Will there be an Audible at the line of Scimmage?

My best friend Grace called me yesterday to let me know that I was going to give birth to a baby a week from today.  I laughed because it is something that I am still unable to wrap my head around most days.  With the countdown ticking along, I grow more and more anxious to meet the little one. 

I was changing into my pajamas the other night and caught sight of my tummy in the mirror.  I just stood there looking at it for a while baffled that there is a little girl in there and she is the perfect mix of Clark and me.  She is ours forever.  A miracle like child bearing and birth is just so hard to fully comprehend.  The fact that our bodies are perfectly made to bring additional human beings into this world blows my mind on a daily basis.  Even with all the ups and downs of this pregnancy, we are so blessed to have been given this gift by God.

For the most part, I think we are as ready as we are going to be to bring her home.  We are hanging the mirror in her room this morning and that is the last thing to be done.  Mom and Dad will be down on Thursday night.  It will be nice to have them here to help take care of Nixon while we are in the hospital.  Mom is already putting together her list of recipes from the “freezes beautifully” section of the cookbook to stock up the freezer with.  I’ve packed and repacked my hospital bag.  There is really not much left to do except enjoy the last few days of a quite household.

With the date set, Clark told me that he has mentally prepared himself for delivery on Friday and to not go calling an audible and change it up on him.  I have about as much influence over that as he does, so we’ll see.  Personally, I would still like to be surprised.  I always thought I would have that moment where I call out to Clark and tell him it’s time and we throw the last couple of items in the bag and race off to the hospital.  Just like the scene from She’s Having a Baby when Kevin Bacon packs up the car and drives away without his wife in the car to go around the block when he realizes he is missing something.  But I am sure there will be enough surprises in our future that missing this surprise may be a blessing in disguise.

So unless Hannah calls an audible, I’ll try to get one more blog in before the big day.  Wish us luck!

Best,

Team McCarthy

Light at the end of the tunnel

In the words of Harry in Dumb and Dumber, “so you’re saying there’s a chance”.  My chance in this scenario is that this journey, as promised, will come to an end sometime in the near future and at least I know there will be a big prize at the finish line.  So as I have said before, Hannah is not being a team player.  What I thought was my rib aching all this time is actually a good portion of my internal organs being shoved 4 inches to the North.  Over the last weekend the dull aching pain in my upper right abdomen/rib area turned into a sharper pain.  So on Tuesday, I was sent to the hospital to have them check it out.  Seven hours later I left with the knowledge that Hannah is breech, going east to west with her dome shoved up into my right side, which I should refer to now as the scene of the crime.  She has crowded all my organs and especially my gallbladder, which they think is leaking.

So all of this is to say that now I have a scheduled C section on the 23^rd of September.  It is nice and weird all at the same time to pretty much know the date of her arrival.  I almost think it is cheating in a way.  There is always the chance that she will do her part and turn in the downward direction and come out on her own, but from what they tell me there isn’t a whole lot of room for her to turn. 

I have looked up on the “interweb” for ways to encourage the little miss to turn on her own.  Some of the ones that I have tried are lying with my butt elevated by either pillows or on an ironing board propped up against a couch.  Neither of these is comfortable.  I have also tried putting clothes pins on the outside of my pinkie toes.  This is supposed to be a pressure point that will encourage the baby to get moving.  This may work, but I’ll never know because every time I put them on (or actually Clark put them on because I can touch my toes), Nixon jumped up and pulled them off.  Lastly, I have tried putting a covered ice pack on the top of my abdomen.  Allegedly they do not like the cold and will move away from it.  She moved alright but not in any productive manner.  And I was just afraid that I was freezing her brain or something and probably didn’t leave it on long enough to do anything.

Since sitting and scrunching my stomach for any length of time now is painful, and lying on the extra desk in my office at work was getting awkward, I have stopped working this week.  Nixon has enjoyed the extra company at home, but is frustrated to have to share the remote with me.  So for now I will catch up on my Netflix queue and hot baths.  I know two weeks sounds like a long time now, but I know it will go by fast.

Any good movie suggestions would be great.  Hope this finds you all well!

Team McCarthy

Ticking Time Bomb

Hello last month of pregnancy, can we please come to a gentlewoman’s agreement?  I’ll try to take it easy, rest, and try not to bump things with my belly if you will ease up on my upper abdomen and allow me to go 30 minutes without having to urinate.  Deal?

If only it was that easy.  We are officially in the final stretch.  My best friend Grace described it last night as the top of the ninth inning (they are going to Boston/Fenway this weekend for their anniversary).  If this is the top of the ninth, who is winning?  I would say Hannah has a fair lead on me and I am not sure if the rally cap is going to make a difference at this point. 

The good news is that, for the most part, have all the things we need to bring the princess home,  Crib, Clothes, Diapers, Monitor, Car seat (installed even), and binkies (pacifiers).  Of course we have more than that, but we feel we have covered the essentials.  Clark said we don’t even need those.  He insists that he slept on a concrete slab for the first two years of his life and learned to communicate and scavenge for food as needed by the end of his first week of life.  He expects Hannah to do the same or at least become self-sufficient by the end of October at the latest.

