40 Weeks, 3 Days

This baby is now officially as late as Sam was (my only late baby, by the way). She is apparently interested in becoming the new family record holder for late deliveries.

At least I was able to enjoy a beautiful Thanksgiving at home with our family and good friends. I wouldn't have wanted to miss that, so it's not all depressing around here!

In all seriousness, I am feeling fine, my blood sugar is good (even relatively so on Thanksgiving), and the baby seems fine, so I suppose there is no hurry. I am definitely ready to meet my new daughter, but in the meantime am enjoying this long weekend with my family and friends.

After all, it's just a few more days of waking up and saying, "I wonder if I'm going to have a baby today!" And you can't say that every day, now can you?

Further Evidence I Married the Right Man

He's prepared for anything (as a good Cub Scout leader should be)...


He goes to great lengths to ensure his children have a variety of positive childhood memories...


And, he looks fabulous, even covered in whipped cream!


Thank you, Jay, for being such a wonderful father.


Late Addition from Lindsey: "Make sure you tell them the kids were falling on the ground in laughter and that he got the most pies in the face."
OK, I will!

2008 Superbowl Champions

Congratulations, West Valley Rebels, on your 18-12 Superbowl victory over the previously undefeated Jets!

This was, hands down, the most exciting football game I have ever seen. I jumped up and down, I stomped my feet, I yelled until I was hoarse. Both teams were truly excellent.

The game was tied 12-12 in the 4th quarter with 56 seconds to go. The Jets got the ball due to an objectively bad referee call (really, we're not biased here) and we thought it was over for us. But then the Jets passed the ball, we intercepted it, and ran it in for the winning touchdown. It couldn't have been closer or more of a nail biter. Now that's football, baby!

I am truly sorry for the Jets who are nothing but stunned right now. Several of the boys were crying after the game. Many of them have played for 3 or 4 years and never, ever lost a game. I don't think it occurred to them that they could possibly lose. Which is exactly why I believe we won. As the Rebel coaches said afterward: You wanted it more. It showed from the minuted you walked on the field. I'd like to think that our boys would have been happy with the way they played even if the game had gone the other way in the final minute, as it very well could have. But I'm also glad we don't have to know for sure.

Well, if all that jumping, screaming and stomping doesn't bring on labor, I fear nothing well. Or--scary thought--perhaps I scared her into staying another week! Ah, well, if I did it was worth it. Almost, anyway.

And Yet Another Pregnancy Update

39 weeks, 3 days. But who's counting?

OK, I'll admit it, I am.

But so far, to no avail. I just returned from the doctor who reported that there are no signs whatsoever that this baby has any intention of leaving my body. Ever. (OK, I added that part). But since she seems to be the right size and perfectly healthy, this is not yet a problem. (For her, at any rate!)

Well, on the positive side, it looks like I'll make it to Joey's Superbowl tomorrow. Go Rebels!

Superbowl Bound!

Here is Joey's football team, who SHUT OUT (look at the score board!) their competition in the divisional playoffs this morning. The Rebels are headed to the Superbowl next Saturday with a 8-1 record to play the only team they lost to all season: The Jets (who come into the game with a record of 9-0).

My favorite part? Not the win (although that was fantastic). Not the shutout (although it did boost the boys' confidence tremendously). It was when the boys were huddled up after the game and the coach was congratulating them. I noticed that rather than giving the coach his undivided attention, Joey crossed himself and moved his lips in a prayer of thanksgiving for the win. It was his first instinct to thank God for answering his numerous prayers for a favorable outcome of this game. Afterwards, he simply and humbly said, "God did this."

What a joy it is to see my son turn to God not only in times of fear or need, but to remember to give thanks in good times as well. Witnessing this was worth more to me than a thousand Superbowl triumphs. But who knows...maybe we'll get one of those next week on top of it all! I'll let you know.

Possibly My Favorite Question of All Time

Submitted by Sam this morning:

Mom, if you feed a chicken TNT and it lays an egg, will that egg be a bomb?

Correction

The baby will be baptized on December 20th (Saturday), not the 22nd as previously reported. Apparently, I was living in a different year but am now clear that it is 2008.

All are welcome!

Another Pregnancy Update

Nothing to report except that there is nothing to report!

