Thanks to Jen for leaving the comment and correcting my statistics. 0.5% chance for uterine rupture is correct, not 5%. My friend Kyle says that 5% is way too high and they wouldn't let women do it if these were the chances. I also appreciate Jen's description of how much easier her recovery was from the vaginal birth. I can only pray that this delivery ends this way. C-sections are brutal.
Mother's day was pretty uneventful, except for the RAGING nausea that punctuated- scratch that- overwhelmed my day. I was scheduled to be the worship leader at church (basically this means the right hand person to the priest during the eucharist and reading one of the scripture passages) and decided that I couldn't back out, so I managed to make it through. Then I rushed to the parish hall for something to eat and found a very healthy (read sarcasm here) donut and devoured it. That helped a little, but after talking to folks for a little while I had to get home fast. After a long nap, Marisa called and invited us to dine with her and Kyle at her Dad's house where he made a DELICIOUS turkey dinner for us and his family. It was a bonified Thanksgiving dinner, complete with homemade stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, greenbean casserole, corn, cranberry sauce, and rolls. My only wish is that I wasn't feeling so sick so I could've truly overindulged.
When we got home we were met by Josh and Jenna Kenyon, Greenville grads who we actually met through St. John's. They left St. Louis for graduate school in Arkansas and we have missed them sorely. They've come back a few times to visit and it is always a great time. We wish they still lived here. They stayed with us last night because they had to catch a very early flight for a trip to Cental America (I'm so jealous). We spent the evening catching up and talking about their trip. It was such a nice time and I even forgot (somewhat) that I was feeling so ill.
Today, thank God, I am feeling better. I still feel a little sick, but not near as bad as yesterday. Maybe this sunshine helps. It definately can't hurt. Here's to one day at a time...
Monday, May 12, 2008
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Today is the first day in a while that I did not run to my bed the second Will went down for a nap. Lately, the only way I can function is to sleep while he sleeps. Of course this means that the usual things that I like to do while he's sleeping get put off (blogging, showers, cleaning, etc.). I end up taking my showers while Will is happily (hopefully) playing in his exersaucer immediately after he wakes up and has eaten. This is usually the only time he'll put up with being confined in his own house while he's awake.
I guess I'll continue with a little summary of what's been going on with me, besides the obvious, and then I'll move on to the obvious (little babe growing inside me). On Sunday night we ended our Bach Society season with a wonderful concert at the Cathedral Basilica. Some highlights include a magnificent mass by Steven Mager that was commissioned just for us and premiered Sunday night. The small orchestra was so good and I am now convinced that Steven is a genius. The other highlight (for me) was that I had a small (one verse) solo in our very last piece, a spiritual arrangement of "This Little Light of Mine". I've spent the better part of the last 2 1/2 weeks very nervous about it due to how the nausea has affected my singing, and I was so relieved when I felt pretty good Sunday night and the solo went very well. This is encouraging also because in 2 weeks I am auditioning for the soprano Young Artist award for the Bach Society and I believe I left a good impression on Dennis (our director). Carol has been encouraging me to do this for about a year now I finally feel like I'm ready. We'll see what happens.
As far as the pregnancy goes, things seem to be progressing fine. I had an OB visit on Monday and got a chance to talk to our new doctor (Dr. Turner) about a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) and the benefits of trying for one. I changed OB's because Dr. Boedeker told me that they wouldn't let me go into labor next time and had I decided some months after Will was born that I wanted to try for a VBAC. I was already aware of the risks (less than 5% chance of rupturing at the c-section incision) and the main benefit (if you plan on having 3 or 4 kids, multiple c-sections can be hard on a woman's body). Dr. Turner is someone who supports VBACs and emphasized to me how she wants to let women labor but asks for her patients to trust her in the end if something else ends up needing to happen. I have no problem with this and I learned a lot just talking with her. We did talk about women who have planned c-sections and how they report a much easier time of recovery due to the fact that they did not have to labor for extended hours (in my case 30) and in her words: "They know when it's going to happen, so they get a good night's rest the night before, they come in and the procedure is done in 15 minutes. They go directly to their rooms start nursing and having a good 'ole time with their babies because they have lots of energy." Hearing this senario definately made me hesitate, but I was encouraged when she said that I should definately try for it and that I could change my mind at any time.
