6 Week Update

Well, we are six weeks into life with XYZ and still alive and well! Xander is getting bigger and bigger. I can't believe some women have to go back to work at this point. I mean, I'm just now getting comfortable with him at home and looking forward to our days together, so I can't imagine having to throw a new change into our routine already. I'm blessed to work for a company that not only has to honor FMLA, but a company that also provides me with a paycheck during the majority of that time.

X has had a big week this past week. Mamina has been in town from Canada, and we've been eating like champions! We've also done our fair share of shopping, walking and visiting with friends. Today we even got to Skype with our family in Dubai!

Speaking of birthdays....we were able to get out for my birthday a few weeks back. Lori and our faux mom-in-law tag-teamed babysitting for us. We were home by 9:30, but it was fun to get out with friends for the evening. I even had 2 whole glasses of wine....while over a 4-hour period....so I didn't pass out! :)

Our Christmas was fun too. Nanny and Mamina were in town, so X was barely set down. We spent most of our celebrating at Lori's house, but we did make it to the Erwins the Sunday before. Here we are:

 

 

  

With all this help around, I've finally ventured back to the road. I've gotten a couple of good 30-minute runs under my belt, which have been refreshing. It's nice to be able to push myself a little again. I know, I know, I'm not pushing myself too hard, and I am listening to my body, but it's been nice.

 

We have the luxury of having a babysitter (Mamina) in house for New Year's, so we will take advantage of our situation and head out to a little get together Monday night for that. I think we'll be able to make it to midnight....wish us luck!

 

 

Thankful Timing

While Simon and I can't take credit for planning the timing of XYZ's birth to be at such a perfect time of year, I am especially thankful for it. Here are some things I'm thankful for:

• it's dark when I want to go to bed these days....7-8 p.m.
• it's light when I need to be awake....5-6 a.m.
• we live in the South, and even though it's only 50 degrees, if you stand in the sun, it's almost 70!
• Simon gets multiple 'free' days off with the holidays
• my mom gets several 'free' days off too
• with the new calendar year, Simon's vacation time starts over in January, so he can stay home some if I need him
• extended family has time off too

XYZ had his first road trip yesterday with the Erwin clan. We headed to Columbia to visit Grandpa Manny and his Kelley cousins. He did great in the backseat with Lily and Allie...they make good babysitters already. Note the acute need for another male int this family (that's a lot of estrogen):

X especially enjoyed hanging with his youngest cousin...she's older and wiser, so she is teaching him a lot:

Simon's mom arrived last night, and she's already got dinner cooking on the stove (it's noonish as I type this)! I've been able to sleep until 8 a.m., go to the grocery store alone, AND she and Simon are out on a walk with X right now, but I'm not even tired enough to attempt a nap...I really don't know what to do! She's here for 12 days, so I'm sure by the end of the visit I will have figured out what to do with all this free time again.

4 Weeks Down

Well, I can hardly believe what I am typing....lil XYZ is 4 weeks old today. Was it really 4 whole weeks ago that I woke up and thought, "hmmm, did I just pee in my pjs?"

After watching the terrible news about what happened in Connecticut, I'm sure we're all hugging our babies a little tighter these days....and seriously considering home schooling even more than ever! (Wonder if I could get my sister's family to move to Charlotte for this....Kim, don't you want to hang with your two sisters EVERY DAY?)

Anywho....this is also my birthday weekend....and possibly the first birthday in 35 years where I haven't reminded people one month in advance that Dec. 16 is coming up! I suppose being totally consumed with another life will do that for you. I mean how could you think of your own birthday when this little guy is smiling at you?

 

 

The past 4 weeks have seen a lot of change already. XYZ is starting to get a little more regular...sleeping and pooing. Although once I think I have one sleep pattern figured out, he goes and changes it. Again, this whole 'child rearing' thing is definitely a team sport. The week had caught up with me yesterday, and by the time Simon was home from work, I was exhausted. Luckily, Simon is a champ, and I went to bed at 7 and got 7 whole hours of uninterrupted sleep.....CRAZY! I feel like a new woman this morning.

