Jaundice

Sorry that we haven't posted more in the last week. Our first week of parenthood has been... too eventful.

We were discharged from the hospital in time for Christmas, but unfortunately we were re-admitted on Christmas Day for Collin's jaundice. We are all home now but may have to return for additional treatments. Each day we have had to return to the hospital for Collin to be tested, and then we anxiously await our doctor's call to see what steps need to be taken. It is quite frustrating since we've been given very little instruction on how to help him other than to feed him.

It looks like Ryan may have left out Collin's vitals at birth in the last post:

Weight: 7 lbs 13 oz

Length: 20.5 inches

But at the doctor's yesterday he already weighed 8 lbs. 8 oz., so you can imagine what kind of eater he is!

Please keep our little Collin in your thoughts and prayers. He's had a rough first week.

We are loving every minute of parenthood, and he is an absolute joy. It has been challenging, but we wouldn't change anything for the world.

Baby Knows Best

It is my pleasure and privilege to introduce Collin Daniel Williams, first-born and soul heir to the Williams family fortune.

So, after all of our worrying and belly-aching (and aching bellies) about being in the hospital during Christmas, inducing labor, etc., our little man decided enough was enough. After a surprisingly pleasant 9 hours of labor, and a relatively quick 2 hours of pushing, Collin was delivered at 11:44 am Sunday morning, and the miracle of life began.

As you can see, Lindsey is doing amazingly well, and Collin is, of course, perfect. We are enjoying a few days of rest and recuperation in the hospital, and we will be going home to spend Christmas will G-ma and G-pa Morello and Uncle Jared. We are so happy to have him here, and eternally grateful for the best Christmas present we could ever have hoped for.

The moral of the story is: Don't question the baby's (or the Lord's) timing. We've stressed our selves out twice now worrying about dates and timing, and both times everything has worked out perfectly.

Well, enough of my rambling....I know you really just want to see pictures, so here are a few more...

Brand 'spankin' new

A hint of a smile

Zonked out on the warming table

Happy Birthday or Merry Christmas?

0 Days

What do you blog about when your Baby Ticker reads 0 days? What will it say tomorrow? +1?

No, I bet it'll just sit at zero until I delete it's computer code. Maybe I should just delete it today, so I'm not so disappointed tomorrow...

Yep, you guessed right: today is my due date. Yet here I sit blogging in front of my home computer. Yesterday I thought I had my last doctor's appointment, but (unfortunately) they scheduled me another one for Monday, December 22nd.

I haven't dilated anymore than before (3), despite having contractions about 10-minutes apart for a few hours on Tuesday night. I even got up and took a shower and they continued, until I was waiting for the next one... and woke up an hour later.

Waiting, waiting... I'm not a good wait-er.

39 Weeks

Baby Update:

I have had a chronic cough for almost 3 weeks now. Last week the OB said I could take a cough suppressant, but I decided that would really just cover the underlying problem (which was still unknown).

Anyway, I kept thinking I was getting a cold, but the runny nose, stuffy ears, and yucky head never came. Yesterday I went to meet our family physician for the first time (she's going to be our pediatrician too), and she looked in my nose, throat, and ears and then listened to me breath and declared... no congestion. Then WHY, I asked with obvious impatience, do I have the nastiest sounding cough in the world?

Her reply: acid reflux. Did anyone else out there know that heartburn could cause a chronic cough? And what is the remedy: Delivery. And that, my friend, is my number goal right now: getting my little guy out.

I also had an OB appointment yesterday (that's right: got weighed, measured, blood-pressured, poked and prodded at twice in less than an hour). The great news: I am dilated to a 3, and I am 50% effaced. They still scheduled me an appointment for next week and told me not to get my hopes up, but it is hard not to.

I'm ready buddy; make your debut! Otherwise, I may be shunned from society as a carrier of the plague.

Thoughts

Picture Perfect

I love having a fireplace to hang with our cute little stockings in a row. We even bought some of those environmentally-friendly logs in a box to burn every once in a while.

We decided we'd keep our "mini-tree" as our only tree for at least one more year. I think it looks quite cute standing guard there in the corner.
This is our tribute to Caterpillar.
Fireplaces, Christmas trees, stockings, Charlie Brown movies, hot chocolate, Christmas lights, candles... These things make me happy.

Week 38

When I got home from Seminary today, I was feeling huge and thought it would be a good day to take some more pregnancy photos.
It's funny - now looking at myself - I don't think I look nearly as humongous as I feel. The last week or so I have been feeling all the uncomfortable parts of carrying around my 6 lb. 11 oz. friend: lower back pain, sore feet and calves, pressure behind my hips, pain in my ribs, difficulty catching my breath, a constant need to use the restroom...

And all the while, my little guy is poking and jabbing and moving and grooving. I'm glad he's comfortable. I don't know how much longer my body can survive being beat up.

Engineer-In-Training

Ryan and I have been emailing back and forth all day.