Clark is still remaining relatively calm, however, some extra questions are starting to pop up, such as “where is that bag of stuff you want to take to the hospital with you?’, “should I pack a bag too?”  He is also getting some great advice from friends.  A work friend said he has already done his part and should be able to just work throughout the birth anyways.  Other advice I agree with a lot more is to “just say you are sorry and ask if there is anything you can do.”  This is advice that Clark has taken.  For the past couple nights, by the time we get home from work, I have been miserable and sometimes in tears briefly from being uncomfortable and yes, probably at the mercy of hormone fluctuations.  He has been great and has taken on all of the chores that I can no longer do.

It is comforting to know we are in the home stretch.  The fact that I could literally go into labor at any moment is a funny feeling.  I am trying to be more aware of the amount of gas in my car (I often let it get down to nothing, bad I know), we have a plan for Nixon while we are in the hospital, and lastly I am trying to make sure I can walk away whenever needed from work by working a transition plan with my colleague.  Mom and Dad let me know they are on “High Alert” for the entire month of September.  They are committing to nothing (even serving communion next Sunday).  As soon as we head to the hospital, they will make their way down south.  So we continue the T minus countdown and pray for the patience (and some relief) to get through these last couple of weeks.

Cheers,

Team McCarthy

No, I am not having twins....

In the past two weeks, I have been asked 3 times on if I am having twins.  And two of the askers, were women.  I’m sorry, they should just know better.  The one man that asked was quickly reprimanded by a father in the room that he is to never ask that question, just say you look great or say nothing at all.  I have pretty much come to terms with my belly; however, I really don’t think that I am the largest pregnant woman that I have ever seen.  I actually think I look pretty good for a woman walking around with what could be a full grown baby in my loins.  I will say that my height is definitely working in my favor that I don’t look like I am going to tip over at any moment.  Now the following information may not paint the best picture.

I had my 34 week appointment this morning.  Everything looks good, but I am measuring 40 cm.  Now for those uninitiated, you are supposed to measure about 1 cm for every week of pregnancy you are.  This for me means I am measuring about 6 cm ahead of schedule.  There are several reasons for this.  I could have a lot of fluid in my tummy, an 8 plus pound baby in there, or she has dropped but not giving back the room at the top of my tummy that she has taken over at the bottom (in other words, she is being greedy and not a team player.)

This past week has been a tough one.  I have had a few mornings of nausea, and the feeling of being stretched like William Wallace in Braveheart has intensified and is pretty much an all-day feeling now.  Yesterday on the way home I gave Hannah a stern talking to about her participation in my physical deterioration.  I have kept up my end of the deal with nutrition, sleep, exercise and weight so the least that she can do is give me back my rib area and more graciously share my abdomen space with me.  I did have one other request that she give me a heads up of when she would like to make her appearance.  Some suggestions that I gave were to put the Justin Bieber song “baby” in my head, move her feet over to the left side rib, or lastly push her little fist in a thumbs up fashion into my belly.  As long as she is ready physically, an early arrival would be appreciated at this point as well.

Hope this finds you all well.

Best,

Team McCarthy

Jimmy Legs, A Case of the Mondays...All Week, and That Baby has Devil Eyes

So I have now entered not only the late days of summer, but it seems that I have also entered the part of the pregnancy where very little is comfortable.  I am now in my 33^rd week and am finding it hard to stay in one position for very long.  Hannah continues to enjoy lodging her foot into my rib which makes it uncomfortable to sit for long.  Standing sometimes provides some relief, but then the heaviness of my tummy starts to catch up.  The only relief right now is to lie on my back for a little while until gravity does its job.

However, once in the laying position, the tossing and turning starts and the Jimmy Legs begin (Seinfeld reference).  Theses random kicks mainly come when I am on my back, but they can also come about while on either of my sides.  My Jimmy Legs were diagnosed by Clark.  Apparently Nixon (our 4 legged daughter) shares my affliction, which causes her to get kicked out of our bed and put in her cage.  I am hoping this isn’t my fate as well, although, Nixon is a good snuggler.  Needless to say, sleep has been difficult recently, both for me and by consequence, Clark as well.

This lack of sleep has been routine for the past two weeks or so.  It is starting to take its toll.  Motivation to roll myself out of bed each morning and waddle into the office has been hard to come by.  I compare this feeling to having a case of the Mondays, all week long.  I have had fleeting thoughts of throwing in the towel and taking leave until she comes, but am going to try to stick it out until the end.  Maybe making that decision was good for the soul because I had the best night’s sleep last night that I have had in months.  I actually woke up ready to meet the day.

