November finished out as a "winner" not only because of adorable baby things that made my day, like these.....
....but also thanks to my youngest niece/birthday twin (she turned 1, I turned 27), getting to go home to see family for Thanksgiving, and also having a baby shower while in CO!
John finally got to go to his first Centering appointment with me on November 22nd.
It's the third time he's been to a doctor's appointment with me this entire pregnancy, so it was really special for me to have him there and see what I've been doing when I go to these meetings.
John wasn't able to go to the appointment where the labor and delivery wing was toured, but at this meeting we toured the recovery wing so he was able to participate in that which was neat. We're going to go on a "make-up" labor and delivery wing tour later on before she comes though so he's caught up.
After our appointment we were off to CO!
Because John's job is so fickle when it comes to approved time off, especially leaving the state, we usually have to travel on different flights--on the same day--to the same destination--because of the tickets being bought at different times. People look at us like we're crazy when we explain how we travel, but hey, gotta do what you gotta do!
This was the first time my dad saw me "obviously" pregnant (one day shy of 31 weeks at that point) and boy, was his reaction great, "OMG, holy cow."
Yeah, I love you too dad. :)
Once John arrived we grabbed some late dinner and headed back down to the Springs. Good ole home.
Don't think I can ever get tired of waking up at my parents house and seeing this view from their driveway:
As Drew walked out of the gate area out to where we were waiting and saw me it was just classic.
Lots of smiles and big hugs, then he kinda stared at the stomach a minute and said he had to look away cause it was weirding him out. LOL.
No worries, I'm not offended, it is pretty weird.
This is a first for so many of us, the whole concept and thought process is pretty far out there!
Thanksgiving Day was great because it consisted of true family blending! John's mom, brother, and our sister in law came over for the lunch, plus, my dearest, Kristen Cook, totally surprised me by not going home to KS for the holiday and sticking around the Springs. GG (we're starting to call her 3G now that she'll be a great grandma, but she doesn't get it....) came over as well, of course, and Darrell and Myrna flew in from OK for the holiday as well.
I was tasked with the Green Bean Casserole over at GG's house, so I hung out over at her house (about 10 houses down from my parents house!) for the morning doing my thing, while she and Myrna slaved over peeling hard boiled eggs.
My poor distraught grandmother was getting very disheartened about the eggs not peeling right, so Darrell went to the store to boil another dozen and start over. At that point John, Drew, and Kristen were over at GG's house too, and in order to get the deviled eggs done in time, we had to get creative.
Thanks to Darrell's iPad and youtube, we discovered an "art" of making the egg peeling process go a tad faster and a bit more conventional. I'm very proud to say my husband displayed some new true talents I didn't know he had....May I present the concept, and new Thanksgiving tradition, of "egg blowing":
Sigh.......we are so easily entertained, it's scary.
The weather Thanksgiving day was fantastic, and after we all ate, the majority of us went on a walk on the trail that runs behind GG and my parents house.
We spent Thanksgiving evening with John's family on the other end of town. His dad is currently stationed at Ft. Carson with his wife and two young daughters, so we had Thanksgiving dinner with them then ventured over to Mom and Dad Hyskell's house (one of John's multiple sets of "parents") to see them, their family, as well as our dear friends (their son and his wife), Scott & Katie.
(I have to insert here that Scott, John and their other friend Casey all grew up on the same street since elementary school and still remain friends--better yet, they all married Katie's....keeping things simple I suppose??)
There, we got educated on cameras which was our Black Friday item we were on the hunt for.
Thanks to their coaching we ended up purchasing this bad boy:
...to which John pretty much hogged the rest of the trip. I got to play with it once when he forgot to take it with him somewhere, but that was really it. He'll probably be using it a tad bit more than me here in the beginning anyways, so maybe it worked out better that way. :)
That Saturday, the 26th was our Baby Shower hosted by my sis-in-law, Karen, Katie Hyskell, and my Mom, held at the Hyskell's house.
Drew had to fly out early that morning AND dad's high school football team he coaches had their quarter final game that day as well, so they missed out (ok, dad showed up at the end after their win and in time for his favorite part, pictures!).
