Week 37 - Technically Full Term

By Marnie:
So we're now at 37 weeks which is technically full term. What?! Seriously? How in the world are we here already???

I'm feeling nearly completely prepared at home. We ordered all of our last minute must have items for the baby from Amazon last week. It was an exciting few days of lots of boxes showing up and unpacking all the fun baby stuff. I also packed for the hospital this past weekend. I travel a fair amount for work and am use to packing for a business trip, but I was at a total loss as to what to pack for having a baby! It took me forever to figure out what I wanted to take with us. I may not have everything I'll need or want, but at least the bags are packed and we won't have to figure that out when I go into labor.

Now all we need is a crib... Well GOOD NEWS! I got a call last week from the baby store and they're delivering and setting up the crib on Thursday. Woohoo! I couldn't have been happier. Had the woman calling me on the phone been right in front of me, I may have kissed her. I can't wait to walk into our baby's room and see it with her crib all set up and ready for her to sleep in.

Besides getting the crib in the room, there are just a few small things I would like to get done before her big arrival. I'd love to get one more good house cleaning in, make at least one more meal to freeze, and we really need to figure out what Stella is going to do when we head to the hospital. For all the planning we've done, I can't believe I've left that one detail out.

We had an appointment today with another ultrasound. Baby Ov looks great. She's measuring a bit smaller than expected but my doctor isn't worried. Her prediction is that she'll be between 6 and 7 pounds at birth. I'm quite curious to see how close to that prediction she actually is!

We took an updated pic of me last week which is attached below. I am thankful that I still feel great. I can only hope this continues for the remaining 3 weeks!

The Island.

by Mike

At this point one might refer to me as a guest blogger, as my presence has been inconspicuously absent from any postings lately. Marnie’s had the play-by-play covered, keeping everyone up to speed on the details, so I’ve decided to look back at some of my early thoughts. When we first learned we were expecting, obviously I was excited - and since we kept it to ourselves for a while, I would walk around with a smirk, thinking--

“I am special”
“you don’t know it, but I have a secret”
“seriously... I am going to blow people’s minds once I unleash this news”

And then I started looking around.

And then I started noticing.

Having a kid is about the least unique thing in the world. They’re everywhere. All those strollers in my way at the farmer’s market - filled with kids. Those honor roll bumper stickers - kids. Double-stroller outside the coffee shop - two kids at once - can't match that parlor trick. Then we took those baby classes - a dozen couples who are not only going to have kids, but have them in roughly the same time frame as we were - excuse me, people, WE WERE SPECIAL!

Part of my brightly colored world had turned to brown. My parade forecast called for rain.

Then I started thinking about one of my favorite shows - Lost.

Some of you have seen it, a lot of people gave up on it, great many web pages were dedicated to deciphering what it all meant. I can tell you what it meant to me - it was an exercise in perspective. The drama that went on on that island - and it was great drama, truly crazy stuff - would go unknown by the rest of the world. And yet, there they were, the characters - running, fighting, dying, falling in love, smote by smoke monsters (I really miss this show) - pouring their blood, sweat and tears into that limited life because that’s all they had - it was truly their whole universe.

And that’s what this is for us - this is our island. On a “big world” scale, very few people will notice if we have a baby or don’t have a baby. The world is going to keep on turning. Proud Mary’s gonna keep on burning. But it matters to us. We are having a baby. And she’s coming soon. And we’re excited and it’s the biggest thing that’s ever happened to us. And Marnie has prepped with the meticulous strategy & diligence of a pro football coach - we’ve got stacks of diapers, lists of to-dos, lists of to-don’ts, bins of clothing sorted by age - we know not only where the main entrance to the hospital is, we know both routes to the emergency entrance should the main entrance be inaccessible.

We’ve got everything covered except that doggone crib.

Til next time... thanks for reading.

Week 35 - Happy New Year!!

By Marnie:
Week 35?! How did we get here so quickly? How in the world is it 2011? It's hard to believe how close we are to the arrival of Baby Ov. There's not many days that go by when we don't proclaim "just __ more weeks!!" We're making our way through the last of our baby preparation list. I continually fret over what's left to do while Mike is able to relax in the knowledge that we've gotten most major tasks done. Quite typical for us.