As for the nausea, it's definately still there but much better lately. There was about a week when I felt so ill all the time and a few days when I couldn't even get out of bed I felt so sick (luckily this was during a weekend and Rodney took care of Will). I am 8 1/2 weeks along and the nausea should be gone in a month. A month is a long time to feel sick, so I'm trying not to think about it. In Rodney's words I just need to take it one day at a time. He's right.
Last night I gave William his first pasta dinner in which he fed himself. I made ravioli for myself and decided to share it with him so I stripped him to his diaper, put on a bib and served him up some. Of course, everyone's got a photo of themselves covered with pasta, so here's Will's official "pasta pic":
Thanks to everyone who left well-wishes on comments on my last post. I appreciate all of your "congrats."
I guess I'll continue with a little summary of what's been going on with me, besides the obvious, and then I'll move on to the obvious (little babe growing inside me). On Sunday night we ended our Bach Society season with a wonderful concert at the Cathedral Basilica. Some highlights include a magnificent mass by Steven Mager that was commissioned just for us and premiered Sunday night. The small orchestra was so good and I am now convinced that Steven is a genius. The other highlight (for me) was that I had a small (one verse) solo in our very last piece, a spiritual arrangement of "This Little Light of Mine". I've spent the better part of the last 2 1/2 weeks very nervous about it due to how the nausea has affected my singing, and I was so relieved when I felt pretty good Sunday night and the solo went very well. This is encouraging also because in 2 weeks I am auditioning for the soprano Young Artist award for the Bach Society and I believe I left a good impression on Dennis (our director). Carol has been encouraging me to do this for about a year now I finally feel like I'm ready. We'll see what happens.
As far as the pregnancy goes, things seem to be progressing fine. I had an OB visit on Monday and got a chance to talk to our new doctor (Dr. Turner) about a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) and the benefits of trying for one. I changed OB's because Dr. Boedeker told me that they wouldn't let me go into labor next time and had I decided some months after Will was born that I wanted to try for a VBAC. I was already aware of the risks (less than 5% chance of rupturing at the c-section incision) and the main benefit (if you plan on having 3 or 4 kids, multiple c-sections can be hard on a woman's body). Dr. Turner is someone who supports VBACs and emphasized to me how she wants to let women labor but asks for her patients to trust her in the end if something else ends up needing to happen. I have no problem with this and I learned a lot just talking with her. We did talk about women who have planned c-sections and how they report a much easier time of recovery due to the fact that they did not have to labor for extended hours (in my case 30) and in her words: "They know when it's going to happen, so they get a good night's rest the night before, they come in and the procedure is done in 15 minutes. They go directly to their rooms start nursing and having a good 'ole time with their babies because they have lots of energy." Hearing this senario definately made me hesitate, but I was encouraged when she said that I should definately try for it and that I could change my mind at any time.
As for the nausea, it's definately still there but much better lately. There was about a week when I felt so ill all the time and a few days when I couldn't even get out of bed I felt so sick (luckily this was during a weekend and Rodney took care of Will). I am 8 1/2 weeks along and the nausea should be gone in a month. A month is a long time to feel sick, so I'm trying not to think about it. In Rodney's words I just need to take it one day at a time. He's right.
Last night I gave William his first pasta dinner in which he fed himself. I made ravioli for myself and decided to share it with him so I stripped him to his diaper, put on a bib and served him up some. Of course, everyone's got a photo of themselves covered with pasta, so here's Will's official "pasta pic":
It's not the best of the 3 or 4 I took, but I love his smile in this one.
I also got a video this morning of several "tricks" that he's been doing lately: this cuddle thing he does with random objects, making a kissing sound, and waving. He's also been pointing to things and making a clicking sound with his tongue (I try to get him to do this on the video without sucess). Maybe we'll catch those on another video.
Thanks to everyone who left well-wishes on comments on my last post. I appreciate all of your "congrats."
Monday, April 28, 2008
Excuses Excuses
I have a very valid excuse for not posting in a while: I'm pregnant and have been fighting daily the urge to throw up. I do think that overall it's been better (so far) than the nausea I had while pregnant with Will, but the main difference is that I have him to take care of most days. Rodney has been so wonderful on the weekends, but that's nothing new.
Well, here are the details for those who are curious. I am about 8 weeks along and the due date is the second week of December. Will and his sibling will be 19 months apart, which is 2 months further apart than my sister and I are (and we've always been close). Rodney's grandmother just told us that Nancy and her two sisters were all 16 months apart! She said "we just did what we had to do." I am scared and excited at the same time.
