Foot in mouth

My super-gifted child has achieved a feat that he has been working towards for almost 3 weeks now. Yes, its true. He has now managed to insert his foot into his mouth.

Houdini

You see these fingers mom?? I am going to make them disappear before your eyes....




Tah dah!!

"I just crush a lot..."

So I think I have a crush...on my ENTIRE Ob/Gyn practice. I feel like a junior high school girl around the class cutie every time I have to go in for a visit. I do a lot of blushing and a lot of smiling and a lot of batting of the eyelashes. It is guaranteed that I will see someone who knows me and my story very well, since every single one of the drs. and midwives visited me while I was in the hospital.

Yesterday I did see one of my favorite drs. During my visit, Will started fussing. While we were talking, my dr. just reached down and picked Will up out of his carrier and held him in the football hold while we chatted. Afterwards, he told me he'd take Will with him out of the room while I got myself together.

I just love that my doctors feel so comfortable with me and so connected to Will because they all had a hand in saving him.

Baby Love

Sometimes I can't believe I'm a mom. In some ways I still feel like I'm 18 and babysitting. I look at Will and think, "There is no way that I could have produced a human being." I feel like his mom is going to come at the end of the day to pick him up. Its just so surreal to think that I am somebody's mother; I am the one that this baby wants when he cries; I am the one who provides him with food and nourishment; I am the one that his eyes light up for when he sees me walk into a room. Me. Me. Its just so amazing and so humbling. The bewildering thing is that I probably need him more than he needs me...

"The Cheese Stands (or Sits) Alone..."

talking head

My son is now talking. I believe his first word was "rrlllnnhh" (that's a direct quote). We have nice conversations sometimes, but secretly I feel a little stiffed. He clearly prefers chatting up the ceiling fan. And also the wall. And besides,when he's talking to me I think he's trying to tell me to stop kissing him so much because I am embarrassing him.

But I can't complain. I get the best smiles from him. They are the smiles of recognition, the smiles that say "Hey! I know that lady! Hmm, I suddenly feel rather hungry...". And sometimes he just stares. Long enough that I begin to wonder if I have something in my teeth or a beard hair growing out of my chin.

Now if I could just capture that elusive smile on camera...

Sanity reclaimed.

I have discovered the magic of "routine." For the first five weeks of Will's life, sleep was a free-for-all, not to mention a precious and scarce commodity. A few nights ago, I decided to try out a new routine. It goes something like this: put on white noise cd, wrap in swaddle blanket, nurse, burp, rock for 5 mins, place in crib. Voila! Evenings have now been reclaimed as "me" time, or "me and Brian" time. Its fabulous!

Sling shots.

Paparazzi!

Can I help you??



What do you want...?


Sheesh lady, get that thing out of my face!!

First Smile!

will gave me his first smile last night! of course he waited till the middle of the night after a poopy diaper change and right before i plopped him onto my boob. normally when he is about to get boob he gets so excited that his head bops back and forth in an effort to get it into his mouth as quickly as possible. but he actually STOPPED in the middle of the head-bopping, looked up at me and gave me a big grin before chomping down. even in my sleep-deprived stupor my heart just melted! i am so in love with my little boy....

The dreaded eyes...

You know that scene in the Neverending Story where Atreyu approaches the Sphinx Gate and has to make it through before the sphinxes open their eyes and shoot light daggers from their eyes into his head? And you know how you sit there on the edge of your seat, holding your breath and praying he makes it through?



Well, that's pretty much how I feel after I have spent more than an hour trying to get my kid to sleep. As I slowly and breathlessly try to creep away from his side after putting him down, my heart palpitates and my palms sweat with terror if even an eyelid flutters...

Hot Mama!

So the other day I was cruising along on the highway (95N to be specific). Traffic got kind of slow for a small stretch, but I was enjoying the ride with the windows down since it was a warm spring day, as I listened to some good hip-hop tunes. The next thing I know a pick-up truck with three guys in it had pulled up along side me in the next lane over. The guys were all hooting and hollering and honking their horn at me for a few seconds. Then, I noticed they did a double-take and got suddenly silent as they became aware of the fact that there was an infant riding in my back seat. They looked rather bewildered. What, just because I have a baby I can't listen to hip-hop? I just laughed and sped ahead of them thinking, "That's right! I'm four weeks post-partum. What do you make of THAT?!"

