Sick days.

We've been very blessed since we've been in California, and our little man has been very healthy. Of course, we have a bad precedent of getting sick when Daddy goes out of town on business trips, but that wasn't going to stop us this time. We both felt great on Tuesday night when he left!

Of course, Wednesday morning Jack woke up with a low grade fever, throwing up bile, and with a bad cough. Since I was on my own (and had enough issues of my own, see prior post. Ha ha) I called his new pediatrician and made an appointment for later in the day. I made him rest for the morning, keeping him out of his usual co-op group. He missed his friends but he didn't seem to mind too much since I don't think he left the couch all morning. 

Off we went to the doctor...

Patiently waiting.

We got to meet the third and final doctor in his new pediatrician's office, and she was just as amazing as the other two. I feel so very blessed that I found them! She did a few exams on Jack, and asked him a few questions (it's very helpful that he can now honestly reply to "show me where it hurts"!!) He had a myriad of random problems: swollen tonsils, a red throat (but not strep), a runny nose, a horrible croupy-like cough, and lots of tummy ailments. When she pushed on his lower abdomen, he winced a bit, and she said (warning: TMI and gross), "yes, he has a lot of compacted stool in his lower intestine." Poor guy was so constipated from being sick, not eating, and not drinking enough!

She gave me a suppository and basically said that it's a virus, and good luck - let it run its course. Easier said than done.

We went home, rested, and he had a long afternoon nap. I finally got some noodle soup into him later in the day, and then he perked up a bit. He saw a commercial for a play-doh machine and started talking about it, so I figured what the heck - we can make a 5 minute run to Target to grab it. It will give ME a chance to get out of the house for a minute, and Jack something to play with for the rest of the night.

I get to Target, put him into a cart, and hurry to the toy aisle. Jack starts his seal cough again and all of a sudden I hear the telltale gagging that precedes him throwing up. All the other moms in the area basically ran away like we were on fire. He threw up noodle soup all over himself, me, the cart, and the floor. Then he started crying and saying "I am so sorry, I just have germs." It broke my heart! Luckily there was a "call a team member" button on the wall near us, so I did - and the manager came over. I quickly explained that I had a sick child and I was really, really sorry, but they needed a mop. She was super nice and even opened a line for me so that I could check out and get him out of the store. EM-BARASSED!!!!!!! And lesson learned. Kids that LOOK fine aren't fine yet!

Anyway, we had fun Wednesday night with his new play-doh and he got a good nights sleep. He woke up on Thursday with no fever, sounding better and asking to go to school, so off he went. He did fine, no throwing up (ha ha) and came home exhausted. He took a 3 hour nap and then we played a bit and went to bed. 

Friday was another story. I was still keeping him away from other kids but apparently he was sick of being sick, or sick of me, or sick of Daddy being gone - not sure which one. He was AWFUL! He did all kinds of bad no-no things, like taking off his diaper and peeing in the corner of the living room (!), bringing in a giant cupful of dirt and rocks and smearing it into the carpet with a baby wipe, and writing on our beige microfiber couch with a magenta marker. I called my Mom basically sobbing (okay, really sobbing) because I was at the end of my rope and I didn't know what had gotten into him. She talked me off the ledge (thanks Mom!!!!) and Jack and I both had long naps.

Somehow we have survived Saturday and Sunday and we look forward to Daddy's return soon. (Not soon enough!) We hope he's enjoying his pimp hotel room and expensive steak dinners without us :) 

Here are some pictures from our week. Pray for me - it can only get better from here!!! 

First sick day. He's started sleeping all the time
with that hand under his head. So cute :)

Second sick day. Sorry it's upside down. Again
with the hand. The brown spot on his pillow
is Pediasure - that stuff is GROSS but at least
he drank it!!

Third sick day - HOLY. TERROR.

One of his better moments - reading me a book :)

so. much. pain.

I have tried to keep everything positive and happy when posting about this baby and this pregnancy, because that's what it is! We are so blessed and so lucky to be welcoming this little baby girl into our lives soon. I know that I am very lucky and I look forward so much to the day we get to meet her.