I am 37.5 weeks and all looks fine. Baby doesn't seem to be planning an early exit and, for now, I am OK with this. Normally I am quite impatient by this point in the pregnancy, but for some reason I am in no hurry to get to this hospital with this one. Perhaps once the Fall Luncheon is over on Tuesday I will feel differently...

I will have an ultrasound next week to be sure the baby isn't growing too large. If she isn't, my doctor does not feel compelled to induce me early, and for this I am thankful. Happily, the diabetes has been well controlled this time all the way through so I am not enduring the non-stress tests and certain early induction I had to go through with Isabella.

I'll keep you updated on any developments. In the meantime, here's to another uneventful week!

It Has Come Down To This

I never thought I'd drive one of these big honkers, but today we welcomed this beast into our family. It is my new ride and I am stylin'.

I didn't have a lot of options, no matter how hard I tried to find them. Fixing up the limo wasn't practical, at this point, for every day use. It needs too much work and, while it will be a really fun project some day, I need a car now that is reliable and safe. Adding a jump seat to the minivan proved to be too crowded. And, I needed something that would fit in the garage for the inevitable sleeping child, so a fun conversion was out. This was the only choice I had, so I have decided to love it.

And you know, so far, loving it isn't hard! We found a fantastic deal on a gently used 2008 with only 15,000 miles on it. It was used as a fleet vehicle so there is no evidence of the wear my family is sure to leave in due time. It drives really nicely, it is fun to be so high up, and best of all, there is enough room for the kids that they can have some space between them. They have been on top of eachother in the minivan and this has been causing misery for us all. Now my pincher can have kid-free space on either side of her!

Although it doesn't show in this photo because they all came forward (except Tony who is in the back corner), when they are all spread out it doesn't feel like we have so many kids. I kept thinking someone was missing!


At any rate, my nervousness at not having a seat for the new baby has been calmed and I am now ready to welcome her...as soon as I get the clothes out and pick a name, that is!

Pregnancy Update

I've reached the point in this pregnancy where I'm sure many of you are wondering what's happening...a few days of silence on the blog could mean I'm at the hospital! So, I will try to keep you posted on what's happening as we enter "baby watch" weeks.

I am at 36.5 weeks and doing pretty well. I am measuring just slightly more rotund than average, my blood sugar levels have been great (no insulin, just diet controlled) and the baby is nice and active. I am tired, slow and feeling huge (this is not really news, now is it?) but other than that am doing just fine. This has been a blessedly uneventful pregnancy.

I have our school's annual fall luncheon on November 11th and, other than Halloween tomorrow, it is the next big thing on my calendar. I figure as soon as it is over this baby is more than welcome to arrive.

We still don't have a name for our little girl (or a seat for her in the car!). We are working on both. I have not yet packed my hospital bag nor have I retrieved the tiniest clothes from their box in the garage. Denial? Not really. Just haven't gotten to it yet. I'll do it this week. Really, I will. At least the crib is ready...probably because I won't use it until she is at least several months old! It's the stuff I will need on day one that I somehow haven't gotten to. Hmmm... Oh, but I HAVE scheduled her baptism, for December 22nd. See, I DO have my priorities straight after all.

I'll do my best to keep you posted on any developments. Thanks for checking in!

It's What's For Dinner

I have been cooking a lot lately. More than I ever have. We're talking 5 or 6 nights a week of homecooked food where, normally, I only pull off 1 or 2 and fill in the rest with fluff. Now that most of the kids are in school I have learned to use my mornings effectively in preparing dinner so all I have to do is heat or serve at the witching hour. I am feeling quite accomplished!

This week I was doing my now-usual Monday morning meal and grocery planning and asked the kids if they had any requests for dinner. Their response was unanimous and emphatic: nothing home cooked!

Please, they begged pathetically, couldn't we just have some of the things we used to eat, like frozen lasagna from Costco or boxed Macaroni and Cheese? No homemade chili or soup, no kind of saucy chicken dish over rice or pasta and most certainly no more beef stew or pot roast!

These poor, deprived kids. All this time I thought I was doing right by my family by serving them nutritious, home cooked meals. Little did I know I was actually torturing them.

OK, family (Jay excluded, of course). I hear you. This week I will take the week off and you will have your Macaroni and Cheese. You will have your frozen lasagna. And I will enjoy my break. But be warned...I'll be back!

(Perhaps this time, however, I will phase in the home cooking gradually so as not to cause the culture shock I have clearly invoked.)