 

On a side note...I thought I'd share this hilarious photo of what our Sunday afternoons look like as I mention them often. We are hanging at the Erwin's house.....and no, that's not XYZ in my lap....he's been confiscated by his faux grandma. But I get my hair done by Lily, a warm lap from Charlene (the dog) and baby rearing lessons with the doll from Allie. Sundays are big days for the Zora family!

 

 

At home....Day 3 Alone

So today marks my third day home alone with X. As you can assume by the fact that I am typing this, we are doing well. We have had quite the adventure over the past two weeks.

Nanny was here for our first week home from the hospital, which was great. Simon and I could get up in the morning, eat something and then go back to bed knowing X was in good hands.

Then it was just me and Simon for week 2. Simon was off Monday through Wednesday, which ended up being fantastic since our plumbing decided to explode Monday! OK, it didn't really so much explode as overflow. I'm sure if I'd been home alone, I would have just called 911 and said "please send someone, anyone to come help me!" Luckily Simon was here and handled the situation.

Here are some photos from our first 2 weeks at home:

 

 

X and I spent the past weekend out with the "Ladies Who Lunch" - dinner Saturday night and stamping Sunday afternoon. He was a trooper for both outings. Hopefully he will continue to be a trooper, and I can continue to get out of the house at least once a day!

 

 

Those hips do lie, Shakira!

I guess you all have figured it out by now....Baby Z is here! And we can officially call him Baby XYZ!

Xander Yannick Zora
11:04p.m.
Saturday, November 17, 2012
8 pounds, 6 ounces

We'd been to the OB on Friday to have an ultrasound and check his estimated size. They took a look and guessed he was 9 lbs, 9 oz Friday. The doctor gave me the option for an induction or c-section Monday because he was pretty sure my pelvis would not be able to handle that without complications.

We opted for the c-section. I just had this feeling that my body wasn't even going to go into labor so the thought of sitting around on pitocin trying to make it happen didn't seem like a good idea. I hadn't even really had a Braxton Hicks contraction at this point, so I was convinced I'd be one of these 42 week preggo women. Well, was I wrong!

Saturday morning around 2:30 I woke up and realized my water had broken. I wasn't having any contractions. We called the doctor, who said come on in to the hospital. We arrived around 3:30, which was very nice. We got a good parking spot...no waiting in line to get checked in, etc.

By 4 a.m., my contractions had started on their own. They were totally manageable at this point, but I was in the bed. So I decided to get up and walk around, rock in the rocking chair, etc., thinking this would/could help me progress. Wrong again. All this did was make my contractions stop! While the relief from pain was nice, I knew that was not the direction I should be going in.

So around the middle of the day, we started pitocin. By 3 p.m. I was ready for the epidural. I had progressed about to the halfway mark, and the doctor was impressed. He even looked excited. By 9 p.m.-ish I was complete and ready to push. The doctor was pumped at this point. I guess he realized this could mean less work for him, right!?

So I pushed for a good hour and half, and then the doctor came back. He checked me, and his whole face changed. He said something to the effect of, "If you can get this head out, I'll deliver the rest of the baby." with a look on his face like "this ain't going to end well." So needless to say, in all that pushing, I'd moved Xander nowhere.

So Simon and I talked and decided it was best to go for the c-section anyway. I was exhausted....remember, I'd been up since 2:30 a.m. and it was not 10:30 p.m. with no real food too. I knew I'd only get worse at pushing as the night wore on.

The procedure was quick, and the whole team was great. Before I knew it, I was in the recovery room with Simon and Xander. He was perfect....even had a little cone head from trying to come out 'normally.' Though he was smaller than everyone guessed, he was 'sunny side up' as they call it. Doctor said this was probably one of the contributing factors to why I wasn't moving him with my pushing. Then he told me I have a 'narrow' pelvis. WHAT? I've been described as a lot of things, but narrow has not really been in my body-description vocabulary! All these years of joking about my birthing hips went to pot with this one baby! Shakira is evidently wrong....at least my hips do lie!

Oh well. What's important is that he is here, and we are both doing quite well.