Part of the reason I look forward so much to that day is because I am in so very much pain. I don't say this lightly - I like to think that things like being an athlete and having migraines have made me stronger throughout my life. But this pregnancy, and this baby, are so much UNlike Jack that it is freaky!

My sciatic nerve still bothers me on and off. The left lower side of my back is often numb and/or sore - like your muscles feel after you exercise too hard and pull one. I am also carrying this baby much differently, although from what I can tell, she's transverse breech:

I can feel her head under my right rib and her feet (or knees, not sure) under my left rib. This is extremely uncomfortable, especially when she stretches (which she seems to do often.) I don't know why this position has my sciatic hurting so much, but it does.

I also have a LOT more trouble moving around this time. It's very strange, because I have gained almost no weight with this baby - much unlike Jack, where I gained a LOT and I swelled up huge by this point. Overall I look much thinner (if that's possible) and more streamlined with this baby, but I FEEL so much heavier. Getting in and out of bed, off the couch, tying my shoes, walking more than 10 steps - all of this leaves me winded and tired. When I stand up after sitting down for more than a minute, all of the muscles in my abdomen scream out in pain from being sedentary and then suddenly stretching. Best of all, every time baby girl moves a certain way, it causes a Braxton-Hicks contraction (which, contrary to popular belief, are NOT painless!!)

I hate writing a post of nothing but complaining, but I am so uncomfortable that sleeping has become a thing of the past, and I am very grumpy a lot of the time. Poor Jack doesn't know why his Mommy can't pick him up and cuddle him all the time. This is all temporary and I know that some days are better than others...I am just VERY excited about April and everything that it means, because OW!!

To sum it all up, I just saw this commercial and this is how I feel like I move all the time now ... and trust me, I didn't run any marathon!!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oaa37C-PUQ

I promise the next post will be all butterflies and rainbows again :) xoxo

Sibling Class

Something that our hospital offers, and that my OBGYN highly recommended, is the sibling class. It is designed for kids ages 2-6 and has special presentations about becoming a big brother / big sister, lets them see the nursery and where baby will be born, and gives them some hands on training in things like holding a bottle and changing a diaper. I just registered Jack for the March class and I am very excited! I know he will love it, and I hope it will make the transition just a little bit easier. Here's the confirmation email....

Dear Kelly Crosby (Jack Crosby),

Hi, you have signed up for the Sibling Class at Good Samaritan Hospital. The class will be on Saturday from 10:00-12:00 noon. Your class location is in Conference room 5.  Use North Tower entrance at Good Samaritan.  Take elevator C up to the second floor, exit to the left. Classroom is right by the elevator.

Please bring pictures of your child as a baby. These pictures are just to help your child understand that they used to be a baby.  Pictures will go home with you. Please email us the name of your child so that we can make out a nametag before class.

In our effort to be "green" this is the only notification you will receive regarding this class location.
Please print this email out for your records.  If you lose it you will need to call the office to obtain class location.

Thank you,
Parenting and Breastfeeding Services
Good Samaritan Hospital(408) 559-2229

To the dentist!

I am catching up on all Jack's well-child visits, partly because it's a new year and our insurance has started over, and partly because I want to do it all before the new baby comes. Today, he went to see his new dentist. (Well actually family dentist, since I go tomorrow and Justin goes next week.) 

They were amazing with him and even let Daddy Dog stay for his checkup. Jack was a trooper and let them scrape his teeth, rinse them off, use the scrubber, and apply fluoride. What a good two-year-old!! All the technicians came in to see just how good of a boy our little guy was!!

A little apprehensive at first...

I think he had a crush on his technician :) She
was super nice to him and really funny!

The best part!! The super cool sunglasses :) 

So it was a success! No cavities or problems for either Jack or Daddy Dog. We are lucky to have awesome insurance that pays for cleanings every 3 months, so we will definitely take advantage of that!!

Jack. Quite the Comedian.

• We got the show Dinosaurs on DVD. Jack found it on YouTube and loved it, and I had nostalgic memories of watching it when I was little, so I ordered it. He loves it, and constantly requests "I want to watch Dinosaur movie!" But the funniest part is that he has now picked up "not the mama!!!" and says it to Justin all the time :) 
• Jack is using an Elmo portable potty. When you push his hand (what we call "flushing"), it says some phrase like "Congratulations!" or "You're growing up, just like Elmo!" Sometimes Jack hits his hand on accident with his foot or leg when he's maneuvering onto the potty. He now says very defiantly "I'm NOT DONE, ELMO!" when this happens. It's hilarious! 
• Jack got a haircut. :) And a lollipop.