Last but not least, Clark and I attended our first of four parenting classes last night.  Last night’s syllabus included washing, feeding, and daily care and monitoring (yes that includes a tally sheet to keep track of their diaper business, sweet).  Each of the couples in the classroom was given a baby to practice holdings, swaddling, dressing and washing.  We should have chosen our seat location a little better, because the look on my faux baby’s face was creeping me out.   It was definitely giving me the devil eyes.  Maybe it didn’t like the way we were burping it or that we left it exposed to the cold air too long after our fake bath, but those eyes were evil and had hate behind them.  Next class I am going to try to get the Asian baby with the smiling face. 

The class was quite informative and I am glad that we are attending.  It did however debunk some of the suggestions from family friends and yes, even my Mother.  Sorry Mom, adding rice cereal to their bottles doesn’t help them stay full longer to sleep.  Babies are able to digest the rice much faster than the formula or breast milk. It was just a coincidence that we were good sleepers. Don’t worry, I am still going to take your advice, you raised me and I’m pretty awesome, so you probably weren’t off too far.  The instructor encouraged us to ask our parents and friends about “infant feeders.”  Apparently this contraption launched food down the baby’s mouths?  Do tell.

An Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle!

We had another wonderful shower this past weekend in the Atlanta Area.  It was hosted by our good friends Andy and Molly Camp and Parker and Shannon Hurt.  Andy and Parker are two of Clark’s best friends from Auburn.  It was a wonderful shower and really continues to show us how blessed we are to have such wonderful friends in our lives and a wonderful circle of friends for Hannah to jump into.  The gifts for Hannah were incredibly generous and we get closer and closer to completing our “tool kit” to handle all the unknowns in front of us.  The show was stolen with one of the gifts from the Camps and the Hurts, a Pink Daisy BB gun.  Clark was over joyed with the gift and can’t wait to one day take our little one out into the woods and show her how to use it.  He also mentioned that if he can get Hannah to go hunting with him, he’ll be able to go more.  I laughed and said if she is anything like me, she’ll do anything her Dad does to spend time with him.

Seeing Clark talk with his friends about being dads was funny.  They keep trying to tell him how different it will be and how much it will change him.  Clark being Clark retorted with it is not him who will have to change.  Our friend Ryan just sat back during this exchange smirking and shaking his head.  Ryan and his wife Carrie have a little girl Carli and another one on the way, so this isn’t his first Rodeo and knows better.  Clark really seems to have embraced the idea of parenthood and has even muttered the words “let’s knock this part out and get to meet her.”  He seems as antsy as I am but in a different way.  He is just ready to tackle anything that comes our way.  I am antsy in the way of, oh S%*t, are we ready?  If you would have asked me 8 months ago, I would have said our roles would have been reversed.  However, his confidence is very reassuring.  He continues to make me laugh to calm me down on purpose or not.  His best lately was about one the gifts from our friends Blake and Julie.  They gave us the book “Go the F#@K to Sleep.” Clark asked if we read it to Hannah, I told him to read it first and use his best judgment.

On the home front, we are making some serious progress.  The new carpet for upstairs was put in last week and looks wonderful.  The crib and dresser have been ordered and will be delivered sometime next week.  I have already re-arranged the current items in her room once, and this probably will be the first of many.  I am really getting anxious to have everything set and ready.  We start our parenting class next week.  It is at Huntsville Hospital and will be once a week for four weeks on Tuesdays.  I am hoping this will answer a lot of the questions that we have or haven’t even thought about yet.

I did find a good article on what to bring to the hospital with you to make your stay more comfortable.  I would have never even thought of some of the stuff.  If you have any good suggestions, send them my way.  I am starting to pack my bag for the hospital.

Hope this finds everyone well and healthy,

Team McCarthy

Letter to Hannah

On the way to work the other morning, I heard Brad Paisley’s song “Letter to Me”.  It is a really sweet song and I have always liked it.  It got me thinking about writing Hannah a letter now to give to her on her 18^th Birthday.  It would capture all of our naive thoughts about what is coming up but I think it would be a nice thing for her to read about how excited we are about her arrival and how much she already means to us and she hasn’t even made her appearance yet.  I want Clark to write his own letter as well.

I want to tell her about our families and friends.  How she is the newest addition to a long line of strong women.  Women who are independent, headstrong (okay stubborn), generous, witty, caring, and often times outspoken.  We are women who have chosen our husbands wisely and carefully.  We are women who are proud of our families and take care to represent them well.  We are women who have learned as much through our failures as we have through our successes.  We are women who have been blessed by friends because we have been taught that in order to have good friends, you have to be a good friend.

I want to tell her that we have probably already been through the roughest time in our relationship and no matter what decisions she makes in the future, there is nothing that she can do that would change how much we love her. I would tell her that she is about to start a very exciting part of her life.  College is where her father and I came into our own as people, found lifelong friends, and learned that our parents were right more than they were wrong, but it is okay not to admit that yet.

There are other things, but I think this will be a good start for now.  To all of you, what advice would you give to your younger self or what things you hope your child has learned by their 18^th Birthday?

This Blog is a big thank you to all the women who have shaped my life. Thank you to all the Fraiser, Whitner, Brock, Fuller, and Passinetti Women for their advice and patience.

Cheers,
Team McCarthy