulus has not created new jobs. It has merely moved them to a new
town.
A more deserving town. Redistribution is righteous.
Posted by: kevin at February 18, 2010 01:46 PM (+nV09)
Well, as a business owner I agree completely that the accounting doesn't add up. Â BUT! Â It does have an affect on public opinion and empty statements like "we've created jobs" actually do help to improve people's spending habits. Â
I've seen it first hand. Â The whole thing doesn't make a lick of sense on a rational level, but it seems to be serving an emotional need. Â I'm not educated enough on economics to understand what that emotional satisfaction is "worth" but it seems to be working from my (admittedly low-level) experience.
Posted by: the pinko at February 18, 2010 03:24 PM (wZ30l)
Posted by: david foster at February 18, 2010 05:57 PM (Gis4X)
4
The "jobs" being created are government jobs...expanding the empire. I just laugh when I hear the President or Biden or whomever bragging about job creation...it reminds me of what Romney said in one of his campaign stop talks...something about if the best hope for the future of job creation is in the government sector and not private enterprise, we're all in trouble...I agree!
Posted by: Nicole Namken at February 19, 2010 01:48 PM (es18+)
SMART WOMEN
Some recent reading that has made me excited about the task before me and happy that I will finally have a job towards which to apply my meager thinking skills.
I really feel this is the task I was born to undertake.
This isn't a politically correct thing to say, but I knew - even at 18
- that I wanted to marry and have children. What's more, I wanted to
raise my children myself. It made absolutely no sense to me to place a
home and family last on my "to do" list when it was first or second on
the list of things that were important to me. And it made no sense to
me to spend years and years prepping myself for a high powered career I
would have to give up almost as soon as I attained it. [...]
I raised two fine sons and ran a household well and efficiently. And my
support enabled my husband to have a family and concentrate on his
career. A lot of folks sneer at that sort of thing, but I always
wondered why society would want only the "stupider" sort of women to
raise the next generation.
Teach your daughter that grades will not be the most important factor
in her future. It is important for her to learn for the sheer pleasure
of knowing too, not just to win approval. Someday she will be a woman
and engaged in the project of loving a man and starting a small society
together. This is primary. All she learns can be put to use in this
task. Every interest she has and every scrap of knowledge will be of
value. Let her know how exciting it will be for her.
How could America produce "Heroes, Statesmen, and Philosophers," she wanted to know, if it didn't also produce "Learned women"? [...] Abigail never doubted that women were men's intellectual equals. ... Unlike the radicals, she believed that women found their highest fulfillment within marriage and the family. With a better education, she said repeatedly, a woman would be a better wife and mother and contribute more in the long run to the well-being of the new nation than if she were uninformed. Well-educated women, she insisted, could help their husbands safeguard republican liberty; they could also rear boys qualified for leadership in the young republic and girls who in turn could become the devoted mothers and wives of patriots.
1
"I always
wondered why society would want only the "stupider" sort of women to
raise the next generation."
I love this. I'm a stay at home, homeschooling mom to three (soon to be four) boys. I also graduated magna cum laude with degrees in honors and psychology. All the time I hear comments about "wasting my degree ... blah, blah, blah". I think these people are absolutely nutty! Really? They'd rather my children be in a factory type daycare setting? Their minds, values, and personalities being formed by someone who barely graduated highschool and is making $7.00 an hour?
Two speeches I think you'd like: http://www.nationalcenter.org/TRooseveltMotherhood.html I love this whole speech!
http://www.cse.dmu.ac.uk/~mward/gkc/books/Social_Reform_B.C.html Written in 1927, this part at the end has shown to be eerily prophetic:
The advocates of Birth Control are in
revolt against the conditions of human life .... They seem to express a sympathy with those
who prefer "the right to earn outside the home" or (in other words)
the right to be a wage-slave and work under the orders of a total
stranger because he happens to be a richer man. By what conceivable
contortions of twisted thought this ever came to be considered
a freer condition than that of companionship with the man she has
herself freely accepted, I never could for the life of me make out.
The only sense I can make of it is that the proletarian work,
though obviously more senile and subordinate than the parental,
is so far safer and more irresponsible because it is not parental.
I can easily believe that there are some people who do prefer
working in a factory to working in a family; for there are
always some people who prefer slavery to freedom, and who
especially prefer being governed to governing someone else.
But I think their quarrel with motherhood is not like mine,
a quarrel with inhuman conditions, but simply a quarrel with life.
Given an attempt to escape from the nature of things, and I can
well believe that it might lead at last to something like "the
nursery school for our children staffed by other mothers and single
women of expert training."
I will add nothing to that ghastly picture, beyond speculating
pleasantly about the world in which women cannot manage their own
children but can manage each other's.
Posted by: Heather at February 18, 2010 09:58 AM (9k/pz)
2
Ching and I were talking about "life" the other night at 3 a.m. and I said I felt like I hadn't accomplished a damn thing in the past ten years. Then I thought to myself - well, other than be a good wife. And she said, well, you've taken good care of me. And with the army and the moves and civilian jobs... it hasn't been easy. And now - with Pinhead on the way, I finally get to do the one job I've been waiting over eight years to do - be a mom. I can't wait.
Posted by: Beth at February 18, 2010 10:07 AM (Xd7j/)
A friend had a conversation just the other night with a man whose son cries after school each day. He raises his hand in class, you see. He knows the answer. "Does anyone OTHER than Billy know the answer?" the teacher asks with disdain. Or parks him in an empty classroom so his intellect won't insult the others, one assumes.