* * *

To My Engineer -
I just "built" a box to ship Kim's buckeyes to her. There was a piece of cardboard lying on the floor in the basement from the water softener, and I cut it and molded it and taped and taped and taped. I am so proud of myself.

Love - Your Not-so-Little Engineer-in-Training

PS: Who needs to buy a box at the post office in a car anyway!? Maybe I can learn to do more things around here, and we could just have one car... Or maybe not.

* * *

Hey Babe!

Sounds like I'm rubbin' off on you after all. Pretty soon you'll be out in the garage fixing the car yourself... Or maybe not (tee hee).

Love Ya!

-Proud Husband of my Not-as-big-as-she-thinks Engineer-in-training

Buckeyes!

We have an annual tradition in our home of spending the Friday night before the big Ohio State - Michigan rivalry football game making tasty peanut butter and chocolate buckeye sweets. We have converted many friends into Buckeye fans over the years, and this year was no exception.

In fact, we were lucky enough to spend the evening with good friends visiting from Madison.

What a wonderful weekend! Go Buckeyes!

35 weeks down... 35 days to go.

What a neat coincidence - the double 35, that is.

I went to the doc again today. They estimate his weight at about 6 pounds 4 ounces, which is crazy to me, since many babies are born at that weight. Oddly, his femur length is now lagging behind his other body measurements, but the tech says it is common for certain things to grow quickly and then lag while other parts catch up.

He is still averaging right at about 35 weeks, whereas my belly is now measuring at 33 weeks. I figure that's close enough! I am now into weekly doctor's appointments (ugh!), but at least I know that means he'll be here sooner. My last ultrasound is scheduled for the day before Thanksgiving, and then... the waiting game.

Yesterday I asked the doc how early they would allow for an elective induction. As of now, the necessity for an induction based on a medical need is not likely (which I am grateful for), but I didn't know my docs' policy for electing to be induced. I know some offices have a mandatory 41-week rule.

Now you ask, why would she WANT to be induced? (No, I am really not all that uncomfortable... yet.) To be honest, it all centers around convenience. My due date is exactly one week before Christmas. Our anniversary is two days after Christmas. Bottom line: We are VERY interested in having this little guy out and home before these two "holidays."

So, I asked the doc the question. The answer? Apparently, there is a correlation between emergency c-sections and inductions of women with first babies, so my doctor's office strives to avoid inducing for non-medical reasons as much as possible. Oh no!

And now I put the questions to you: What are your thoughts on induction, specifically first baby induction? Am I being selfish to try to "schedule" his birthday around Christmas and our anniversary? Does anyone have experience with pitocin-contractions vs. natural-contractions? If you were induced for non-medical reasons, how long after your due date did they make you wait/did you choose to wait?

Yes, I am full of questions... and hopefully, you will be full of comments! Bring 'em on.

Peoria Baby Shower

Last weekend my new friends here in Peoria threw me a Baby Shower. It was perfect: one simple game, great new friends, delicious breakfast casseroles, good conversation, and wonderful gifts.

Unfortunately, I handed my new camera to a friend unaware that Ryan had been messing with the settings the night before, and this is how all my photos turned out:

It is a cool setting (you can pick whatever color you want for it to grab), but it is kinda strange for people shots.
Agree?

Thankfully, one of the hosts was also taking pictures, and she saved the day and gave me all her photos.
Anyone know of someone more excited about diapers!?

This gift was probably the hit of the party. It is a growth chart to hang on the wall, and she even matched the colors to Baby’s room. I love it!

Thanks everyone for coming! We had a great time.

33 Weeks, Ultrasound #5

Another week down, and another ultrasound completed...
(Sorry about the totally posed picture, but we got a new camera and started playing around with it. What do you think?)

Baby is healthy and happy (as is Mom), though I'm not thinking he's enjoying that tasty knee so much. Do you see it? Poor thing is all nestled together in a really tight little ball. His bum is right behind my belly button, and his head is down. I think most of the movement I feel is him sticking out his bum and stretching those legs away from his face.

His head measured a little small, but the doc says it only seems small compared to his super long legs. Since Ry has a small head (and doesn't seem to be all that lacking in the brains department), I'm just going to hope it stays small so I can get him out easier.

The other thing they told me to expect is for him to want lots of cuddling and swaddling because he's going to be so accustomed to being balled together. She said to expect lots of crying as he joins this big, roomy world.

Look at those big, chubby cheeks!
Another ultrasound at 35 weeks, the last at 38 weeks, and then he'll be here! Yippee!

Saved by the Belly

It was a dark and stormy night....The rain was coming down in sheets....there were no parking spaces to be found....when, out of nowhere....Lo and Behold........

Fortunately, Lindsey is now showing enough that we didn't get any dirty looks on the way in.

How to Decorate a Nursery

1 – Pick an extremely difficult focal point not purchased directly from a store. Make sure you choose strange hues and tones of normal colors so as to make the task of matching even more difficult.
We chose to focus our decorating around a quilt I made a few years back.

2 – Select a difficult painting technique and strategy.