This May we are celebrating two milestones in our lives. Will's 1st birthday and our 10th year as a couple. Rodney and I started dating in May of our freshman year at Greenville and dated for 3 years before marrying. So, in order to celebrate the latter milestone, we decided back in February to book a weekend at a bed and breakfast in Hermann, Missouri. Our plan was to leave Will with Jerry and Nancy for the weekend (if they wanted to and were available) and bike the Katy Trail while visiting some wineries. Lucky for us, Nancy and Jerry were available (and willing) and we booked the trip for this past weekend. Besides my nagging nausea (that kept me in bed a little more than usual and prompted us to abandon the bike idea) it was a great time. Here are some photos.
Well, here are the details for those who are curious. I am about 8 weeks along and the due date is the second week of December. Will and his sibling will be 19 months apart, which is 2 months further apart than my sister and I are (and we've always been close). Rodney's grandmother just told us that Nancy and her two sisters were all 16 months apart! She said "we just did what we had to do." I am scared and excited at the same time.
This May we are celebrating two milestones in our lives. Will's 1st birthday and our 10th year as a couple. Rodney and I started dating in May of our freshman year at Greenville and dated for 3 years before marrying. So, in order to celebrate the latter milestone, we decided back in February to book a weekend at a bed and breakfast in Hermann, Missouri. Our plan was to leave Will with Jerry and Nancy for the weekend (if they wanted to and were available) and bike the Katy Trail while visiting some wineries. Lucky for us, Nancy and Jerry were available (and willing) and we booked the trip for this past weekend. Besides my nagging nausea (that kept me in bed a little more than usual and prompted us to abandon the bike idea) it was a great time. Here are some photos.
Second Creek Farm Bed and Breakfast was surrounded by 135 acres of farmland owned by the proprietors
view from the front porch
Down by the pond there was a barn full of animals
Our room- the smallest one in the bed and breakfast, but still very nice
Even though I felt sick, this was sooo good
View of Hermann
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Blame It On The Rain
Spring is absolutely my favorite time of year. The sun starts shining more, the temperature gets warmer, and everything starts to bloom. The park is full of blossoming trees right now: dogwoods, magnolia trees and other white-blossomed trees of which I don't know the name. In Michigan the only trees that blossom are the cherry trees (that I know of) and they were off the beaten path in the town where I grew up. Ever since coming to this area 10 years ago, I have revelled in these fragrant and blooming wonders at this time of year. The only thing that gets me a bit depressed is the seemingly endless stream of rainy days. The rain has been coming down non-stop since I woke up this morning. These days are always hard for me because I so badly want to get out and walk. Ah well, I guess I'll just have to remember that this rain is the earth's incredible way of rejuvenativing itself after a long winter hibernation and that when it finally does stop, everything will be much greener. I've heard that the Botanical Gardens are beautiful right now and Will and I definatley need to visit when the "cats and dogs" stop dropping from the sky.
A lot has happened in the past few weeks, although at the same time I feel like nothing has happened. One of the biggest things was the NSAL vocal competition, held on March 29th. I did not win anything, but it was such a helpful experience and I believe I will look back on it someday and even say it was formative. I spent a good while depressed about what the judges had to say, but after lots of reflection and several conversations with Carol I've gained some good insight. One of the most helpful things is that I have started thinking much more seriously about my singing and how to approach my vocal issues. One thing Carol has "schooled" me in is the incompetency of certain judges and the useless critism they sometimes give. She has encouraged me to sense when a judge is critizising only for self-serving or power-mongering reasons as opposed to helping shape and teach a singer. A goal for myself is to not only be aware of but to work on my areas of weakness so that the next time I do this I will be prepared to weed out the invalid critism and not be crushed by it. Also, auditioning is a skill just as difficult as singing and it's something you have to learn by doing it. I see it as educaional and something that will get honed the more I do it. I've heard story after story of world-famous singers losing competitions for years before they finally win something. I'm reading Renee Fleming's book right now and it's incredible to me how she didn't just win every single competition she was ever in. It took her years to get where she is now, and she is so freaking talented.
Anyway, enough on that diatribe (yeesh). Will is so much fun lately. He's been clapping for almoth a month now, which is super cute, and just recently he started doing "so big" by raising his arms up over his head. Here is a video:
We also have visited the swings at the park for the first time this week and I can't believe we haven't done this before. Another video:
It's crazy to me that in little over a month he will be 1. I'm starting to think of his birthday and getting some good ideas from others. We definately want to utilize this historic park (Tower Grove) and have it in one of the victorian style pavillions. No one can resist a bar-b-que in May!