Their eyes are open, now, to the other options. You can stay home, you can raise your own child and, yes, teach it. Vacation when it works for your schedules, teach through experience, and love them all day long, every day.
Anything else seems like a very poor trade-off to me.
Posted by: LauraB at February 18, 2010 10:40 AM (F24xe)
4
My mother had seven children. At several times in her life she was asked by other, very rude, women why she had so many. Her answer was always this, "the world needs the type people my children are." In her later life she referred to this often and would then add to us, "what would I do now without my children?" Yes, we are all intelligent people who are not afraid to speak out, and have raised children who are intelligent and not afraid to speak out. We are also compassionate and caring. Our mama taught us well.
Posted by: Ruth H at February 18, 2010 01:57 PM (KLwh4)
5
Great post, Sarah. I agree with Ruth. I think the most important job we can have is to raise intelligent, responsible and caring children. I don't believe in leaving their development up to the random caregivers we would encounter through our frequent moves and situation changes. This truly is the greatest job we will undertake and I am so grateful I have the opportunity to stay home with my kids. I know you will make a great mom! So excited for you!
Posted by: Jen D at February 18, 2010 02:18 PM (h8XAc)
I <3 Abigail Adams and *I* needed this perspective today. It is so easy to feel like I am accomplishing little. I need to be reminded how important my job, and the gifts that I bring to my job as a mother really are.
Posted by: Val at February 18, 2010 06:47 PM (JPt9E)
7
Thank you so much for posting this. On particularly tough days, I begin to question why I stay home with my children, why I homeschool, and why I'm doing everything contrary to the way everyone else seems to be doing things. It's nice to read a little affirmation from time to time.
Posted by: Val L. at February 19, 2010 09:03 AM (F4Qv7)
I find value in all of your posts, but this one in particular spoke to me. As many others have commented, it is becoming increasingly more difficult to stay at home with children without having to justify why you do so. It always amazes me when people wonder how I could have walked away from my career, or how I could stay home all day with two small children. How crazy is that??? I did intentionally have them, you know! And now, they wonder why we are choosing to send our oldest to a university model, classical school for kinder in the fall (part-time private, part-time homeschool education). Why is it so difficult for people, especially other women, to understand why we are investing so much time, love and care in our children?
And btw, I'm a good friend of Heidi's and a faithful reader/lurker. You inspire me and I'm so thrilled for the next chapter of your journey to begin. Praying your husband is home soon and for the safe arrival of your sweet baby.
Posted by: Kathy at February 19, 2010 10:27 AM (3v7Fv)
9
I completely agree with your post, parenting is such an important job... and I think that part of the fall out of feminism was the total rejection of things previously in the stereotypical women's sphere.
But, I also don't agree with some of the tone of the comments prior to mine. And perhaps I'm just sensitive. I chose to return to school part time when my daughter was 3, and prior to that I was a stay at home mom. It was a very tough decision to make, I loved being at home with her, but I felt that it was the right decision for me and my family. There is something to be said for pursuing a dream outside of motherhood, and I don't like the all or nothing approach that seems to reign whenever this topic comes up. Either you are painted as a terrible mother who couldn't or wouldn't stay at home, or conversely you are seen as an unintelligent, unmotivated person without a career for investing instead in your children. It's no win.
There, now I feel better having written it. I'm so excited for you to start the journey of motherhood, Sarah. You're going to love it
Posted by: dutchgirl at February 20, 2010 12:01 AM (Yg8bq)
This post, and the links, and the comments, make my heart so happy!!! Motherhood really is the most critical occupation on the planet, and the *most worthy* of our investments of time and talents.
Dutchgirl, I didn't pick up an "all-or-nothing" vibe from these comments; we know what works for *our own families*, and I don't think your getting more education means that motherhood isn't your top priority. FWIW, I'd like to become an ND; someday (probably at least a decade out or so, LOL...) I'll have time & money to do that while Kiddo is working on his reading or a research paper, since I'm teaching him at home, too - we can work on our HW together!
Posted by: Krista at February 23, 2010 01:21 PM (sUTgZ)
1
This has happened to our dog and one of our cats for various reasons. Instead of letting your pup sleep directly on the bedspread, can you put down a sheet or towel for him? Much easier to wash. With our dog, we put up a gate to keep him in the linoleum area instead of the carpeted areas, and tried to have activities (or couch potato time) near him. The kitty got a special (expensive) tummy diet, the dog got chicken and rice, just rice at first. There's also a spray or diffuser (like Glade plug ins) called Feliway that seemed to help. They make it for dogs & cats, we used it for our cats. It helped most times (4 cats). It might help him to also deal with your upcoming changes as well. They'll be great changes, but still stressful! Enjoy being a new mom and being reunited. I know you will.
Posted by: HChambers at February 17, 2010 06:48 PM (m6pqD)
2
Aw, MAN. You really CAN'T catch a break, can you? Well, I'm glad he'll be okay when things get better. And they will!!
Posted by: Lissa at February 17, 2010 07:49 PM (mgjM7)
3
Just wait til the baby cries and Charlie decides to howl in sympathy!!!