I mentioned a few posts back about how it had been four years since our first date. New Year's Eve was the fourth anniversary of our second date. I seem to remember staying up most of the night and into the next morning during our second date. Fast forward four years later - we watched New York ring in the New Year and then headed to bed. In our defense, we got up at 5 AM the next morning to head to Pasadena and see the Rose Parade. It was one of my goals to see it and Mike surprised me with tickets he bought all the way back in February!

We loved the parade. The weather was perfectly clear, sunny and crisp. We had great seats and oohed and awwed over each of the floats. The pictures below are a few of our favorite floats. Note the gloved hand in one of the photos. There was a man sitting two rows ahead of us who waved his hand high at each passing float. It's actually a miracle that of these three photos - just one of them has his hand in it. At first it was a bit annoying but by mid-parade we got a kick out of his waving hand. I bet he had a sore arm today.

Mike has blogged a few times about his hopes for Baby Ov. He wants to be sure she isn't afraid "toss her hat in the ring", would like to keep her off reality shows like "Bachelor Pad", and wants her to understand basic airplane etiquette. I concur with all of his goals for our little girl. After our morning at the Rose Parade, I have a few things I'd like to add to that list.

About halfway through the parade, a few girls from one of the Rose Bowl game schools showed up to find their seats. They were in the row behind us and from the time they sat down until the end of the parade, they had a constant running broadcast of their thoughts of LA/CA/Pasadena/the parade. They were of the opinion that everyone in California was rude and had no manners whatsoever. They felt that weather was freezing (one of them was wearing a little dress that came about 6 inches above her knees with nothing covering her legs and short boots). They thought that every school band marching in the parade came from their state. They proclaimed that never in a million years would they ever live anywhere other than their home state. All in all, they just couldn't wait to get out of Los Angeles and back to their great state!

I'm all for a little pride in where you're from but my hope for Baby Ov is that she isn't so small minded that she believes everything in the world revolves around where she's from. I want her to have a healthy love for her home, mixed with curiosity and respect for places in the world that aren't exactly like what she's grown up with. Mike and I have both been lucky enough to do some traveling through the years and have even lived in a few different states than where we grew up. I hope we're able to provide our baby girl with some of the same opportunities we had. I want her to take in the differences of the place she's visiting, be respectful and appreciative of the new experience and put any potential negatives into perspective.

It's a daunting prospect to know that we're going to raise an actual person. It's up to us ensure she's a functioning and productive member of society. And hopefully we can keep her off reality tv shows, have some etiquette on planes, not be afraid to try something new, and appreciate new and different places and experiences.

Here's to a happy and healthy 2011 for all of you. We're so excited about what's to come in the next year!

Week 34 - Christmas!

By Marnie:
Merry Christmas from the Overmans! I realize I'm writing this the day after Christmas, but since it's still the weekend, our tree is still up and we're continuing to enjoy the holiday, I thought it was appropriate.

I'm still feeling good and Baby Ov is as active as ever. As of my last doctor's appointment, she's head down, all ready to come on out. She moves so much though I swear there is no way she's staying head down, but I've been assured that babies rarely come out of that position this late in the game. We continue to work through what's now a dwindling to-do list of things to get done before the baby. I officially have every last possible item washed and ready for her. We still have a few little things to buy but if she came tomorrow (and we sure hope she doesn't - it's too early!!), we'd be able to get by with what we have.

Since I don't have much to update on regarding Baby Ov, I thought I'd just share a few pictures of our Christmas in LA.

This was the first year that Mike and I spent Christmas in Los Angeles. It was a little too close to Baby Ov's due date to make holiday travel plans so we spent the day celebrating with just our little family. Below is a picture of our tree - our place is small so we have a skinny tree which doesn't take up a lot of room. Notice the presents under the tree. This is the first year we've actually had presents under our tree. We've never exchanged gifts with each other and all of our other gifts were always shipped back to the Midwest so under our tree has always been bare. I loved having it filled with gifts this year although Stella (who likes to nap under the tree on the tree skirt) wasn't a big fan!

