Kickin' It with Dad

Dad unit here. Saturday morning was another proud baby moment. I was able, for the first time, to feel my little girl move inside the womb. I was reading the paper when Wendy beckoned me and asked me to put my hand on her tummy. After a few moments, I felt one big, solid kick. I don’t know what other fathers have experienced when they first felt their baby, but I must admit two things: 1) I was emotionally overwhelmed (yes, there were tears) and 2) my love for Wendy became even more profound (as if that were possible!). Yep, I’m still smitten over my wife, not just because she carries our child, but because she is my best friend and partner.

To all of those dads out there who kept telling me, “Just wait until you feel the baby kick,” thanks. I get it now. Ultrasound pictures and feeling the “baby bump” are one thing, but feeling your child move – well, that makes it all the more real and wonderful. Up to that moment, there are times when you wonder if she is really in the womb. You contemplate how two small particles can come together, and, trillions of genetic events later, produce a living, loving being. Then, you feel a kick, and suddenly you are possessed by the miracle that is your growing child.

I’ve not felt her move since, but, on Sunday, Wendy and I watched as her stomach pulsed up and down for a while. It was so cool to see this happening, and to wonder what the baby was up to. I like to think she was tapping her feet to some Beatles or ELO tune, but who knows. She may have just had gas. Later that evening, I put my mouth down on Wendy’s tummy and started talking to Flipper. It was the weirdest thing, as we saw the opposite side of the stomach push out. Don’t know if she was trying to get away from the old man or what, but it was just amazing.

One thing is for certain, we have a lot to be grateful for this Thanksgiving.

We wish each of you a Happy Thanksgiving, too.

Hormonal Rant: Opus One

It was going to happen sooner or later - something was going to set me off. Many of you know that I have this "thing" about Christmas advertising and whatnot occurring before Thanksgiving, but today I reached a zenith in my explode-o-meter over the subject - thankfully no one was hurt, seeing as how I saved it for the car. While waiting for my food order during lunch today (yes, it was healthy - except for the Cheetos), listening to some God-awful rendition of "Do You Hear What I Hear", I realized that I had been subjected to Christmas music and advertising since November 1st - that's 17 days of holiday harassment and at the time, we still weren't through the two month long election harassment, which is why this snuck up on me. Next thing you know, we'll be hearing Christmas music in October - I want to know what clown thought it was a good idea to start the whole shebang early, completely ignoring the fact that there's a perfectly good holiday sandwiched very nicely between Halloween and Christmas. And no, I'm not talking about the Mexican Day of the Dead, although that is a pretty cool holiday. Veteran's day is also awesome, but it's mostly commemorated by only some people getting off of work (which doesn't include me - note to self: find potential employer who gives more holidays off) and going to big sales. I'm talking about Turkey Day, Thanksgiving - which now is the biggest shopping day before Christmas for many people, not the day after. Oh, if only our forefathers could see us now, dissing a holiday based on the idea of sharing and togetherness in order to get the best deal on BlueRay players and passing out while watching the Lions getting their butts handed to them. Actually, I made that sound pretty good . . .

So She Really IS Sugar and Spice?

We had the first real snow here this morning - my favorite kind, too - that big, fluffy stuff that sticks in all the branches and tall grasses. Makes for some nice scenery . . . and some bad drivers.
Ok, so here's the news from last week's test: unlike other people, who will either be well below or well above a threshold, I am just over - four points over the limit after a fast, and one flipping point over while zooming on glucose. Still, according to the doc, one point over is still considered in the zone for gestational diabetes, so I have it. Poopy. The good news is that they are planning to treat it with diet, as opposed to insulin shots (at this point, anyway), so I will meet with the dietitian tomorrow to find out how to test my own blood sugar (sounds ominous) and learn what I shouldn't be eating that apparently I have been eating but didn't know was giving me issues. Unfortunately, the first thought that comes to mind is that I can't have sweet stuff, which I normally don't gravitate to much, but now WANT. And what really honks me off was talking to a person the other day who gained 56 pounds with her recent bundle, having eaten ice cream, milk shakes, chocolate and all the otherr junk food crap that you're supposed to do in low doses (or balanced with good stuff) and she never contracted gestational diabetes - nor has she had a problem loosing all that baby weight. Makes me sick. Of course, I am old enough to be her mother . . .but that is beside the point. Maybe it was because she had a boy and I'm having a girl - girls are made of sugar and spice, right?