We had an absolute fantastic time at the shower. Not only were we/Baby C blessed with many of the necessities plus some gift wise, but the fellowship of these long time family and friends were worth it alone.We have such an amazing support system, even all the way in Colorado, and it was so refreshing to be reminded of that. When the ladies were planning this shower the only thing I really "requested" was that people's spouses and kids came too. We have so many mutual friends I didn't want John to be singled out by a bunch of ladies, LOL. It made for a full house, but it was awesome...I think the men had just as much fun as the women. :)
The next morning we realized how tiring showers can be....and we also realized we're going to have to get all this stuff home!! I supervised while John demonstrated his long abandoned packing skills from back in his mover days in college....we sorted, stuffed, wrapped, everything you can think of to get as much packed into the empty suitcases we brought, and we (he!) rocked it. We ended up "returning" only three items for store credit in which when we returned home I purchased them back....it couldn't have worked out any better...
That afternoon we met up with the Christian clan to get some family pictures. It's very rare for all of us to have time off and be available at the same time, so this took a lot of careful plotting and planning, but thankfully we got it done thanks to Scott & Katie Hyskell, our "drug into it," photographers. :)
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| Connie Christian, Danny, Karen, Audrey, & Emery Christian, Jerrod & Brittany Christian, and John & Katie Christian 2011. |
Hung out with Danny, Karen, and their girls after pictures to get in some quality niece time which partially consisted of me trying to convince Emery she should walk for us. Sadly it didn't work, but it was worth a shot (about a week after we left we got a video text of her walking, little booger).
We then took the girls to the mall to see Santa which was awesome. Audrey was so good and just smiled away, but Emery hit a state of panic I have never seen before. It was awesome. This baby hardly ever isn't smiling, so this was definitely one of those precious moments to prove she's not an angel ALL the time. ;-)
Once we got back to NC it's been a whirlwind.
Doc appointments, night shifts, day shifts, random last minute work trips to Jersey (John that is!), birthing classes.....what else....??........
We finally hired a doula which I am SO stoked about. Her name is Dorris Ann and I knew I had to have her the first time I met her. Maybe she's just that good of a saleswoman, but shoot, it worked on me, so she's hired. :)
It took me a while to get John on board with this concept of using a doula without it coming across offensive to him or a waste of money--but once he met her and got to know her, it was a done deal.
I opted to hire a doula mainly for insurance for me.
John absolutely loves his new job with the K9 unit at Bragg and you can tell it's something he's good at--therefore willing to put in more time than most deem necessary.
With that, comes the down side of him not always being available when I might need something--anything....really day or night...and that was really making me nervous the more we got into the groove with this new unit and the closer to January we were getting.
The Army has made me a horrible "what if" person, sometimes this is good, sometimes it's just downright awful and I feel so bad that I have that mentality with everything, but it's become natural instinct for me.
Feel bad for John, honestly!
In the end, he and I both know, regardless of whatever "what if" happens, we rarely have control over what variable takes over--and that was just killing me while being pregnant.
What if he's on night kennels and my water breaks?
What if he had to take a last minute trip out of state and I go into early/labor?
What are our back up plans in case he's not there to coach me like we've been working on??
We don't have family here, or even within a days driving distance....we have some fabulous friends, but you can only obligate them so much in a situation as intense as that!
I needed a back up plan, aka: insurance, for me that if and when something like that does happen I'm not alone having to figure it out, and he's not off somewhere freaking out that he's not here to help me.
Hence Dorris Ann. :)
Then there is the other side of things, most likely (fingers crossed?) none of those "what ifs" will happen, John and I will be able to labor "together" with him coaching me and helping me like we want, and luckily for both of us Dorris Ann will be there regardless to coach both of us.
As a doula, she'll not only help me labor at home as much as possible (preventing multiple trips the hospital until I am dilated enough) but also run interference with the hospital staff, on our behalf, once we are admitted, when it comes to our previously outlined preferences/wishes for our birthing experience there at the hospital. Once baby is born she sticks around to make sure our after birth wishes are respected/implemented and also stays behind to make sure the baby and I are nursing correctly, etc.