Stella got Mike and I obnoxious Christmas themed jammies to wear on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Below is a pic of the three of us, all decked out in our Christmas duds. We're posed in front of my favorite gift from Mike. The photo is one he took of a well known 30's era bar next to the Pantages Theater. For the past few years, Mike and I have had season tickets to the Pantages and would stop in here before shows. I love their sign and about a month ago, Mike went and took some pictures around LA. He surprised me and had this one framed as a gift for Christmas. I couldn't love it more!


After opening our gifts, we made a smaller version of a Christmas feast. So much good food! We enjoyed leftovers today and I'm guessing we'll continue to enjoy them throughout the coming week.

We had a great day spending time together. We talked a lot about what traditions we'd like to start with Baby Ov and how much fun it will be to wake up with her on Christmas morning and see her excitement.

It was definitely a different Christmas for us being in sunny Los Angeles and not being with our families, but after four Christmases together, it was nice to celebrate it as our own little family. Although it is our last Christmas as a family of two (3 with Stella), it actually felt like our first Christmas.

Week 33 - 4 Years Ago Today...

By Marnie:
Four years ago today, Mike and I went on our first date. Tonight we went on a tour at the hospital where we’re going to have our baby. If you had told us on that first date that this is what we would be doing four years from then, I think we both would have laughed (and maybe been a little creeped out). I’m so glad that first date turned into many more dates. our marriage, and now our Baby Girl on her way in just 7 weeks!

We had a doctor’s appointment last week with another ultrasound. She’s getting bigger so they can’t get a good shot of her whole body in at once, but we saw lots of pictures of her face, hands and feet. Everything is looking good. The technician commented on her really long second toe - Mike has a crazy long second toe while mine is short and stubby. It looks like she has Mike’s feet! She also commented that she has hair! I don’t know why, but I have been envisioning a very bald baby - I guess I was wrong! Here are a few pictures - one is a profile of her face and her hand it waving (she really likes to wave!) and the other is a view looking directly at her face/up her nose. You can see she was yawning and sticking out her tongue. We think it’s the darn cutest thing we’ve ever seen!

The window for our crib delivery came and went with no crib. I was finally given a straight answer from the manager at the store where we ordered it from and it’s now looking like it won’t even ship from New Jersey (where the manufacturer is) until sometime in January, probably late January. We happened to order a very new crib for this crib maker which is why it took so long to make. It will be at the New Jersey location later this month but then our retailer has to justify the shipment so they wait until they have enough other items to ship which they’re guessing will be late January. I guess none of them understand that pregnancy is generally a 40 week endeavor and I don’t know too many people who run out and order a crib the day they find out they’re expecting. We ordered that thing not long after we told our friends and family that we were pregnant and even at that date, I felt a little weird ordering a crib. I wasn’t even showing yet! Oh well, it is what it is. We’re getting free delivery and set up out of the deal. Our baby girl might be sleeping in a dresser drawer for a bit, but I’m guessing she won’t know or care! =)

I just reread my last few sentences in that story about the crib and realize that it sounds like I’m completely fine with this delay. I will say that is certainly not the case. When the manager of the store finally told me that it would be late January or early February before we have our crib, my eyes welled up with tears and I started crying right there on the phone talking to this poor woman. My post last week was about how I haven’t really experienced some of the typical pregnancy symptoms, but one that I’ve had pretty strongly from the start is nesting. Within a few days of finding out we were going to be parents, I printed a calendar and wrote on it how many weeks until our due date. On each weekend, I had projects we had to finish around the house before baby came. Pretty clearly marked on last weekend was “D-Day for baby’s room being done.” It’s difficult for me that that goal is not done. I really hate walking upstairs, seeing her room and not seeing a crib.

My need to nest is helping in other ways. I’ve been making and freezing food so that we can actually eat without a lot of effort after the baby’s born. I started last week and made a casserole, then made lasagna last night. I’m hoping to have a decent stock pile of food ready to make our first few weeks a bit easier. I also washed all of her clothes and blankets. It was so much fun folding up all those little onesies and other cute outfits!!

We hope you all have a very merry Christmas!

Week 32 - We're fully trained parents!