Thanks...I Guess!

Last Monday was the first day of a new Girl Scout year. Lindsey's Brownie troop had its first meeting of the new school year, and Julia was officially inducted as a Daisy at the same time.

I went to Julia's induction ceremony and got so wrapped up in it that I completely forgot that Lindsey was just down the hall in another classroom having her Brownie meeting. When Julia's meeting ended I began walking to the car, already thinking about the next place I had to be (gymnastics, 30 minutes).

Lindsey's leader saw me heading out of the school grounds and called to me that Lindsey still needed to be checked out. I looked at my watch and realized with a start that I was 20 minutes late to pick her up. Not only was I late, but it was obvious from the direction in which my stroller caravan was heading that I was not, even then, making a mad dash to get her.

Oops.

Now, as you all know from previous "I forgot one of my kids" posts, I always count my kids and account for everyone's whereabouts before I leave any location. I would have caught this error. I just hadn't caught it YET.

Nevertheless, I was sufficiently humbled, especially since Lindsey's wonderful leaders (friends of mine, thank goodness) were inconvenienced by my error. There was no smooth cover up possible--I was clearly caught in a totally clueless moment.

Naturally, I engaged in world-class groveling, both to Lindsey and to her leaders, but I soon realized that it was not necessary. Lindsey had already paved that road for me. As it turns out, Lindsey was kind enough to explain to her leaders that I was pregnant, and that they should really give me a break because I, historically, forget all kinds of things when I am pregnant. She even went so far as to list a number of specific events where I had total brain fade in recent months, and to assure them that I would be back to normal soon. But in the meantime, everyone needed to cut me some slack. (Yes, they were totally amused by this).

At first, all I could think about this was that, even pregnant, I get an awful lot right. Trying to account for 6 children and their various school events and sporting activities (snack schedules, picture days, forms due, etc., etc.) is no small task. Most days everyone is where they are supposed to be on time with all the right equipment. But this is expected, is it not? It is only the relatively few times I mess up that get catalogued. I experienced a defensive moment in the face of this failure but then I quickly recovered.

Before long, I realized how nice it was that no one, especially my abandoned daughter, was irritated with my lapse and that, truly, I should hold on to this "pregnant" excuse as long as I can. Because heaven knows, it is a real one!

So, thank you, my amazingly empathetic daughter, and thank you, my friends, her leaders, for understanding that I am not firing on all cylinders currently. Somehow you managed to leave me feeling grateful and supported rather than completely mortified. That's a nice place to be.

Contrary to Popular Belief...

...this blog has not been abandoned.

It's owner is simply very pregnant. Which means that regular daily tasks are taking longer to complete, leaving less free time for blogging.

So bear with me. I'll be back. Hopefully sooner rather than later!

Completely Self Inflicted

Let's just start with a well-known fact about me: I am not a camper.

I do not like dirt. I do not like sleeping on the ground. I do not like cooking outside, or cold showers, or hauling tons of equipment and supplies. There is little about the entire process that sounds or actually is fun for me.

That being said, months ago (before I found out I was pregnant) I got a crazy notion that we should take a family camping trip to the beach town where I grew up. I had this foggy notion of the kids running and playing in the tide pools where I played at their ages, and had happy visions of the whole family gathered around the campfire making smores. So I booked it, to the surprise of everyone who knows me.

Even more surprising to everyone (including myself) I decided to go through with this adventure. So, last weekend, at 31 weeks pregnant, I found myself sleeping on the ground at Carpinteria State Beach with six children and a giant beast of a dog in a sea of uncontrollable dirt and sand.

I wish you could have seen the looks on the faces of the nice older (childless) couple in the campsite right next to ours as our trailer-toting minivan pulled up and we all piled out. Although they were nothing but nice, I can only imagine what must have been going through their heads. No matter how you paint it, they must have known their peace was over. And it was.

We had a lovely campsite right on the beach where the kids could run back and forth to the waves with no obstruction, and we were right by the bathrooms, too, which is nice when you have a 3 year old.

All in all, it wasn't terrible. There were terrible moments, make no mistake. But overall, it could have been much, much worse. The kids slept through the night (except for a brief moment when the train went by, woke up the dog, and sent him into a whole-tent tour that caused him to step on nearly every child amid great protest, but happily this was short-lived). The weather was great. The kids had tons of fun at the beach and climbing the trees in our campsite. Our dear friends Lori (frequent commenter on this blog) and Michael came by at campfire time to witness the scene. No one threw up.