We chose to paint two facing walls tan, and the other two facing walls with vertical stripes.

3 – Apply base coat paint to all walls. If all walls will not be the same (thus increasing its difficulty on the scale), you must wait a week between adjacent walls in order to apply tape and achieve a crisp corner.

4 – Determine a striping pattern which suits your style. Most websites advocate one-foot stripes that alternate between two shades of the same color.

Make sure you enlist an engineer to manufacture a demo on the computer which uses three colors with varying thicknesses, once again increasing the difficulty.
5 – Proceed to measure, mark, tape, and level each stripe to exact perfection. Once again, the use of an engineer is strongly recommended for absolute precision.

6 – Using painter’s caulk, carry on by sealing each piece of tape to the wall. Failure to successfully seal each side of each piece will result in catastrophic wiggly paint appearance.

Please remember that once a finger begins to bleed, only the weak give up! This particular step requires perseverance and stamina. It also requires a patient spouse to read page upon page and chapter upon chapter aloud (We chose Paolini’s Brisinger) to the caulker to distract his mind from the growing rawness as he removes each of his fingerprints.

7 – Begin in one corner to apply paint. All tape must be removed within 10 minutes of paint application.

WARNING: DO NOT PAINT ALL THE STRIPES OF ONE COLOR ACROSS THE WALL AND THEN RETURN TO APPLY PAINT OF THE NEXT COLOR. Such a technique will result in the paint peeling away when the tape is removed. Failure to observe the above warning will result in an additional evening of taping, caulking, and painting to correct “shark bites” in each stripe whose tape was removed too late.

8 – Proceed slowly around the room, edging carefully with the correct color around baseboards, ceiling, windows, closets, and outlets. When taping is removed, wipe away any excess paint that may have seeped under the tape, despite excessive caulking.

9 – Assemble all baby furniture, adding handmade bed linens to each feature.

10 - Voila! Thank your husband by telling him you love him, you love the room, and can’t wait for the little one to add the finishing touch!

8 Random Facts about Lindsey

I won't be tagging anyone, but seeing as Sheena tagged me, here are

Eight Random Facts about Lindsey

1 - Two Food Groups: I believe there are two food groups: real and dessert. The two groups cannot be mixed in one dish. A few examples of atrocities that I refuse to eat: Hawaiian pizza, Mango Chicken Salad, Honey-Glazed Ham, Waldorf Salad, etc.

2- My watch: I have bought the same watch four times. I love its shape, its price, and the ease at which I can find it at Target every year. Unfortunately, I have had to purchase it four times... since its price directly reflects its quality. :-) The first three purchases were because the band would break (plastic, fake leather), but then Ryan finally talked me into buying a leather band and attached it to the face for me. Then, about a month ago, the face cracked, and I had to buy a new one anyway. I figure when this plastic band breaks, I can still attach the leather band from the one whose face broke. It's a good watch... really. 3 - High anxiety: I hate being the center of attention or looked at. I prefer not to draw attention to myself (like dressing up for Halloween and having a baby shower), and I hate public speaking (like giving talks in sacrament meeting and being observed by my principal). In fact, I usually throw up, cry, and can't eat the day before school starts and the morning of. It started in preschool, according to my mom, and even continued as a school teacher. That's right: at 26, I sat on the bed next to Ryan crying and begging to not have to go to the first day of school. Thankfully, I had no first day of school this year.
4 - Blue feet & Lips: I have really poor circulation. My feet turn blue about every time I take off my socks. I try to avoid wearing sandles, and I prefer to avoid air conditioning. (Our thermostat was set at 78 all summer.) I even sometimes get blue lips. I am pretty much always cold, even since being pregnant. Too bad Ryan was hoping to save on heating bills this winter.

5 - Young Adult Fiction: If there was a budget cut and we had to vote to save only one section at the public library, I'd keep the chapter books for kids in grades 4 through 7. I have read nearly every one, and they just make me... happy. I love juvenile fiction.6 - Red-haired, Freckled Italian: With an awesome maiden name like Morello, you'd think I'd have dark hair and an olive complexion. Quite to the contrary, I have to spend half an hour lathering up with sunblock (SPF 50) just to watch a tv show about the beach! Turn's out I got my mom's genes.7 - No cavities / No broken bones: I've never had a cavity, and I've never broken any bones. I've actually only been to the hospital twice: When I cut my finger in first grade and had to get stitches and last night for our first childbirthing class. Oh, and I think I might have gone to the hospital 4 1/2 years ago - to visit my sister-in-law Emily when she had her first baby. Yeah, staying in the hopsital when I have our baby will be awfully strange. 8 - Weight: Until I got pregnant (31 weeks ago), I had weighed the exact same weight since I got my first driver's license at 16. I may have flunctuated a pound or two, but I've always been exactly the same size and shape. And I have never done anything to maintain it: no strange eating adaptations, no rigorous exercise routine - nothing. Sadly, this is very much not true anymore (I'm currently at +25!).