Posted by: Pamela at February 18, 2010 03:56 AM (dlFxI)
OF ALL THE TIMES
At SpouseBUZZ we like to joke about "deployment gremlins," all the little things that go wrong as soon as your husband leaves for deployment. Well, I have been having bed rest gremlins.
It started with a broken garage door. Two days before bed rest started, the garage door decided it likes going up but not down. And then I ended up in bed before I could fix it. Luckily I haven't needed my car in two weeks. Unluckily, the door is still busted.
Then my mom arrived to help me. My mom with the broken foot who moves at half her normal speed and has trouble getting up and down stairs, which is the whole reason I needed her help. She's still doing it, bless her. I am not picking on her, just stating a fact. Of all the times for her to break her foot...
And then the dog. The first day my mom was here, the dog ate her meds. She had to induce vomiting. And now, the dog is mysteriously sick. We can't for the life of us figure out what could've made him sick, but he has had diarrhea and vomiting for three days. The first night, I tried to take care of him, but after going up and down the stairs six times to let him out, I knew I had to relinquish the chore to my mother or else the baby was gonna fall out on the stairs. So now the dog wakes me and then I wake my mother so she can let him into the backyard. And he probably needs to go to the vet by now, but that means sending my mom with him. Of all the times for him to get sick...
And you know, I don't remember having any moral qualms about letting my mom take care of me when I had my wisdom teeth out at 18. She fetched and comforted. But it's a whole different game for me as an adult. I hate asking her for help. I hate it. I hate waking her in the middle of the night so she can wipe my dog's bottom with toilet paper to make sure he doesn't soil my bedspread again...since it's had to get washed twice already in the past two days. It's one thing to have her go make me a sandwich -- and believe me, I don't like asking her to do that either -- but it's a whole nother thing to make her take care of my dog's vomit and poop.
We're both exhausted and stressed out. And unfortunately, this story won't end with a nice vacation and a long nap; it will end with a crying baby who needs even more attention than the dog.
I can't believe this is how I'm spending the end of my pregnancy.
1
Wow. Sounds like Murphy has moved right in with you! I agree it is very stressful. BUT - it won't end with a crying baby that needs more attention. It will BEGIN your life as a mom, and after the birth you will be MOBILE again which will change everything.
I would think the dog's affliction is from the meds he ate (or did you see them come out WHOLE when he vomited them?). Our dog ate a whole plate of Christmas cookies (never knew she could get things off the table!) and had stomach 'issues' for days. It was awful, and our comforter went through the laundry a few times too! I'd give it a few more days. Or call the vet and ask their opinion. Maybe they will be able to check a stool sample and that would be easier for your mom to drive over there than actually bringing the dog with her. Good luck Sarah. You are on the home stretch now. The blogosphere is cheering you on!
Posted by: Amy at February 17, 2010 10:31 AM (Cy1WK)
Yes, but hearing the baby cry is so much better than NOT hearing that sound. You are almost there, Sarah!!
Bad things come in three's.... and you've already had your three, so it's smooth sailing now!!
Posted by: AFSister at February 17, 2010 11:08 AM (HoMeG)
3
Does your vet have boarding? Forgive me for sounding callous, but seriously sometimes there's only so much you can take. I am one of those rotten people that loves her dog a whole lot less since my kids were born, but with vomit/poo and bedrest, I'd be inclined to drop him for a doggie vacation at the vet!
Posted by: Lane at February 17, 2010 01:59 PM (DWrpt)
4
Aw, I 'm so sorry. I wish I could come over and take care of your dog and make you a sandwich, and bring you a new book to read and pop in a good DVD and try to keep you entertained. I am really proud of you. Someday she will read all of this and realize how much her mom loves her AND how much you love her DAD and she will realize what a special gift she is!
Posted by: Stacy at February 17, 2010 04:21 PM (7FV6m)
5
Charlie will be okay. Dogs just take longer to get meds out of their system. It's why people drugs are usually the wrong dosage for doggie drugs. His body's doing its best to get rid of the meds.
Just a thought, but one of those cute little diapers with a tail-hole cut out would probably work out okay--we used to use them when our female pekingese was in season (when I was a kid.)
Don't worry about the garage door. Add it to the honey-do list. Park the car in the driveway and get the door closed, then forget about it.
Finally, your mom is going to be your mom. If she didn't want to help any way she could, she wouldn't be there, broken foot and all. You don't feel like you need to be waited on, to have someone take care of things for you, but that's why she came, and believe it or not, you need her to be doing exactly what she is doing, because you are unable. It's a parenting thing. You'll understand soon enough when you are picking boogers out of noses with your fingers, not getting grossed out by having a little vomit on your shirt, and playing "what the hell is THAT!?" when changing diapers.
In 20something years, repay the favor. Or if you want to assuage your guilt, feel free (when you are up and about) to fetch me a sandwich. I have no trouble with being waited upon.
Posted by: Chuck at February 17, 2010 04:39 PM (bMH2g)
6
Sarah, I'm here for you because you're my daughter and I'd do anything for you! I'll always be your mom no matter what age you are, and not only now, but in the future, when you need help, I will be here for you. I know we've had a crazy set of circumstances with the dog, my foot, your little dancing baby wanting to be born and waiting for her daddy to come home. Yes, I'm not as fast as I was when you were growing up, and this darn foot doesn't help matters, but I hope you will look back someday and be glad we had this time together. You are my precious daughter, and I love you very much.