Some photos from our adventure:

The sign outside our room:

Family Portrait:

 



One of his favorite places - the Moses basket:

Today is his official due date, and all is going well. We had a good night of sleeping, eating and pooping last night, so no complaints. His arrival a week early was certainly very convenient. We were able to celebrate Thanksgiving with family, and Simon got two free days off from work! Hopefully he'll continue being a very cooperative baby!

Nanny has been here all week and went home this morning, so today begins the real test for Simon and me.

I suppose I'm going to need to change the name of this blog.....any ideas?

Really, I am only 5'6"....a 38 week update

Well, not too much news here on the baby baking front...other than Baby Z is still in the oven. He must like it in there.

He's still pretty active and wakes me up several times a night, but for the most part I am able to fall back asleep. I did have one night last week where I didn't....so I was a hot mess the following day. Luckily my boss is super cool and told me to go home and take a nap. So I did and felt like a million bucks when I woke up!

This weekend, we were at the Erwins (as usual), and Lori snapped this sweet picture of Allie admiring Sweetie (her name for Baby Z). She is totally in love with my belly. I wonder if she's just going to be done with me once he comes out. This week, she told me she thinks he's going to come out of my face. I said, "yeah, that sounds about right!" I mean, who wants to explain this to a 5-year-old?

We had our 38 week appointment today. I saw the one female in my practice, and once again, she asked, "How tall are you?" To which I replied, "Seriously, I'm 5'6"." She felt all around my belly and thinks Baby Z may already be 8 pounds. She thinks my pelvis could handle an 8.5 pounder, so she's not too worried, but she does want me back in on Friday for an ultrasound to try and get a better look at his size.

She was super sweet in suggesting it...as if I'm not concerned about giving birth to a 10+ pound baby. I reassured her that I am QUITE  HAPPY to come into the office whenever she wants me to in order to check on this baby's size. None of the male doctors in the practice have been the slightest bit concerned for me having a whopper baby. They've all just said, "oh yeah, he's big!" To which I'm like...uh, thanks. I mean what do you say to that other than....well, let's talk about getting him out! Needless to say, I wanted to hug the doctor today when she asked me to come back THIS WEEK and checked all the appropriate paperwork boxes to get insurance to cover the ultrasound.

So we shall see....I will continue to try my best to make him come out before Friday, but I still feel pretty 'normal' for whatever that's worth. I'm just not sure he's planning on making any appearances this week.....but my fingers are crossed.

Right on the money...at 37 weeks

After a week of nothing happening, I'm happy to report that we still have nothing happening! :)

My boss couldn't be happier. Every morning he swings by my desk and happily says, "You're still here!" I suppose it's good to be needed! People keep asking, "so how long are you going to work?" This only makes me wish (for like 2 seconds) we lived in Canada, where mom gets 1 YEAR off to have the baby. I'm working up until we're on the way to the hospital because here in the USA we clearly think it's no big deal to give birth and/or raise a child for that matter! I mean who thinks 12 weeks is enough time for anything....I took longer to train for my marathons! Anywho - this is a whole other situation for a whole other blog (which I do not plan on starting).

On a less controversial note: we had Lori double check Baby Z's car seat for us, and of course, she was able to tighten the strap in basically another inch or so! I'd seen her do this before - she basically is small enough to put her entire body in the car seat base and use all her weight to squish out that extra inch of safety in the strap. It's like magic. Simon and I are just too big/bulky to maneuver our bodies in such small places. So now I'm convinced Baby Z's car seat is going NOWHERE, which is great. Everyone should have tiny people in their lives for purposes such as this.

Today's 37 week appointment went fine. Baby Z's numbers are good, my numbers are good, and I'm pretty sure the doctor is now convinced I WILL make it to 40 weeks. (and I kinda am too) He just gave me this look like, "You're way too comfortable to be having a baby any time soon." OK, so maybe I'm reading into his facial expressions a bit too much...who knows! And his "right on the money" comment as he was measuring my belly sounded like he had won some bet with the receptionist about where I'd be measuring today.