Food, Glorious Food

Eating is always a topic of discussion when it comes to being pregnant - everybody's all about "eating for two"; interestingly enough, current conventional wisdom suggests that we only need about 300 calories more a day than we did prior to becoming pregnant. Current personal wisdom suggests that fitting more than half a plate of food into my gullet in one sitting would be a bad idea, seeing as how internal space is at a premium. Ironic that my favorite holiday is soon approaching and I'll barely be able to scratch the surface of my favorite dishes. Boo. Good thing Thanksgiving usually means eating leftovers for a few days, eh?
So what has "pregnancy craving" meant for me - oddly enough, Flipper has had some interesting effects on my usual dining proclivities. While there have been no late night runs anywhere, or pickle and ice cream pairings, the first real and true craving I had (and within days of finding out about Flipper's presence) was for the very thing I had turned away from some nine years ago: meat. Yes, sports fans, this pesco-vegetarian (a vegetarian who eats fish) fell waaaaaaaaay, waaaaay off the tofu wagon. And guess what the mouth-watering, mega-craze item was that I could not live without for nearly a daily basis for the first 2-3 weeks . . .an Arby's roast beef sandwich. But here's the deal - now I won't touch it with a ten-foot pole; this is the other odd effect - my taste crave changes every so many weeks. For about a month, I may want carne asada tacos and tostados, or for six weeks it'll be Chinese food, or a trimester of egg and cheese croissants, or two weeks of blueberries. For the most part, I roll with it; apparently whatever I want is filling a basic need and for the most part, it's pretty healthy stuff - except the week I was all over those pumpkin doughnuts . . .oooooooh yes. The only item of real concern was at about the second trimester, I had a deep need for unsweetened iced tea (and still do); this needed to be passed through the OB because tea, while not a bad thing, does contain some caffeine - Kim said, "No big deal, and the caffeine thing is only an issue during the first trimester." So, I roll with that, too. Right now, though I am in an ambiguous phase; I don't get super cravings, so I don't always know what to eat. This gets frustrating. With Kennedy, the formula was pretty simple: Taco Bell. Anything with beans at Taco Bell. This would explain why she is so gassy.
Related to the food thing is the newest issue. Today's checkup went well - heartbeat is at a happy 145 and she's growing well. The issue is the glucose tolerance test in which my results came back one point over the cutoff for normal. What that means is that there is potential for gestational diabetes, although with it being one point over . . . chances are low. Anyhoo, this means a mandatory three-hour test with fasting, more glucola crapola drink and four more blood draws (a fasting baseline and three more draws at hour intervals). I look forward to this in very much the same way I look forward to getting stitches or speaking in front of 4,000 people. On the bright side, at least we'll know what's going on and how to deal with it. On the not-so-bright side, the glucola drink ruins Sunkist soda for me because it tastes just like it; good thing I don't drink soda much anyway.
So - cross your fingers for an "all clear" on Thursday!

As of today, there are 100 days left - well, according to the countdown thingy. Flipper will ultimately decide how many days are left, but it would be nice if she gave notice or something - maybe a letter of intent.
She's really been moving around (or at least thumping my innards with her appendages); the other day, Steven was lying with his ear on my belly to see if he could hear her, since he hasn't been able to feel her; he thinks he's heard her tapping. Once, from my perspective, she kicked him in the head - he heard it, but didn't feel it - I still thought it was funny.

Doin' the Civic Duty

Today is a pretty significant day in American history, and we've done our civic duty. It's rather sobering to think about the outcome of today - the new president and vice-president will barely have been sworn in when Flipper is born. These people will be integrated into her own personal history, and what's so . . .interesting, amazing, sobering, or what have you - is that Flipper will never have known a time when there hadn't been a non-Caucasian or a female in the White House. Isn't that something? From the get-go of her life, things will be different in our country and I think that's pretty cool. I hope you all played a part in making your voice known.
And one more thing - at least the TV ads and automated phone calls will be OVER, no matter what the outcome! If my write-in plan works, it'll be Gumby and Pokey . . .
Never the less, no matter what side of the "fence" you play on, remember to be civil, to value and respect one another, and to appreciate the differences - they are what make us truly . . .human.