Your Mama
Posted by: Nancy at February 17, 2010 11:56 PM (gWUle)
Sarah: you and your mom are making me cry and laugh all at the same time! I'm so glad you are documenting all this craziness in your blog, because you are building great memories. These stories will be told around the Christmas tree, and at the Thanksgiving dinner table for years to come! Try the plain white rice and boiled chicken for Charlie; definitely put the sheet over your bedspread for a few more days, and forget the darn garage door for now. Know that we are praying for your whole family. Just hang in there for a little while longer...
Love and hugs,
Mary
Posted by: Mary at February 18, 2010 12:08 AM (MZGTX)
The baby is fine, Dad is on his way home, your Mom is there to look after you, Charlie will be OK, the garage door will get fixed. Life...it's strange, but, wow are there ever compensations. When you and your hubby hold that sweet baby girl in your arms all of this will seem not quite so awful.
Oh and let me tell you what will make up to your Mom for everything she is doing now: a hug and a kiss and a quiet heartfelt "I love you Mom, I don't know how I would have made it without you here." That's all a Mom needs to keep her going, that and to be allowed to rub as much of the new off the baby as she can before she goes home.
Posted by: Pamela at February 18, 2010 03:53 AM (dlFxI)
9
I won't repeat what's been said above...they're right, you know. However, I will focus on one thing you put in your post, "the end of my pregnancy." This is it! Baby Grok will be here healthy and happy before you know it. Continue taking care of yourself.
Moms totally rock and yours is no different.
Posted by: Susan at February 18, 2010 09:44 AM (4aKG6)
10
Yup, you are definitely living in a sitcom, way too real to be reality TV. I can assure you, your mom's foot may hurt but she is there for you, she said so. And I have been in much the same situation. Only the pregnant one matters. Dog's can have Pepto bismol. Don't try giving him the liquid, use the pills. I learned that from some really dumb experience. I had a pink Yorkie. Ask the vet how much. As for the garage door, the little thingy that sends the little signal across the bottom of the door probably got off kilter. That happened to ours. If you live long enough you kind of know a lot of solutions. Not guaranteed, though. ;D Still waiting for baby news, and do you have a Target nearby?
Posted by: Ruth H at February 18, 2010 01:53 PM (JCV5R)
I loved my husband's qualities before I ever had any inkling he
would become my husband. In fact, he had declined my suggestion that we
date. Weeks later, he came to me with his mind and said that he had made a mistake and we should be together. We figuratively shook on it, and that was that.
Effectively, our love was transacted like a pound of butter on a grocery counter.
My husband earned my love. I too had to earn it from him, and it took him two weeks longer than I to weigh the merits of it.
We sat there in his dorm room, and he said that after much thought, he agreed that we ought to be together. And we looked at each other shyly and said, "OK then, I guess we're dating." And that was that.
Today he finally got access to a webcam and skype. For the first time since July, I got to see him. His appearance was shocking; I am definitely not used to the beard. Or the muscles. And on the flip side, the size of my belly blew him away.
1
I'm sure he thought you were beautiful! The ultimate sight-for-sore-eyes
Posted by: Lissa at February 15, 2010 09:50 AM (mgjM7)
2
Sarah, I am so happy you got to see him and he got to see you and your growing belly.
Posted by: Keri at February 15, 2010 10:15 AM (dtvJC)
3
I bet he was just as happy to see you as you were to see him! I'm so happy for you both.
Posted by: Lemon Stand at February 15, 2010 01:05 PM (SUov1)
4
What a thrill, I sure hope he gets home in time to see your belly in person. It is a huge thrill to feel that baby moving around inside of the one you love. Well, at least that was my husband's take on it, I never had the experience of being on that side of it. LOL
Posted by: Ruth H at February 15, 2010 01:35 PM (KLwh4)
5
That is the most FANTASTIC news I've heard recently! Yea! That is excellent I bet your belly made his deployment.
Posted by: Darla at February 15, 2010 11:11 PM (XvIN7)
6
Sniff, sniff. You're getting me all teared up. Great post, and I'm *so* glad you got to see each other.
Posted by: Lucy at February 16, 2010 05:20 PM (YNvUz)
WHAT, IT WAS? HOORAY!
Six years ago my husband was leaving on his first deployment on Valentine's Day. Now I am anxiously waiting for him to come home.
Even though we're apart, I will still participate in our traditions. And look forward to tomorrow, an even better day for us to celebrate.
BACK PORCH UPDATE
Jonah's back porch is more impressive, but I had to laugh at the meme when my mom took this one of my backyard this morning. We've got a few inches piled up.
And here's Ol' Dirty Charles, exhausted after playing in the snow...
You have an article up called Famous February Birthdays. Above it, you have the completely forgettable actor who played a werewolf or something in the Twilight movies.
Shame on you.
February birthdays should be highlighted by Abraham Lincoln or George Washington. Or Ronald Reagan.
Not some dufus no one will remember in five years.
Even more shameful, these three men are not even listed at all in the MSN famous February birthdays. But of course Ted Kennedy was. Plus Zsa Zsa Gabor and Jerry Springer.
MSN, you're ridiculous. February competency FAIL. Sarah
On the one hand, when we're borrowing so much money from China and we don't have any money of our own, we need to cut spending. And cutting philanthropy to other nations ought to be, in my opinion, one of the first things to go.