The whole concept is kind of a new one I've learned....at least to people my parents age and such. The best way I've learned to explain it is to describe her as my personal "birthing" trainer.
I had to assure my mom she wasn't being substituted by a "hired mom" in any of this grand baby process, if anything the doula helping me will hopefully help my mom, dad, and John's mom enjoy the whole experience with us better by not being obligated to me 24/7 or worry about my or the baby's care if they aren't with me the whole time.
Hopefully once they meet her they'll realize all three of us are in good hands and they can not stress about any of it and just soak the whole experience in like we hope to.
I truly think it's going to work out great. I'm so excited to share this experience with our families I wish they could all be there when she's born...
It's just going to be so exciting, regardless of "how" she arrives. :)
As I mentioned before, we took Birthing Classes through Womack where I'll be delivering. The instructor, Tracy, was this fantastic "old" southern black lady (and proud of it, in case you would like to know!) that called all our baby's cornbreads (unless it is/was a big baby then it's called "cornbread and gravy") and taught us the good, the bad, and the ugly of pregnancy, delivery, medical interventions, relaxation & lamaze, as well as postpartum care and breastfeeding.A lot of these things I had learned in my Centering meetings, but since John's been out of state or unavailable for 95% of my doctor's appointments, etc. we pegged this as his crash course into "daddyhood." We both learned a lot and it made me so much more calm and confident with John being my labor coach with Dorris Ann.
I also took a breastfeeding class (taught by the lactation consultant) on post which was so informative and helpful. I've been picking the brains of all you breastfeeding mommies and between you all and this class I feel like I at least know what kind of commitment I am in for!We are so blessed with the resources the Army/Womack has to offer when it comes to having children. They may make our lives a living hell 75% of the time, no doubt, but when push comes to shove, knowing these resources are there to help make your family unit successful is just such a blessing to me.
About two weeks after our last Birthing Class I had my bi-weekly Centering meeting where the midwife confirmed our little girl had dropped and has currently "assumed the position."
What a scary/exciting moment!
According to the midwife, she's been head down for about two months now, but since the beginning of December I knew something was different with her...well perhaps more so with me, thanks to her??
Not sure which it is! Either way, they gave me a support belt which I've been totally rocking, attempting to bring sexy back, fo sho.
When they first fitted me for it I wasn't too sure about it, but after wearing it for a week now, I'm a firm believer! This thing is seriously dynamite.
It holds that little booger up enough where I don't have to waddle everywhere I go, and enough to relieve some of the back pressure her weight in my front was bringing me. Totally worth the odd looks I've gotten when my shirt doesn't cover it up all the way!! :)
Today, Christmas Day, is a month away from her designated due date.
I've always been skeptical of the phrase "due date" because in the end, does it really mean anything anyways?? She'll come when she wants to come!
Either way, it's a humbling/scary/exciting/exasperating thought.
We have been so blessed by the outpouring of love and support from our friends and family, literally world wide, that one would think it'd be hard to be scared and not excited.
BUT truth be told I'm scared to death.
I'm scared that what we are wanting for our birth plan might be me biting off more than I can chew.
I'm scared that I might try to be a hero and not be a good parent in being reasonable and responsible for her--not for me.
I'm scared that some of my very minor health issues might end up standing in the way of me laboring/delivering the way I want.
I'm scared I might fail at one of my goals and take it very personally--like already a failure.
I'm scared I won't be able to do it on my own, period.
It's so intimidating to think of being responsible for this little life we created.
Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we start our countdown of this last month (what if she's early?!!??! LOL) before she arrives.
In the end I know what will be, will be, and luckily another thing the Army has taught me a little too well is how to make lemonade out of lemons if things don't go your way.
Here's to my baby girl and the countdown to whenever she chooses to come. Be patient with your dad and I. We want so much for you that we're scared to breathe wrong when it comes to you already. We are so excited for you to come and so are your cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, great grandparents, great aunts, great uncles, great cousins (??), even your furry brothers and sister, as well as your parents friends that have claimed you as their own.
You are blessed little girl, in so many ways, just be nice to your mom please. :)