Getting my groove back.

So little by little I have been getting back out into the world with a baby in tow. First to the OB's office, then the pediatrician, then Babies R Us...And today I actually went on a lunch date! So it takes a little more forethought and planning when bringing an infant along to a chic little French restaurant in one of Philly's yuppiest of neighborhoods. But I managed. And my little man was a cherub! He slept most of the time. I think I am getting the hang of this "hip, modern mom" thing. Baby in one hand, and a mocha latte in the other...

A look back

I just re-read my first blog entry where I prophecied how my birthing experience would go. Here's what I said:

"I envisioned myself giving birth as charmingly as Kimberly Williams (Father of the Bride, part 2), Julianne Moore (Nine Months) and of course Jennifer Aniston as Rachel Green. It was a nice thought, but somehow I think my birthing experience will probably be more reminiscent of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre with me looking like Charlize Theron in Monster."

Here's a look at the prophecy's fulfillment...


And I might add that my sister and Brian both commented on how the amount of blood on the floor and walls looked like a horror movie.

Charlize? Is that you??

Photos

Will with Aunt Kathryn


Hanging out with daddy


My beautiful baby boy


Our second "real" bath. Mean daddy took a picture when Will was pretty mad...






At grandma's house

We're back!!

We are finally back from pregnancy-land, thank God! And we have returned with our bundle of joy in tow. Tune in regularly for stories and pictures of our newest addition.





Welcome to the world, William Elyas Schweizer!
Born March 4, 1:39 a.m.
8lbs 1 oz, 21 inches.

23 weeks 2 days


Okay, so its not the prettiest picture in the world. Believe it or not I actually fixed myself up a little for the photo so I didn't so closely resemble a pregnant zombie. But hey, daily bedrest + pregnancy does not produce the most attractive specimens.

So I am starting to be convinced that my son is rearranging furniture in my uterus. I find it absolutely unfathomable that there are stories out there of women who are pregnant and don't know it until they are in labor. If I didn't know I was pregnant, I would think that an alien had temporarily borrowed my womb to spawn itself and was preparing to erupt out of my navel. All I know is that those women who supposedly don't know they are with child must have some terrifying moments as their child practices kickboxing against their insides.

A note from the trenches.

I'm back! Sorry it has been SO long since I have updated this blog. Most of you know that I have recently been sentenced to Life In Bed, without parole. So far I have completed 26 days of this sentence. Only about 122 left....

And most of you also know that we are having a little boy!! Hurrah for snakes and snails and puppy dog tails....and ridiculous obsessions with sports, and extreme pride over producing unnatural-sounding bodily functions, and inexhaustable energy.....Well, as I have said before, for any of you that have experienced any kind of sisterly torment from my husband during our college days, I do believe that karma is about to avenge you by sending a smaller version of Brian for him to raise.

The little bugger is already very active. He flips and flops all day (and all night) long and I have to admit I am extremely curious as to what kinds of positions he must get himself into in order to create such odd shapes in my abdomen. But it is really wonderful and amazing to feel every movement. It feels like some sort of secret communication between us. Sometimes I just lie there for hours savoring each movement. I guess that is one of the (very few) luxuries of being on bedrest.

I must take a moment here to sing my husband's praises. When I would fantasize as a girl about my future husband and what our lives together would be like, my fantasies rarely went past the wedding day. That was always the "happily ever after." But in reality of course, that is only the beginning. And this story right here, this trial that we are going through together, this is part of our happily ever after. Because of course it is in the difficult times, the painful and challenging times that you see more deeply into what your marriage is made of, and of what your "Prince Charming" is made of. Yeah, Snow White's guy had a white horse and a silky ( I would say almost feminine) voice. But would he hold her and pray for her in the night while she cried herself to sleep? Would he prepare three meals a day for her every day and tend to her needs without complaining as well as do all the laundry, clean the bathrooms, sweep, dust and hold down a full time job? Would he go out walking in the pouring rain to find a used bookstore so he could surprise his wife with a book she mentioned wanting to read as she laid in a hospital bed hooked up to five different machines experiencing one of the worst moments of her life? I don't know about Snow White's man. But mine has shown himself to be of a stronger, more selfless, noble and loving character than I could have ever dreamed of in any of those fantasies that I wove together in my girlhood.