• We painted Baby Girl's room this weekend and set up her crib. We moved the changing table from Jack's room into hers, and the glider is next. Jack has taken the changes fairly well, and he knows it's Baby's room. He does not, however, like her using his crib mattress. (For various reasons the mattress on the floor came to be known as Jack's "special bed," a place for being safe from bad dreams/monsters, and when we all had to share a heater and sleep in the same room.) Anyway, he will now tell you that yes, that's the Baby's bed, but he's just borrowing it for now. We will see...I don't think this is going to end well! 
• Finally...Baby Girl has GROWN!! A lot! I don't know how she has any more room in there, but apparently she has another 11 weeks or so of growing to do...wow. I have no idea how. I can't breathe as it is!

Jack's 2.5-year well-child visit

Today Jack saw his new pediatrician for his 2.5-year well-child visit. Actually, he didn't see his pediatrician (that he has a mad crush on) because she went on maternity leave this week! Dr. Trojnar was due 1/29 with her first baby and we enjoyed talking with her last week. She will also be back in time to see our new baby girl in the hospital. Instead, today we got to meet another doctor in the practice, Dr. Pabari, for Jack's visit.

Here are his stats:

• Height: 33 5/8 inches (I think they were being generous) ... 10th percentile
• Weight: 28.75 pounds... 25th percentile

She asked me a LOT of questions about his development, his skills, any discipline problems we've been having, injuries, his eating habits. She was amazingly patient and very thorough. She even had a good sense of humor, because I literally finished the sentence, "yes, potty training is going well for his age. He tells me 50% of the time when he has to use the potty" and Jack started grunting and panting in the corner for his morning constitutional. :) Such a boy!!! 

She did a full body exam and said he's in absolutely perfect health. His tubes are still in and working (STILL!!!!) and she said his ears, tonsils, adenoids, glands, tummy, and boy parts all look awesome. He impressed her with his verbal skills and he had a lot of fun with his exam. 

Then came the bad part ... I didn't think he was due for any shots, but apparently I was wrong. He had to get boosters for pneumonia and influenza and that meant one shot in each arm. He sat in my lap like a big boy and braced himself, but the second the needle went in, he screamed - a lot. And what's a poor pregnant Mommy to do? Start crying too. Which I think scared him even more. Oops :( Anyway, after a quick stop at Lucky to get chocolate chip pancakes, we are all better. 

I am so happy to have found a practice that is a lot like Dr. Hunt's office in Massachusetts. It's small, they really take time with the kids, and they aren't phased by poopy diapers :) I can't wait for them to see our new baby girl!

Some random things...

Jack is doing great in preschool! He is having a lot of fun with his new friends and teachers. He comes home every day with some new story (today: "Mommy, I pushed my friend. I pushed him in the back and he fell down." Oops...well, some days are better than others.) Anyway, he's really thriving and I can tell it's tiring him out because this is what he does most days as soon as we get home:

PASSED OUT!

In other news, I finally picked up my car yesterday from (I hope) my LAST rental car experience for awhile. My car is fixed as good as new from the minor accident a few weeks ago, and both cars are up to date with maintenance, etc. Both Jack and I are very thankful for have our own car back and to not spend hours waiting in car shops anymore!

However, my last rental car really took the cake. It had super dark tint, chrome wheels, and New Jersey plates. I laughed hysterically when they gave it to me...just call me Carmella Soprano :)

As Justin put it, "oh yea rollin' on dubs"

Jack has had a lot of issues lately with (nighttime) sleeping in general. We stick like glue to his normal routine of bathtime, PJ's, quiet time, and then bed. Sometimes it works better than others. He usually goes to sleep okay (although lately it's taken me sitting in his room - "Mommy, sit in chair" as he puts it) but he's waking a lot throughout the night and (we think) sleepwalking. The night before last, Justin was watching TV on the couch. Jack wandered out, mumbling incoherently, and when Justin said something to him, he got really freaked out and ran away - straight into the wall actually - and started crying. So we think he "woke up" when Justin talked to him. But more on that later - he has a checkup with his (new) pediatrician tomorrow so I will be discussing it with her. (By the way, we met her last week and Jack said "ohhhh you are pretty" when she walked in - so yea, she was a hit!)