On the other hand, I think Pres Obama needs to take some guff for this. You know, because George Bush hates black people...even though George Bush did more for Africa than anyone else ever has. And apparently more than the first black president plans to do.
So part of me thinks this program needs to be cut (though I am unclear if they're really cutting it or just diverting the funds in another direction) and the other part of me wants someone to slap Kanye West in the face with this article and force him to eat fishsticks.
1
I'll watch the forced fish-stick eating =). This really burns me up--as you said, not so much the cutting of funds, because spend-less-than-you-make is such a basic principle, but because G. W. B. gets so much guff for everything (when he really did some pretty cool things) and B. H. O. gets off the hook for everything (when he's really doing some pretty crappy things).
Posted by: Lucy at February 12, 2010 12:40 PM (YNvUz)
I had another appointment last night and this doctor was much calmer. She thinks my body is not reacting like a first-time mom because I have had to be induced three times already to have my miscarriages. So taking that into consideration, she thinks I can easily make it until my husband gets home. Thus I'm just going to keep taking it easy and hopefully can hang on to baby for one more week.
And then my husband will be home...
I have given almost no thought to the fact that the deployment is almost over. I have been so preoccupied with the baby that I haven't let myself get too excited over my husband's return. But he should be here in about a week or so.
I can't wait to lie on the bed with him and let him feel the baby kick. I want him to walk in the door and never take his hands off my tummy. I am so excited to finally experience that together.
1
Oh, JOY!! For assuredly you deserve every moment of it!!
Posted by: Lissa at February 12, 2010 10:09 AM (eSfKC)
2
Lissa's right, Oh, JOY!! Enjoy every blessed minute of it, you've earned it!
Posted by: Tibby at February 12, 2010 12:13 PM (S/Fac)
3
I'm glad she thinks you can make it. I really, really hope he gets at least a few hours to experience baby-on-the-inside, and that you can see her face for the first time together. I'm glad he's so close to coming home.
Posted by: Lucy at February 12, 2010 12:41 PM (YNvUz)
4
We are in the middle of this awful blizzard area and our internet has been down for the past 3 days. My work was backing up, I was out of touch with the world, had no idea what was going on (satellite didn't work for tv either) and all I could think of was "Did Sarah have her baby???" Glad to be back online (whew) and see that you are ok. He will be home before you know it. And then a whole new wonderful chapter will begin..........
Posted by: Amy at February 12, 2010 12:52 PM (Cy1WK)
I wish I could send my luck quotient for the next couple of months to you. Â I don't usually seem to get a lot, but I'd send it in a heartbeat so it all falls into place.
I'll have to settle for crossed fingers or something. Â
Posted by: Code Monkey at February 12, 2010 08:15 PM (AxVal)
6
This will be super exciting!!!
Yea! Nothing like experiencing all this in the same zip code.
I can so relate to what you're saying about the counting down. I have some preoccupations here myself and I lose sight of the fact that he will be home and THEN we take the big trip. Of course, if I wait until he's home to prep for the big trip, we're in trouble!
Can't wait 'til he's home for you and the baby!!
Posted by: Guard Wife at February 12, 2010 09:29 PM (2IXlO)
7
Almost there! On all accounts! I hope he gets to experience the pregnancy for a good moment or two before you both get to hold your new bundle in your arms
I'm so very happy for you!
Posted by: Darla at February 13, 2010 01:28 PM (FpL1n)
8
Sarah, I am so excited for you and your husband. I'm keeping you all in my thoughts and prayers.
Posted by: Mary at February 14, 2010 12:24 AM (MZGTX)
SURFACING
I'm still here. I have ideas for posts. But typing is a pain in the neck when you're supposed to be lying flat on your side. I did manage to write Perspective, Revisited on SpouseBUZZ. And that's about it. I've been reading The Corner still, but even reading and scrolling sucks while lying down. My kingdom for a Netbook right about now.
1
I hope we didn't jinx you by telling you all our old horror stories of being ready but overdue;D We should have been more encouraging. When I had my last baby 49 years ago on the 19th, it was the only birth that I had my water break on it's own. When it did I was very excited and anxious but by the time we got to the hospital I was just eager to see whether it was a boy or girl. It was the easiest birth I had and he was so beautiful the nurses took him around and showed him to the other patients. There were only TWO babies in the hospital, a small one of the Eastern Shore of Virginia. They waited till around the first of February for their New Year's baby. Thanks for letting us know how you are doing. I hope the next post is a birth announcement and it is sent out by Daddy.
Posted by: Ruth H at February 10, 2010 11:29 PM (KLwh4)
2
Ruth, at this point I would be happy to be overdue. Or just due. But this early stuff bothers me. I feel like I'm fighting nature by trying to avoid gravity and ignore contractions.
Posted by: Sarah at February 10, 2010 11:47 PM (gWUle)
3
I too am happy you are there, just laying on your side and waiting. Crossing my fingers (and knees) you remain there till your husband gets home.
Posted by: Trudy at February 11, 2010 09:11 AM (Gp4FX)
4
Thanks for keeping us posted. I've been and will be thinking of you (all), and praying.
Posted by: Lucy at February 11, 2010 12:08 PM (YNvUz)
5
That happened to me with my first baby. I had her two weeks early after six weeks of contractions, but only 10 days of what you seem to be going through. She was tiny but wonderful. Now she is six inches taller than me and still wonderful. It will all be okay and worth it, but I know that isn't going to keep you from being anxious about it. All my sisters and I are praying for you. We think we have an in with the Big Guy.