Here are some cute photos that we've taken recently:
See-Saw at Tower Grove Park
A lot has happened in the past few weeks, although at the same time I feel like nothing has happened. One of the biggest things was the NSAL vocal competition, held on March 29th. I did not win anything, but it was such a helpful experience and I believe I will look back on it someday and even say it was formative. I spent a good while depressed about what the judges had to say, but after lots of reflection and several conversations with Carol I've gained some good insight. One of the most helpful things is that I have started thinking much more seriously about my singing and how to approach my vocal issues. One thing Carol has "schooled" me in is the incompetency of certain judges and the useless critism they sometimes give. She has encouraged me to sense when a judge is critizising only for self-serving or power-mongering reasons as opposed to helping shape and teach a singer. A goal for myself is to not only be aware of but to work on my areas of weakness so that the next time I do this I will be prepared to weed out the invalid critism and not be crushed by it. Also, auditioning is a skill just as difficult as singing and it's something you have to learn by doing it. I see it as educaional and something that will get honed the more I do it. I've heard story after story of world-famous singers losing competitions for years before they finally win something. I'm reading Renee Fleming's book right now and it's incredible to me how she didn't just win every single competition she was ever in. It took her years to get where she is now, and she is so freaking talented.
Anyway, enough on that diatribe (yeesh). Will is so much fun lately. He's been clapping for almoth a month now, which is super cute, and just recently he started doing "so big" by raising his arms up over his head. Here is a video:
We also have visited the swings at the park for the first time this week and I can't believe we haven't done this before. Another video:
It's crazy to me that in little over a month he will be 1. I'm starting to think of his birthday and getting some good ideas from others. We definately want to utilize this historic park (Tower Grove) and have it in one of the victorian style pavillions. No one can resist a bar-b-que in May!
Here are some cute photos that we've taken recently:
See-Saw at Tower Grove Park
Preston- The Other End of the See-Saw
$1.00 Burger-Tuesday at Bar Louie
Sworn Enemies Make a Futon Truce
How the Other Half Lives
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
We are finally back to "normal" life around here. We have a new(er) washer, our pipes are fixed so we now have heat and hot water, our brakes are fixed on our car, and we made it to and from our spring break destinations without too much drama. It was so great visiting Paul and Erin in Chicago. I truly enjoy that city so much. I could definately live there if I had to. We were able to get to the Lincoln Park Zoo before we left for Michigan, and we spent gobs of time staring at the gorillas.
When we arrived in Michigan later that afternoon, my sister was recovering from the 24 hour flu that had hit her earlier in the day. Within a day my brother-in-law, Marc caught it and needless to say we used hand sanitizer every two seconds. Will seemed to stay healthy, except for the ride home when he proceeded to throw up all over himself in the car seat 3 times. It was so messy. Other than that he was in a good mood and actually slept a majority of the 7 hour trip. We made it home just in time to drop Will and Rodney off and for me to jump back in the car and drive to Bethel Lutheran where I was hired to sing at a Holy Thursday service. After singing in an 8 am sunrise service and an 11 am service on Easter Sunday, I took the rest of that day to recover from the craziness of the previous week and slept. It was glorious.
Below are some photos of our new nephew, Evan Michael along with Earon, Mia, Rodney and Will. Mia was so cute the whole time we were there. The last time we saw her she was only 18 months old and not really interacting with us much. Now she's 2 1/2 and the minute we walked in the door she was playing with us and hugging us and calling us "Uncle Rodney" and "Aunt Gina." It was so cute. One of the cutest things was in the morning when I woke up she was always sitting at the table eating breakfast and she would say "hi Gina" in her cute little toddler voice. I miss her already.
On Saturday I am singing in a vocal competition for the National Society of Arts and Letters. I have never heard of this organization before, but it was advertised through the Bach Society and Carol urged me to apply. There are six singers participating and the prizes are awarded to 1st-3rd place. In Marisa's words, I have a 50-50 shot in winning something! It's a little crazy because it wasn't advertised until the beginning of the month and we have to sing 5 songs from memory of differing styles and languages. I was freaking out about it a bit earlier in the week until my lesson yesterday. I decided that I will prepare as much as I can and then look at it as an educational experience. Whatever happens happens. In Carol's words "we're just gonna have you sing in a million of these." I am also looking forward to hearing Christine Brewer sing in Fidelio at Powell Hall on Friday night. A fellow singer has a free ticket for me and I'm pumped. I heard her sing once in college and she was magnificent. According to Carol, there are really four great singers alive in the world today and she's among them. Juan Diego Florez is another. If you've never heard of him I will post a video soon. He's amazing, and cute ;).