Nevertheless, I still don't "get" camping. It was SO MUCH WORK to haul everything and set everything up. I am still washing dirt and sand from our things, a full week later. The wonderful moments could have just as easily been had, in my opinion, from a beachside hotel with a nice shower and restaurant (and perhaps a spa?). And the next time I even think about taking an 18 month old camping, please have my head examined. Sleeping in the same tent with the dog was a treat compared with supervising her around a campsite.

At any rate, I'm afraid we will be going back next year, like it or not. The kids loved it and were oblivious to my personal hell (OK, so that's an overstatement, but not by much). Here are some pictures of the kids at the tidepools, by far my favorite time of the trip...

Our campsite:

Just kidding! This must have been where Martha Stewart was camping, just down the row from us. Ours was the sloppy tent next to the cooler with muddy racoon prints all over it in the morning. I should have taken a picture, but I guess I didn't want to recall it later. (Can you believe some people have the time to set up camp like this? I couldn't believe it!)

Well, here's to the great outdoors. As observed from the indoors, that is!

Tony's First Day of School

Of course he's 3 weeks into school by now, but I still thought I'd go back and post his first day of school picture.

Tony is at Father Serra's Mission Bell Preschool Tuesday and Thursday mornings and so far he loves it. This is the same school Julia attended last year and I am very pleased with its mellow, loving atmosphere.

Here's to a great year of messy art projects, story time puppets and lots of new friends!

Sperm Bank Users Just Ain't What They Used to Be

I was listening to the news this morning when I heard it casually mentioned that a large Los Angeles sperm bank had experienced a complete change in its primary clientele over the last few years.

It seems that, while the bank once catered primarily to infertile couples seeking artificial insemination, it now overwhelmingly served single women and lesbian couples who believed that a man was not necessary in their goal of having a baby (the newstalk folks said this in so many words, not me). Further, they had become very specialized in the donor traits requested by their clients. The customers are apparently quite determined to create designer children, according to their specifications.

As I listened to the "go girls" attitude of the newscasters, I got very sad. Sad for these women, sad for the men that could have been great dads to children they won't know, and sad most of all for the babies that will likely grow up adopting this warped view of the world.

At one time I would have cheered for this ideal. Every woman should have the right to bear her own child, right? And why wouldn't she, given the choice, put together the most optimal set of genes she can find? If she is approaching 40 with no eligible partner in sight, why wait?

However, since becoming a mother I have realized some very important things. First, having and raising a baby is much like a wedding is to marriage. The wedding is one day, but the marriage is the important thing. So it is with children. It is nice to be pregnant and bear your own child, but it is the actual mothering once the child is born that is the real deal. There are so many children who need loving homes, so faced with the very understandable desire of having a baby with no husband to provide one, I hope these women are moved to instead choose adoption.

Second, dads are not disposable. They are not biological means to an end. They are vitally important to the working of a healthy family. I believe that women in our society have become so used to being in control of everything that they are finding it increasingly more difficult to make the compromises necessary for happy marriages. Marriage is all about relinquishing sole control, something I know from experience can be very difficult (I'm a control freak myself)! But the fruits, especially where child rearing is concerned, are bountiful.

Finally, there is no such thing as a designer child. Children are people, organic creatures with flukes, faults and quirks just like us all. Isn't a mother setting herself up to be disappointed when her meant-to-be-perfect child turns out to have a learning disability or a physical flaw? How this thinking contributes to the overall view of our society that people are disposable! This fits right in with the idea that it is fine to abort a child that isn't perfect. Some of the greatest gifts God gives us are children with difficulties, for it is in learning to help, love and accept others as they are that makes us all better people.

Now, I am certain to have offended some people with this rant and I do apologize for that. I will openly acknowledge that it is easy to speak emphatically about this from where I sit. I have clearly never experienced infertility and I am blessed with the happiest marriage I can imagine. I cannot understand firsthand the motivations those not in my situation. However, it is precisely because I understand how amazingly wonderful the road to traditional parenthood can be that I wish it for everyone. But in order for more people to experience it, we as a society have to change some basic attitudes about entitlement.