I suppose something did happen, I've gone from 1 cm to 2 cm dilated this week, so I suppose that's progress. After all, I guess I could have regressed and hit 0, right?

And after giving up running last week, I have begun walking. It's been pretty good for the most part. We have a lake with a walking trail at work, so I'm able to get out and enjoy some fresh air in a beautiful fall setting most days. This weekend I took to our treadmill at the house, which is super convenient.

We've been pretty busy with odds and ends, which has helped keep me distracted from the fact that last week I was convinced I'd have a baby by this time this week, and now I'm convinced I have another 3 weeks to go!

Luckily, one of my friends from home recently moved to Charlotte, and it's been so great having her and her husband nearby now. They have a 12 week old. Last night we met them at another friend's house for dinner - and they have an-almost 6 month old . It was awesome to be able to see where Baby Z will be in 3-6 months and to have these friends so close to us. I joked that the three couples should do our New Year's party together since we'll all be in bed by 12:01!

 

Well, here's hoping there's something more exciting to report next week!

More showers and some 36 week progress

Well, it is official - Baby Z can arrive! After 2 showers in as many days, we now have pretty much everything he needs to come home.

My office threw me a shower Thursday, where we got a cool space saver high chair seat that reclines enough so even an infant/newborn can sit at the table with you. They also got us the fancy video monitor I'd randomly stuck on the registry, which is pretty darn cool. We'll be able to see Baby Z in his room and even talk to him through the monitor.

Saturday was our 'Charlotte Shower' at Lori's house. I had a great time catching up with everyone and thoroughly enjoyed the Chick-fil-A nugget tray. (I know, it doesn't take much to impress me!)

 

 

Here are some other shots:

Tanya is one month behind me (due Christmas Eve). Yeah, you can't tell!

Trina just had a lil one about 12 weeks ago...yeah, you can't tell!

 

And one of the gifts especially made for Simon:

We also got his car seat, so now we can legally bring him home from the hospital. We weren't exactly sure what we were going to do if he arrived before the shower, but now we don't have to worry....it is installed and everything now.

Speaking of, our bag is packed and in my trunk now too. I had my 36 week appointment today and heard enough stories about people being sent straight to the hospital from their doctor's office that I didn't want to be stranded.

Clearly, since I'm here typing this, I was not sent to the hospital after the appointment, but the doctor was pleased with my progress. I am still measuring a week ahead. Baby Z is still head down and "in position" (engaged). I am 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced, which of course really means nothing, but at least we know something is happening in preparation for the big day. I'm fine with all that too. As the doctor said, we'd like to keep him in at least one more week. I told him I would do my best! (as if I have anything to do with it!)

And as promised, here are a few more of the pictures my friend Annie took of us a few weeks back. I can't wait to get some printed/framed!

Unless we go to the hospital, we go back to the doctor in one week to keep an eye on things! Until then.....

It's Curtains!

literally and figuratively....for the treadmill and Baby Z's room!

Well, we'll see. For the past couple of weeks, I've been able to keep up my 30 minute runs three times a week. Just this past Friday, I started feeling like maybe it's time to start walking - not necessarily because I don't feel good running, but mostly because I don't really feel any better after running. So I told myself Friday that I would give it one more week. Today was a good treadmill day, but again, I didn't really get that 'runners' high' that I'd been getting in the previous weeks, so I'm wondering if that is my body telling me to start walking maybe? I'll finish out this week and see how I feel just walking next week. Should be interesting....

Because everyone seems to be shocked at the fact that I've been running, here's a little snapshot of what I look like afterward....just to proove that it's not like I'm out there running marathons weekly or anything...see my hair isn't even that sweaty:

So - as for the literal curtains, here's a peek:

My awesome faux in-laws came over Saturday to hang the rod and get exact measurements for the hem. I absolutely love them....and to top it off, they have that blackout stuff on the back, so his room can get nice and cozy even during daylight hours.

We continued our nesting by busting out the pack-n-play for a test run...looks good! Once the curtains are hung, Baby Z's room will be pretty much ready!