Hugh Hefner, age 2.5. Yes, with his own iPad.

 Other than the sleeping issues, he has been doing great. He's getting very excited (or at least more knowledgeable) about baby sister coming soon. He likes to talk to her, hug her, and he's really excited about taking baths with her so that she can help him play boats. :) I don't have the heart to break it to him that she probably won't be able to "play" for a good year after she's born.

When did he get so big? And he's still so much like Justin...

Baby update: she likes me to know she's there. She has been laying on my sciatic nerve since this weekend, making life SUPER painful. I had to call the doctor earlier this week because moving side to side and breathing were excruciating. Thankfully, after ice/heat treatment, rest, and lots of warm baths, she seems to have moved a little. I can at least function again...for now!

Today I had to take my glucose tolerance test. If you are interested, read here. It is pure torture for a pregnant woman. Fasting, then three separate needle sticks and six vials of blood over a three-hour period. Holy cow! Luckily it's over and hopefully my results are good so I never have to do that ever again!

Finally, I had my first real pregnancy craving yesterday. I HAD TO HAVE green peppers, super cold and sliced and dipped in ranch dressing. How strange! I wonder what's in them that the baby needs??

That's it for now...talk later!

Two year olds are funny.

Probably 12 times a day, Jack makes me laugh.

One of his favorite pastimes is playing pretend games where we go somewhere - lately, Disneyland. We have to get in the car (sit on the floor next to each other, put on our seat belts, etc) and I let him "drive." When it's time to get out of the car, he unbuckles his seatbelt and tells me to "wait, Mommy, let me get yours." He comes around to my side, unbuckles me, helps me out of the car, and tells me to "hold my hand, it's a parking lot, we have to be careful!" This is hilarious because it's the exact same routine we play out every single day (in opposite roles) at every store.

He has a great track record of saying "thank you" at every opportunity. But heaven forbid you don't say "you're welcome" immediately - then he gets belligerent and says "I SAID THANK YOU!!!!" over and over until you say you're welcome.

Loooooong story short, we've spent a lot of time in rental cars or loaner cars in the last two weeks. Try explaining this concept to a two year old! It's tough, especially when we drop him off at school in one car and pick him up in another. I tried various things: Mommy's car is in the car shop, it's getting fixed, Daddy's car is sick and went to the car hospital, Daddy's car is broken, etc etc. He just kept asking me "does someone know we have their car?," like we are Grand Theft Auto, preppy California edition!! So funny :)

Jack doesn't do "why?" over and over yet (but I am sure that's coming), but instead he does "what's that noise?" Every noise, big small or in between, has to be carefully dissected and explained. Airplanes, trains, rumbling trucks, whirring computers, the dryer buzzing...it all has to be questioned and reasoned. This is cute throughout the day and provides some great learning experiences. It is NOT cute when he's getting sleepy and laying in bed yelling, "Mommy, what's that noise?!" and it's the heater kicking on...the same noise that he hears 100 times a night.

Finally, Justin was trying to teach Jack about eating and digestion (always a good topic for Daddy to broach.) He simplified the process into three steps: 1. eat your food in your mouth, 2. it goes in your tummy and 3. you poop it out. What's the only part of this that Jack remembers and repeats over and over?? Of course, "poop it out!" We are always treated to the story of what's going to happen to his food as we eat dinner, "I am going to poop it out!" yelled as loud as possible. Very classy, we are :)

I am sure there are a million more things and I wish I could carry a tape recorder around with me, because I often think "wow, this would be great material for the blog!" and then promptly forget by the time he goes to bed and I sit down to write. I promise to be better with our next kid :)

A few photos:

I don't know if you can see the cookies on his mouth...
he got his stool, dragged it to the counter, and ate 5 fresh-baked
cookies before I found him. RIGHT BEFORE DINNER!