Posted by: Ruth H at February 11, 2010 12:36 PM (19vzx)
6
Ask Chuck if you can borrow his Dragon software...
Posted by: Miss Ladybug at February 11, 2010 11:00 PM (vqKnu)
7
Sarah, I am glad you're still cooking. I had 2 friends deliver this week, both on Wednesday (in the snowstorms here) and both were girls. I was thinking of you and hoping you too werent in labor. Will your mom be able to stay a few weeks w/you? I hope so. Take care
Posted by: Keri at February 12, 2010 09:05 AM (dtvJC)
PERCEPTION IS EVERYTHING
Nothing has changed from Wednesday until now, and yet it feels like everything has changed. I keep having to remind myself that nothing has...
The same symptoms I had on Wednesday are now magnified and making me paranoid. I feel exactly the same and yet now I am IN LABOR and getting freaked out over every twinge.
But I have kinda gotten over the freakout hump and feel better today.
Except I've lost three pounds since Wednesday.
And it starts all over again...
I am still in bed. My husband is snowed in in Afghanistan, which would be hilarious if it weren't so surreal. My mother is hobbling around on a broken foot after driving 21 hours straight in a snowstorm to get to my side.
1
Don't forget that I also set off the alarm system when I let Charlie out this morning. Boy, I'm sure a big help! ha!
Posted by: Nancy at February 08, 2010 01:44 PM (gWUle)
2
Thank goodness it's Monday? But, with Mom starting out the week with the alarm system incident, it may be a long week. Life is stranger than fiction. My husband says boredom is highly underrated. Maybe you'll have a few boring days!!
Posted by: Pamela at February 08, 2010 02:49 PM (yLosW)
3
It seems you have the makings for a great sitcom going on. Keep that sense of humor, sounds like Mom may have a good one ,too. I was hoping we would have reports of labor and delivery since we hadn't heard for several days. Keep up the good work , labor on (pun intended) and have a great delivery and happy baby.
Posted by: Ruth H at February 08, 2010 03:46 PM (YpblU)
4
Hang in there! Good luck with the new baby. I set me alarm off all the time. The company pretty much knows by now it is only me.
Posted by: juliannah at February 08, 2010 03:57 PM (UCijG)
With my first child, I had my first physical exam at 39 weeks and I was 100% effaced and 3 cm dilated. I was still going to work. I worked for the rest of that week and I finally told everyone I would work from home because it was making everyone nervous. Especially the women who had had c-sections, some of whom never made it to 3 cm. My son was born the day before his due date. My water broke at 1:30 AM and I wasn't feeling regular contractions until 2:30 AM. He was born at 5:55 AM. It was surreal, but also nice to start out labor 30% of the way there.
I hope your labor goes as fast and as safely as mine did, but only once your sweet husband is here!
Good luck.
Posted by: Christa at February 08, 2010 04:33 PM (2qSbp)
6
Sarah, how did you lose three pounds in five days?
Posted by: Amritas at February 08, 2010 06:00 PM (+nV09)
7
Amritas -- I wish I knew so I could gain them back...I didn't have that many to lose at this point.
Posted by: Sarah at February 08, 2010 07:21 PM (gWUle)
8
Sarah, I am glad your mom is there w/you. I wish your husband was too. My neighbor is supposed to have her baby on Wed - We're supposed to get another 10-20 inches of snow on top of the 28+ we got over the weekend. I am not sure how she will get to the hospital, but I am hoping you are not getting the same weather. I suspect you're worrying and causing yourself stress, hence the weight loss. Enjoy the time w/your mom and I hope your husband gets home soon. Is he just home for R&R or will he be here to stay for awhile? Do you have another appt this week? Don't let them do any internal exams, you don't want them moving you along faster by poking around in there!
Posted by: Keri at February 08, 2010 09:54 PM (dtvJC)
9
Don't worry about being in labor--unless you hear high pitched crying. Then it may be time to go to the doctor.
Posted by: Chuck at February 08, 2010 11:12 PM (bMH2g)
Sarah: I'm keeping your family in my thoughts and prayers as you wait for your precious daughter and your DH to arrive! I'm so glad your mom is there with you!
{{{HUGS}}}
Posted by: Mary at February 08, 2010 11:42 PM (MZGTX)
11
Goodness gracious! I'm keeping you in my prayers.
Posted by: Val L. at February 09, 2010 07:51 AM (F4Qv7)
12
Soon you'll have both your husband and little girl in your arms. My prayers go with you and your family.
Posted by: tink at February 09, 2010 01:46 PM (0SnNh)
13
For real? Charley ate the medicine? That's just crazy! And a broken foot and an eager baby? I'm praying for ya pumpkin and sending you happy thoughts!
Posted by: Darla at February 10, 2010 12:43 AM (XvIN7)
14
Maybe the weightloss is partially muscle loss from laying around so much...?
Posted by: FbL at February 11, 2010 01:24 AM (HyNTm)
I slept decently and haven't left my bed today for anything other than bathroom breaks. I have intense pelvic pressure when I stand up, but at least no contractions today. And so Charlie and I lie in bed and wait...
My husband called this morning because of the casualties. He hadn't yet read my email and had no idea what was going on. He said he would try to cash in some favors and get on an even earlier flight if he could. We'll just see. Now watch, the baby won't come for another month.