And speaking of peeks....here are some photos from our friend Annie. Annie has a regular 'ole corporate job during the day, but luckily for her friends and family, she has a super after-work hobby that involves a fancy camera and chasing awesome outdoor lighting. We are blessed to have her as a friend!

More to come after she finishes editing the 200+ she took at the park!

I have my 36 week appointment next Monday, and I'm super curious to see if anything is happening. Lately I've been having the feeling that maybe I will, in fact, go all 40 weeks. As my faux mother-in-law reminded me this weekend...I'm not exactly built like my sisters! (Though I think she thinks I'm a giant even though I'm only 5'6"....she's maybe 4'10") If I continue to feel as I have been feeling, then I'm ok with making it to 40 weeks....and as long as Simon agrees to continue rubbing my feet at the end of days where I stand too much! (I'm sure I can convince him)

We have our final shower this weekend...I'm calling it the Charlotte Shower! I'm excited to have all my friends in one place at one time. Stay tuned for photos from that fun event!

Nothing "to get excited about"

...or at least that's what the doctor said at my 34 week appointment Monday. He was refering to the size of my belly.

So yes, Baby Z is "measuring big" - whatever that means. But he has been measuring at least a week ahead since he was just a blob on the ultrasound screen. After our baby CPR instructor looked at me Sunday and said, "whoa - you look different since the last time I saw you..." or something to that effect, I thought I'd follow up with the doctor. Of course, he was nonchalant in his response. I realize he's probably seen upteen 12 pound babies, but I do not feel the need to set any records here! Oh well, the doctor said he measures fine, his heart sounds great, my numbers are great, so we are in good shape....at least for the next two weeks. Since I am actually feeling fine, I have resigned myself to put away all the sweet newborn clothes friends have given us and focus on the 3-month and up outfits!

What was supposed to be a relaxing weekend of doing nothing of course turned into a weekend filled with activity, but I suppose I should just get used to that, right? Baby Z finally has a curtain rod to go with his curtain fabric, and we even picked out some fabric for Nadine to make us a fun window seat cushion.

I have had two girlfriends give me loads of boy stuff recently, so I finally got around to washing/organizing the piles. Here's what that process looked like:

I am pretty sure Baby Z is all set on clothes until he is 6 months....whooo hoo!

And as the nesting continued, Simon even got involved and set up one of Baby Z's swings in the living room:

We used books to test the weight while in operation....hence the blurriness of the photo.

Our Sunday was spent at Baby CPR class and one called Taking Care of Baby. We bathed our baby, changed his diaper and learned some basic CPR skills.

 

Interestingly enough, the other three moms in the class were also "measuring big," so I'm beginning to think maybe there's something in the Charlotte water supply? Even the mom having a girl looked as big as I look...and she was a week behind me! OR - my favorite big-belly theory....people have no idea what they're talking about, and I'm going to have a very average 6 to 7 pound baby in a few weeks.

 

So we did manage one moment of relaxation during the weekend....we ventured to the movie theater to see Argo. Even though it was a bit warm in the theater, I can say it was well worth the heat. Great movie!

Life at 33 Weeks

So this past weekend, I was supposed to walk the Komen Race for the Cure 5K with a group of friends to celebrate Kim's defeat of breast cancer. We were excited to join the Charlotte walk to help celebrate Kim's home run. (you may remember this post I wrote about it)

Well, when reality set in that I would need to be at the starting line around 6:30 a.m., I began to rethink my plan. We'd just learned in some of our baby classes that you NEVER wake a sleeping pregnant woman, so I was pretty sure Team Kim would understand if I showed up a little late to the walk...and of course, they did. I was able to run in at the very last turn of the walk and meet up with everyone. It was super cool. At the finish line, they called out the survivors' names as they crossed the finish line...needless to say, there weren't many dry eyes at the finish line. But luckily they were tears of joy for Team Kim. Here's a shot of her awesome family after the walk:

After the walk, Team Kim had a picnic at a local park.....a great way to continue our celebration of Kim's journey. Here's part of the team at the picnic.