Okay enough of all that mush. But I had to give my hubby props for everything he has done and will continue to do. Very soon I will post more belly pics. I now sport a belly that closely resembles Homer Simpson's beer gut.

Preggo pics

14.5 weeks

15 weeks 5 days


Since I will be four months pregnant on Wednesday, I figured it was about time to post some preggo pics. Actually, there wasn’t much to show until the past week or two. I suddenly popped out. I figured the gig was up when people started coming up to me at work and congratulating me.

And now that other women at work who have kids know there is a preggo lady on the premises, the unsolicited advice (i.e. “horror stories”) have begun (okay secretly, I don’t mind. I actually love to hear their stories). It’s like listening to Vietnam vets sit around and talk about their days in the trenches: who tore the most during pushing, who’s labor lasted the longest, who’s doctor/husband got cursed at more during labor, who’s baby had the most cone-shaped head… And that is really the g-rated version. Most of it I’d heard before in some form or another. But I did learn one new thing: did you know that after you give birth and when you are discharged from the hospital they give you giant pads with ice packs in them??? Who knew! The Labor and Delivery Veterans unanimously agreed that these inventions are better than having sex while eating chocolate.

In other exciting news, our anatomy ultrasound has been scheduled for October 10!! This is the ultrasound where (providing our little darling spreads his/her legs), we will find out the gender! I am SO excited about this. But, I have known numerous preggo women who have looked forward to this day, only to be disappointed by their baby’s staunch modesty. They seemed to sense that they were suddenly on display and that their unmentionables were suddenly the object of intense interest. And in bashful reluctance (to their parents’ dismay), they shut their legs tight against prying eyes. So lets just say, I am prepared either way. Although, who are we kidding? If this child is anything like me, modesty will not be among its primary concerns.

Before I end, I must give special mention to my wonderful hubby who bought me my first digital camera for my birthday so that I could finally display my white, enlarged belly on the internet (a lifelong dream). AND, he has been very enthusiastic about taking pictures. Let’s just say that I’ve only posted about 1/20th of the total pics taken. Not to mention he was trying to convince me that I looked good enough to TAKE OFF MY PANTS for one of the pictures!!! While I’m glad that he still appreciates my form, despite my ever-increasing girth, I had to respectfully decline this suggestion. Trust me, you should be glad that I did!

Birthdays are the best days....

14 weeks

Twenty-six years ago today, my mom was pushing my little bald cone-shaped head out of her nether regions. In six months, I will have a new appreciation for the feat that she accomplished on that blessed day when I entered the world.

So today is my birthday. Nothing too special happened, except that my spectacular husband cooked a fabulous dinner and a scrumptuous cake. He started working on the whole meal last night. What a wonderful guy.

And....I got my first maternity clothes as gifts from my in-laws! Mama Schweizer picked out some adorable (and comfortable!) outfits. And not a moment too soon! My waist has expanded into new territory. I have outgrown ALL of my pants. I had been squeezing new flubber into my old jeans up until about two weeks ago. Then, that got to be a little painful so I actually resorted to (its true) wearing my pants to work completely unbuttoned/unzipped. I had to make sure I wore shirts that were long enough to cover my fashion faux pas. But a couple of times I noticed people staring curiously at my waist and I realized that perhaps my shirts weren't covering my little remedy as well as I had thought.

So anyway, the point is, I no longer had clothes to wear. And the in-laws saved the day. Tomorrow I will be wearing my first ever maternity outfit to work!

Also, just have to mention my sweet cousin who sent me a box of baby goodies yesterday. My first baby gifts!

And last but not least, I want to commemorate this day for marking another really significant milestone in my life: today I am officially in the second trimester! Let the pregnancy version of a honeymoon begin!