I told my husband that all that matters is that he comes home to us. I said I will either welcome him home with the baby on the inside or the baby on the outside, but all that matters is that he's safe.
1
My heart goes out to the families, I'm glad you were able to talk to your dh this morning.
I will be hoping that the little one stays put! I walked around for weeks at about 3cm, so you just might be able to make it. Take it easy!
Posted by: dutchgirl at February 05, 2010 04:17 PM (Yg8bq)
2
Glad she's staying put. Keep it up, girl. Hoping husband makes it home for the birth. Thinking of you often.
Posted by: Stacy at February 05, 2010 06:13 PM (7FV6m)
3
Blessings on you all, you are right, the most important thing is getting him home, he is a daddy either way, baby in or baby out. Did they give you an estimated size for her?
Posted by: Ruth H at February 05, 2010 08:38 PM (YpblU)
4
I am sooooo glad to hear he is ok! And I am also glad glad to hear your healthy pupa is wiggling and worming and ready to welcome the world and from the sounds of it Charlie is probably just as easer to play with his baby! Hold tough girl! I bet it is seeming surreal so close to the due date!
Posted by: Darla at February 05, 2010 10:09 PM (XvIN7)
5
My heart aches for the losses and, at the same time, it swells for you. Babies are totally awesome, especially those who are as loved and cherished since before they were ever a twinkle in your eye. She's got good parents and I can't wait for her to meet you....Lots of good vibes your way.
Posted by: Susan at February 05, 2010 11:23 PM (URuXw)
6
You are doing a great job and I'm really proud of you. These big transitions are so hard to wrap your mind around, even if everyone who is supposed to be here is here, let alone when travel schedules, potential early arrivals, and the like enter the picture.
Tell little Miss C. that if Auntie Melinda hears any more crazy talk about setting her own travel itinerary that she will be receiving a very stern talking to when we meet. (That is after I hold her, smooch her, shower her with gifts and try to stick her in my purse and take her home).
Posted by: Guard Wife at February 05, 2010 11:34 PM (5hZjj)
Sarah, I hope you're able to stay off your feet and rest until the baby arrives. Also, that your mom made it to town. Thinking of you, and also of the soldiers and their families in your husband unit.
Posted by: Keri at February 06, 2010 02:24 PM (dtvJC)
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My heart breaks for the two men in your husband's unit.
Hope you are doing well.
Posted by: Ann M. at February 08, 2010 01:33 AM (+GQ3g)
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There is neither happiness nor misery in the world; there is only the comparison of one state with another, nothing more. He who has felt the deepest grief is best able to experience supreme happiness. We must have felt what it is to die, Morrel, that we may appreciate the enjoyments of living. --The Count of Monte Cristo--
While our troops go out to defend our country, it is incumbent upon us to make the country worth defending. --Deskmerc--
Contrary to what you've just seen, war is neither glamorous nor fun. There are no winners, only losers. There are no good wars, with the following exceptions: The American Revolution, WWII, and the Star Wars Trilogy. --Bart Simpson--
If you want to be a peacemaker, you've gotta learn to kick ass. --Sheriff of East Houston, Superman II--
Going to war without France is like going deer hunting without an accordion. You just leave a lot of useless noisy baggage behind. --Jed Babbin--
Dante once said that the hottest places in hell are reserved for those who in a period of moral crisis maintain their neutrality. --President John F. Kennedy--
War is a bloody, killing business. You've got to spill their blood, or they will spill yours. --General Patton--
We've gotta keep our heads until this peace craze blows over. --Full Metal Jacket--
Those who threaten us and kill innocents around the world do not need to be treated more sensitively. They need to be destroyed. --Dick Cheney--
The Flag has to come first if freedom is to survive. --Col Steven Arrington--
The purpose of diplomacy isn't to make us feel good about Eurocentric diplomatic skills, and having countries from the axis of chocolate tie our shoelaces together does nothing to advance our infantry. --Sir George--
I just don't care about the criticism I receive every day, because I know the cause I defend is right. --Oriol--
It's days like this when we're reminded that freedom isn't free. --Chaplain Jacob--
Bumper stickers aren't going to accomplish some of the missions this country is going to face. --David Smith--
The success of multilateralism is measured not merely by following a process, but by achieving results. --President Bush--
Live and act within the limit of your knowledge and keep expanding it to the limit of your life.
--John Galt--
First, go buy a six pack and swig it all down. Then, watch Ace Ventura. And after that, buy a Hard Rock Cafe shirt and come talk to me. You really need to lighten up, man.
--Sminklemeyer--
You've got to kill people, and when you've killed enough they stop fighting --General Curtis Lemay--
If we wish to be free, if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending, if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained -- we must fight! --Patrick Henry--
America has never been united by blood or birth or soil. We are bound by ideals that move us beyond our backgrounds, lift us above our interests and teach us what it means to be citizens. Every child must be taught these principles. Every citizen must uphold them. And every immigrant, by embracing these ideals, makes our country more, not less, American. --President George W. Bush--
are usually just cheerleading sessions, full of sound and fury and signifying nothing but a soothing reduction in blood pressure brought about by the narcotic high of being agreed with. --Bill Whittle
War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.