Fireman Jack!

Yes, we took him to Chuck E. Cheese on New Years Day.
He loved it! Daddy and I wanted to shoot ourselves
with that gun :)

Dressing ourselves. Requirement? "Lots and lots of pants!"

Waiting for Daddy on his birthday :)

Happy Birthday Justin!

Yesterday, Daddy joined the ranks of old men (and Mommy!) and turned 29. Jack was adamant about giving Justin a "dinosaur birthday party" and we had a lot of fun picking out all the decorations at the party store. 

Here are a few pictures of our night. We were so excited to have Justin come home early (at 5:30!!!) for a yummy grilled steak dinner, lots of delicious sides, and of course, birthday cake (decorated courtesy of our little man.) 

The whole birthday spread with the brains behind the operation.
(Yes, even the tablecloth had dinosaurs on it!)

The cake! 12 dinosaurs and 29 candles. Whew!

Reading Jack's awesome card. 

Whoa Daddy, don't burn the house down!

Trying to teach Jack how to blow out candles, attempt #1.

Attempt #2.

Drooling instead of blowing :)

Yay!!! Good job boys!!!

That is a DINOSAUR-sized piece of cake!!

I love it!!

We hope that Daddy had a great birthday! We sure did have fun planning it. Here's to another great year!

Baby update

This morning Jack and I went to see Dr. Gould for a checkup on baby girl. Everything looks great! I am measuring perfect, I have only gained 9 lbs total (she was happy with that!) and her heart rate was 148. My blood pressure was 120/70, which was also great. Things are moving along rapidly. With about 12 weeks to go, (!!!) she was ready to start talking about scheduling our c-section date. While she is willing to attempt a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean), she admitted that she is very conservative and the second anything looks amiss with me or the baby, she would wheel me into the OR. So...Justin and I decided that a planned c-section is the way to go. I feel like I am better prepared to handle it this time, mentally and physically, since I know what to expect. Anyway, she pinpointed the week of April 16 as the probable date, with the 16 or the 19 being most likely as those are her ER days. She will have the definitive appointment set up for me at my next checkup, the first week of February.

And now we just keep going! I have to do my 2-hour glucose screening next week (ewww!) but hopefully that will look good too. Overall this pregnancy has been great and I can only hope that baby girl comes out as calm, healthy, and relaxed as her pregnancy has been.

In other news, no, we do not have a name yet. This weekend we crossed off some of the front runners and added some new ones. So those of you waiting - keep holding your breath! This baby might not have a name until we leave the hospital. So much different than Jack!!

xoxo Lots of love on Justin's birthday!!!

In case you were wondering...

Yes, this is how big baby girl is at 25 weeks...she has grown A LOT in the last few weeks!! P.S. - I am definitely carrying her higher than I carried Jack, because I could button a pair of pre-pregnancy jeans under my bump last weekend. Of course, this was tested only because Justin told me that I could not under any circumstances leave the house in maternity palazzo pants and tennis shoes. Hmm, maybe he was right :)

I also found a few random photos from before we took down the Christmas tree...Here is Jack "hiding" under the tree:

And then he asked if he could go night-night with the presents :)

Quick Update

Today was Jack's first day at Little People Preschool. He was so excited that he even got up, out of bed, dressed, and brushed his teeth without any complaining! When we got there, we found his new cubby (labeled with his name, which he recognized) and put all his things in it. Then, while I was talking to his new teacher Ms. Michelle, he wandered off to play with the other kids without even a backwards glance at Mommy!!

I had a surprising bout of anxiety (who knew!?) and I was a little flustered all morning. That's not to say I didn't enjoy my 4 hours of solitude! A trip to Target sans Jack was heaven :)

When I picked him up, he was playing outside with the other kids having a blast. His teacher said "he had a great day, but he ate 6 chicken nuggets and two helpings of broccoli and cauliflower - is that okay?? It was twice as much as any other kid...." I laughed and said yes, that's fine - he was too excited to really get down any breakfast this morning so I am sure he was extra hungry! He brought home a cute art project and told me that they were working on making a kite (?), and that he was nice to his new friends. He's very excited to go back on Thursday.

Success!!!