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Friday, March 14, 2008
A Plague on Your Houses...
Or maybe just mine. Atleast it feels that way. Let me start off by telling you about Will's 9 month well-baby check up, which was yesterday.
He's doing fine in growth: 50th percentile in both length and weight (length 28 in., weight 21 lbs.). I asked about the 2 bouts of gastrointeritis and the doctor said that it was just bad luck. Babies are constantly putting their hands on things and then into their mouths. Hand sanitizer is our new best friend. Nothing much more to report other than she had a look inside Will's mouth to check out his (8) teeth and she said that his first year molars are getting ready to come in. So, any of you experts out there with advice on what I can expect here would be much appreciated. Maybe there's really nothing to worry about, but I thought someone once told me these are painful ones.
Onto the plague. So, we had two days in a row in which it seemed that Will was finally better when all of the sudden yesterday he started coming down with a fever while we were at the doctor's office. He was up for about 45 minutes in the middle of the night last night unable to go back to sleep and burning up. He seems better today, which is good because we're supposed to leave tomorrow afternoon for Chicago and then on to Michigan for spring break. What is going on with this kid?
There's more: our washer finally died yesterday (with a full load inside) and as we attempted to fix it we noticed a gas smell. Laclede Gas came promptly and informed us that our pipes have several tiny holes in them and he shut off our gas. We've been without hot water since and won't have it until Tuesday. I of course have tons of laundry to do to before our trip and thankfully Connie is letting us use her units, but her dryer is out too. So, I'm off to the laundry mat...
...I'm back
Our car: the break pads and roters in the front are completely worn down. I took the car to Meinike today and dropped $270. We got that fixed just in time to trade vehicles with a friend of ours who has a truck so that Rodney and Michael could go and pick up a new washer from Belleville. And, I'm sitting here, having not showered and needing to do laundry and pack before I rush off to another live MET Opera broadcast in Chesterfield tomorrow morning only to jump in the car and head strait to Chicago. Ugh. What's that saying? When it rains it FLASHFLOODS.
I can't wait to get to Michigan.
Here's a photo. I'm titling it "What Happens When Dad Dresses Baby"
He's doing fine in growth: 50th percentile in both length and weight (length 28 in., weight 21 lbs.). I asked about the 2 bouts of gastrointeritis and the doctor said that it was just bad luck. Babies are constantly putting their hands on things and then into their mouths. Hand sanitizer is our new best friend. Nothing much more to report other than she had a look inside Will's mouth to check out his (8) teeth and she said that his first year molars are getting ready to come in. So, any of you experts out there with advice on what I can expect here would be much appreciated. Maybe there's really nothing to worry about, but I thought someone once told me these are painful ones.
Onto the plague. So, we had two days in a row in which it seemed that Will was finally better when all of the sudden yesterday he started coming down with a fever while we were at the doctor's office. He was up for about 45 minutes in the middle of the night last night unable to go back to sleep and burning up. He seems better today, which is good because we're supposed to leave tomorrow afternoon for Chicago and then on to Michigan for spring break. What is going on with this kid?
There's more: our washer finally died yesterday (with a full load inside) and as we attempted to fix it we noticed a gas smell. Laclede Gas came promptly and informed us that our pipes have several tiny holes in them and he shut off our gas. We've been without hot water since and won't have it until Tuesday. I of course have tons of laundry to do to before our trip and thankfully Connie is letting us use her units, but her dryer is out too. So, I'm off to the laundry mat...
...I'm back
Our car: the break pads and roters in the front are completely worn down. I took the car to Meinike today and dropped $270. We got that fixed just in time to trade vehicles with a friend of ours who has a truck so that Rodney and Michael could go and pick up a new washer from Belleville. And, I'm sitting here, having not showered and needing to do laundry and pack before I rush off to another live MET Opera broadcast in Chesterfield tomorrow morning only to jump in the car and head strait to Chicago. Ugh. What's that saying? When it rains it FLASHFLOODS.
I can't wait to get to Michigan.
Here's a photo. I'm titling it "What Happens When Dad Dresses Baby"
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