--John Stuart Mill--
We are determined that before the sun sets on this terrible struggle, our flag will be recognized throughout the world as a symbol of freedom on the one hand and of overwhelming force on the other. --General George Marshall--
We can continue to try and clean up the gutters all over the world and spend all of our resources looking at just the dirty spots and trying to make them clean. Or we can lift our eyes up and look into the skies and move forward in an evolutionary way.
--Buzz Aldrin--
America is the greatest, freest and most decent society in existence. It is an oasis of goodness in a desert of cynicism and barbarism. This country, once an experiment unique in the world, is now the last best hope for the world.
--Dinesh D'Souza--
Recent anti-Israel protests remind us again of our era's peculiar alliance: the most violent, intolerant, militantly religious movement in modern times has the peace movement on its side. --James Lileks--
As a wise man once said: we will pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
Unless the price is too high, the burden too great, the hardship too hard, the friend acts disproportionately, and the foe fights back. In which case, we need a timetable.
--James Lileks--
I am not willing to kill a man so that he will agree with my faith, but I am prepared to kill a man so that he cannot force my compatriots to submit to his.
--Froggy--
You can say what you want about President Bush; but the truth is that he can take a punch. The man has taken a swift kick in the crotch for breakfast every day for 6 years and he keeps getting up with a smile in his heart and a sense of swift determination to see the job through to the best of his abilties.
--Varifrank--
In a perfect world, We'd live in peace and love and harmony with each oither and the world, but then, in a perfect world, Yoko would have taken the bullet.
--SarahBellum--
Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free. --Ronald Reagan--
America is rather like life. You can usually find in it what you look for. It will probably be interesting, and it is sure to be large. --E.M. Forster--
Do not fear the enemy, for your enemy can only take your life. It is far better that you fear the media, for they will steal your HONOR. That awful power, the public opinion of a nation, is created in America by a horde of ignorant, self-complacent simpletons who failed at ditching and shoemaking and fetched up in journalism on their way to the poorhouse. --Mark Twain--
The Enlightenment was followed by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic wars, which touched every European state, sparked vicious guerrilla conflicts across the Continent and killed millions. Then, things really turned ugly after the invention of soccer. --Iowahawk--
Every time I meet an Iraqi Army Soldier or Policeman that I haven't met before, I shake his hand and thank him for his service. Many times I am thanked for being here and helping his country. I always tell them that free people help each other and that those that truly value freedom help those seeking it no matter the cost. --Jack Army--
Right, left - the terms are useless nowadays anyway. There are statists, and there are individualists. There are pessimists, and optimists. There are people who look backwards and trust in the West, and those who look forward and trust in The World. Those are the continuums that seem to matter the most right now. --Lileks--
The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter.
--Winston Churchill--
A man or a nation is not placed upon this earth to do merely what is pleasant and what is profitable. It is often called upon to carry out what is both unpleasant and unprofitable, but if it is obviously right it is mere shirking not to undertake it. --Arthur Conan Doyle--
A man who has nothing which he cares about more than he does about his personal safety is a miserable creature who has no chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the existing of better men than himself. --John Stuart Mill--
After the attacks on September 11, 2001, most of the sheep, that is, most citizens in America said, "Thank God I wasn't on one of those planes." The sheepdogs, the warriors, said, "Dear God, I wish I could have been on one of those planes. Maybe I could have made a difference." --Dave Grossman--
At heart I’m a cowboy; my attitude is if they’re not going to stand up and fight for what they believe in then they can go pound sand. --Bill Whittle--
A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship. --Alexander Tyler--
By that time a village half-wit could see what generations of professors had pretended not to notice. --Atlas Shrugged--
I kept asking Clarence why our world seemed to be collapsing and everything seemed so shitty. And he'd say, "That's the way it goes, but don't forget, it goes the other way too." --Alabama Worley--
So Bush is history, and we have a new president who promises to heal the planet, and yet the jihadists don’t seem to have got the Obama message that there are no enemies, just friends we haven’t yet held talks without preconditions with.
--Mark Steyn--
"I had started alone in this journey called life, people started
gathering up on the way, and the caravan got bigger everyday." --Urdu couplet
The book and the sword are the two things that control the world. We either gonna control them through knowledge and influence their minds, or we gonna bring the sword and take their heads off. --RZA--
It's a daily game of public Frogger, hopping frantically to avoid being crushed under the weight of your own narcissism, banality, and plain old stupidity. --Mary Katharine Ham--
There are more instances of the abridgment of freedoms
of the people by gradual and silent encroachment of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations. --James Madison--
It is in the heat of emotion that good people must remember to stand on principle. --Larry Elder--
Please show this to the president and ask him to remember the wishes of the forgotten man, that is, the one who dared to vote against him. We expect to be tramped on but we do wish the stepping would be a little less hard. --from a letter to Eleanor Roosevelt--
The world economy depends every day on some engineer, farmer, architect, radiator shop owner, truck driver or plumber getting up at 5AM, going to work, toiling hard, and producing real wealth so that an array of bureaucrats, regulators, and redistributors can manage the proper allotment of much of the natural largess produced. --VDH--
Parents are often so busy with the physical rearing of children that they miss the glory of parenthood, just as the grandeur of the trees is lost when raking leaves. --Marcelene Cox--
it is totally normal to panic and worry! If it makes you feel any better, you'll probably spend a good amount of time once she's here in panic and worry mode about all kinds of things....maybe that doesn't help! 