By Marnie:

Week 32 and I feel great. We finished the second and final day of baby class yesterday. We feel informed and prepared on a lot more baby related subjects than we did just a few weeks ago. We both enjoyed the classes a lot more than we thought we would. There were many other much more clueless parents to be than us in the class which in a sad way, made us feel even better about what’s to come. One of my favorite examples was the dad-to-be asking about if their baby didn’t seem to be getting enough milk and wasn’t gaining much weight at first, would it be okay to give him “another milk like substance, like gravy.” Whew, we at least won’t be feeding our newborn gravy! At this point, we’re stellar parents!

We took a quick picture this morning – this is how I’m looking these days.

I realize I still have a month and a half to two months left of this pregnancy but I thought I’d comment on some of my expectations of pregnancy (or what people told me it would be like) vs. my reality. Overall, I feel pretty lucky that I haven’t had any of the more unpleasant side effects of pregnancy although I know that the next 8 weeks could bring on lots more of the “fun” stuff!

Nausea – I know that the level of nausea varies a lot from woman to woman and I certainly didn’t feel wonderful during my first trimester, but I was never super sick which I’m ultra grateful for!!

Emotions – I’m not saying that I haven’t been emotional at all, but I haven’t been as emotional as I expected to be. You can ask Mike, though. He may have a different opinion on this one. =)

Cravings – I was really looking forward to this one and unfortunately, no cravings for me. I did have some comfort foods that I turned to during the first trimester when I didn’t feel so great, but they weren’t really cravings. I thought it would be fun to send Mike out for late minute grocery store runs to pick up some random food combination for me. He lucked out on this one.

Getting Huge – Don’t get me wrong, my belly is definitely getting huge but I also had some expectations of a few other things a bit north of the belly getting bigger. Sadly, I have not had this experience. Argh!

Tiredness – So far, I haven’t felt overly tired. I did have days during the first trimester where I was pretty tired, but I was also serving as a juror on a murder trial during a lot of that time. I think getting up early every day, taking a train downtown, sitting on the jury, taking the train home and then catching up on work in the evening did more to make me tired than pregnancy actually did. I haven’t gotten the wave of tiredness during this last semester yet either. That’s a very good thing –I have way too much to get done over the next 8 weeks to allow myself nap time!

Heartburn – I had some heartburn before I was ever pregnant and it’s increased a bit over the last month or so but nothing terrible. I haven’t invested in Tums yet.

Sleep Issues – I’ve had moments of sleeplessness which have mostly coincided with other stresses going on with life or work so I don’t feel like I’ve had a lot of sleepless nights due to pregnancy. I certainly hope this continues!

Ladies room visit frequency – This is one where I absolutely have experienced what I expected. The bathroom is my new best friend and it’s getting annoying.

All in all, there are many things about pregnancy that haven’t gone like I thought they would or like everyone told me it would. In general, my personality is such that if anyone ever tells me how I’m going to feel or how something will be for me, my internal reaction is something along the lines of “you don’t know me, you don’t know this will be for me, please don’t tell me how I’m going to feel.” I guess I'm a bit defiant. My body must be keeping in line with how my mind typically works…

Here's to the last 8 weeks going as smoothly as the first 32!

Week 31 - T Minus 2 Months!

By Marnie:
Our official due date is exactly two months from today. Wow, has time flown by! I'm sure the next two months will go by even more quickly than the last two. I went into this pregnancy with a grand plan that I would be going into the last two months nearly 100% ready and prepared both at home and at work. Let's just say that plan hasn't quite panned out. It's going to be a crazy whirlwind and I hope that Baby Ov cooperates as well as she has up to this point!

We spent all last Saturday at baby class. We were excited and dreading it all at the same time. First off, spending eight and a half hours in a class on a Saturday wasn't overly thrilling. Second, I was worried that learning more of the details of the birth process would start to freak me out. Thankfully, it was a great day and it didn't put me over the edge. I've been unstereotypically calm and not worried about the birth and was sure that getting into the nitty gritty during class would snap me out of that. It certainly didn't, at least for now! We are both excited and feel more prepared for the arrival of Baby Ov. Next week's class covers infant CPR, care for baby, breastfeeding, and generally caring for baby after the birth. We'll apparently be confident parents in less than a week's time...

I apologize for this fairly uneventful post. Everything here is pretty status quo. I'm still feeling great. The crib has yet to make it's arrival. We're chugging along, getting excited and doing what we can to get our ducks in a row.