While I was walking and celebrating, Simon and our faux father-in-law were hanging Baby Z's ceiling fan. Simon is also becoming quite the pro at ceiling fans, so he said it took them no time. Now the room is officially ready....ok, well as long as his curtain fabric shows up at the store Tuesday. (that's a whole other story for another day)

After the walk, Simon and I had a wedding shower to attend (busy day). The groom is a huge Clemson fan, so his awesome fiancee got him a Clemson-themed groom's cake that we ate at the shower...here is it in all its ridiculousness:

Horrendous, I know! Luckily it tasted good. There were 3 pregnant ladies at the shower including me, so we all had a blast comparing notes and asking questions of each other. I'm sure everyone else was trying to avoid us like the plague, but we enjoyed ourselves nonetheless!

So as you can see, life at 33 weeks has yet to slow down. Luckily, we were able to spend Sunday at the Erwin's again watching yet another ridiculous Panthers game but eating good food.

Our next few weekends are clear, so we plan to keep it that way since eventually I will need to learn to sit down.

A 32 Week Update

We had another big weekend this past week.

I spent Saturday in Columbia celebrating Baby Z and my sister's newest addition Baby K. Isn't she sweet.

 

 

She came a little early (what else is new with this family), so the doctor advised she not come to the dual shower mom had planned at California Dreaming. So instead, after we were through there, me, Mom, Robin, Lori and her girls brought the shower to Kim's house.

 

Here are some shots from the California Dreaming event:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once again, we got a slew full of goodies for Baby Z. I believe he has pretty much everything a baby "needs" now, so that is a good feeling. I still need to make a pharmacy stop for stuff a new mom might need! :)

 

Sunday was construction day at the Zora house. Before church we managed to hang some new shelves in our laundry room:

 

Simon, the Handy Man 

 

 

 

After watching a ridiculous Panthers game (but eating an awesome lunch) at the Erwin's house, we put Baby Z's crib together, which was WAY easier than his changing table. It probably only took us 45 minutes max to complete. Or maybe we're just getting better at this furniture building stuff!?

 

 

 

 

Sunday night, I met up with my stamping ladies and made some fun Welcome Baby cards. Lori and I had already made a stash of Thank You cards, but let's be honest, at this time in your life, you can never have enough of these cards lying around, right!? Here's a sample:

 

 

 



 

Earlier in the week, I'd had my "Transition into Motherhood" class. I wondered what they could really teach you about this, but I was presently surprised that the name was just a coverup for what should have really been called "All the stuff your husband would probably pass out if he knew" class. OK, so it wasn't too bad, but it was good to have a class with just the ladies and to have a teacher who is a straight-shooter and didn't leave anything out (I hope not anyway).

We discussed everything from the Baby Blues to how to sweet talk your husband to changing EVERY diaper of your child's life to the super sexy underwear the hospital gives you....and everything in between. Our last discussion of the class was about what our new schedule would be. Mine is below:

 

Dark Blue = sleep (I'm ambitious)

Light Blue = Baby Z

Green = Housework

Yellow (which is on top of one of Baby Z's triangle's) = exercise

Purple = Me Time

Orange = Food Prep

 

I got ambitious with the sleep triangles because I'm pretty sure the green and orange triangles could disappear from my day if they need...Simon is pretty good at both of those activities. Now if/when Simon's sleep starts to get too bad, I'll at least have the lovely pie chart to remind me how to organize my day!

 

But in all honesty, the classes from CMC have been great. We have a CPR/First Aid class in the middle of October, and then they seem to think we'll know all we need to know. Uh, I guess so. At least we'll have a baby nurse (aka Lori) just down the street on 24 hour call for us.

 

And on to the title of this post....this morning I had my 32 week appointment. Literally, it took 18 minutes! I wish they all could run so smoothly! Doctor (whom I am sure could have been a student of mine at UF) listened and said Baby Z sounds great. I wishfully asked if I might be able to get an ultrasound before 39 weeks (since Baby Z is measuring about a week ahead), and he said they won't even worry about it as long as he stays on his consistent one-week-ahead schedule. Oh well, I suppose I can live with that because I'd much rather NOT have him start doubling in size on a weekly basis.