The Animals Are Running The Zoo

The moment I knew this for sure came this morning while I was trying to unload and reload the dishwasher.

18 month old Isabella climbed into the drawer I had just filled with clean plastic kid cups, stripped off her diaper and decisively peed, deftly splashing every single cup and covering the entire bottom of the drawer. Then she looked at me and smiled wickedly.

Yes, I have lost all control. (And the dishes still aren't done.)

The Worst Thing He Can Imagine

There is a wonderful Mexican grocery store near us called Vallarta. We love to shop there and eat at the taqueria inside. A few months ago Vallarta moved to a brand new store and they had a huge grand opening celebration. We all went after church for Mexican pastry and admired the new store, ate some free samples and especially enjoyed the roaming Mariachi band. The kids talked about this grand opening for weeks and always wanted to stop by after church to see if the Mariachis were still there.

A few days ago while driving home from school we were passed by 14 (we counted) racing police cars, all in a row with their lights flashing. Clearly they were on their way to a major crime scene. A few blocks later we saw them all, congregated in the new Vallarta parking lot.

Sam shouted, "Oh no! They killed the Mariachi Band!"

I am still laughing.

Seriously?

I was filling my car up today when a man approached me with a gas can and asked if I could help him out with a few gallons of gas.

Usually, I am flustered by people asking me for handouts. I am always torn when I see a hungry-looking person asking for money. However, one look at this well-fed, well-enough groomed man with his nice enough car parked nearby was all I needed to deny him guilt-free.

I explained that our family, too, was having a hard time meeting our budget with the increased gas prices and that we are all in the same boat here, so sorry I couldn't help him. He not-so-cleverly countered with the fact that all sorts of nice people have been willing to help out those who couldn't afford gas. I sweetly replied that it was wonderful that others could find a way to help but that he would not be getting any help from me.

Hours later, I am still mulling over his nerve. If he can afford a car, he can afford gas! A car is a luxury, not a necessity like food or shelter. Ever heard of a bus? Seriously! Yes, gas prices are obscene, yes it is difficult to continue driving without making adjustments in other areas of life. I get that. Why? Because I am living it and dealing with it myself! I am doing without things I'd rather have to make room for the increased gas bills. So why can't he?!

Good thing I'm pregnant and cranky and saw this for what it was right away, because another day, another time, I might have been fool enough to participate in this craziness out of politeness. And then I would have been kicking myself for weeks. See? These hormones are good for something besides growing babies!

The Saturday Sport Report

Well, we made it through the first of many Saturdays to come with two soccer games and a football game to navigate. And here are the results (drum roll please...):

Game #1: Sam and the Blue Dragons meet their first challengers, winning 2-1. Sam starts as goalie and nothing gets past him. Hooray!


Game #2: Julia and her Pink Panthers face the formidable Crazy Carrots. They take a severe beating but, luckily, at her age level, no one is counting! Julia did a great job of stealing the ball and moving it down the field, but has a little work to do on actually getting it into the goal. Can you say shank in soccer?! Seriously, she did very well and had a lot of fun, so it was wonderful to watch her.


Game #3: Joey and his Rebels take on the dreaded Jets. They fought a good fight but finally succumbed 13-7. Boy, was that a good game, though. I was on my feet, screaming so much that I thought I would go hoarse. Football is so much fun to watch! The Jets lived up to their reputation and were unbelievably fast, but they also hit better than we expected. The quote of the day came from Joey who, after the game, said, "I don't know what our coach was talking about. They hit pretty hard."

The Jets must have been surprised by our team, particularly our defense who held them to a lot less points than they thought they should have. Last Saturday they routed their opponents 56-0, so our boys should be very proud of their efforts. The Rebels truly played brilliantly, with great play fakes, interceptions and solid passes (the running game did NOT get by the Jets--they were like a stone wall). Even our hard-as-nails coach, who wanted to beat the Jets more than anything, let the boys know that he was so proud of how they played that he couldn't find the words to express it, so there were absolutely no hanging heads or frowns walking off the field today. All in all, it was a great experience for the players and the crowd.

I have no doubt that we will face the Jets again in the championships and, hopefully, we will have a different result then.


I will certainly need the next six days to recover from today. What a marathon! Only 11 more weeks of this and then I will relax by having a baby. She is due the day after the last game is to be played. For once, I hope I'm not early!