Luckily the progress in TNH’s room is slow progress (baby steps if you will) thus drawing this blogging process out a little. Those of you who are in the know will realize that we took this step over a month ago, but we’re just now kinda sorta getting everything organized. We (and by we I mean Momma) have chosen to go with the ‘Zanzibar’ theme for the room. Elephants and giraffes and toucans, OH MY! Please pardon the poor quality pictures, I'm too darned tired to edit them. So far we have a diaper bag, bed sheets, and a quilt. We have a crib but it is as yet unassembled so you will have to make do with this picture:
There's also a mobile:
and some wall hangings:
Next up, furniture!
Who’s up for a little fancy book learnin’?
I know, I know, the internet (or as our Pres says innernetz) is for recreational purposes only. But far be it from us to let you, Constant Reader, get out of here without at least a little knowledge. So allow us to introduce to you a new serial post detailing the development of TNH. Relax, there will not be a test.
We got a late start on this topic (it takes a while for my brain to storm these days!) and we aren’t looking back. Last time we spoke of development (you may remember from post #1 here) that at about 11 weeks the baby was just over an inch long and weighed in at well under an ounce. Lots of things happened since then but we weren’t blogging about it then so we pick it up here:
We are now into week 16, almost halfway home. The baby is about 5 inches head to bottom in the fetal position and about 8 inches from head to toes "standing up." For a reference that’s about the size of your open hand. Weight is half a pound, give or take an ounce. By now all major body systems are formed and growing and gender is apparent (no we don’t know it yet.) It can make a fist, wiggle its fingers and bring its hands together. Do somersaults, kick, and wiggle its toes. The two halves of its brain are now distinct. It can turn its head side to side as well as look up and down. Its eyes are closed and un-openable, but it is sensitive to light.
That's all we know for sure right now. The next installment will be in about a month when the next developmental milestones occur. Thanks for joining us.
‘Til next time.
OK, so it’s not my best work. In fact it’s kinda rough and I’m not real happy about it but sometimes we just have to accept our shortcomings. My attempt to come up with a clever title stalled and I couldn’t get that old tongue twister out of my head. When you’re done booing and hissing, read on:
When we decided to start up a baby blog a month ago we really had no idea what we were getting into. My baby’s webmaster had all of zero blogging experience when the first post went up (and then down and then back up and then back down and then back up at its new location). We had originally envisioned sporadic (read monthly) updates following doctor visits to let everyone know what was going on without having to tie up the phones. Then we realized that there was more for Constant Reader (that’s you) to be notified of; Little things like the naming process, the baby’s room, the pe(s)ts, etc. So, we gave it a whirl and suddenly we had a hit on our hands. The posts got comments, people clamored for updates, and some readers seemed upset if we didn’t post anything for (heaven forbid) more than three days! We’ve even gone multinational. Word is that this site is very big in Canada where my baby’s daddy has apparently become something of a legend that he’ll never, ever be able to live up to. There’s even a rumor going ‘round that someone up there bought a computer just so they would not miss out on any more exciting episodes.
No pressure eh?
So, Constant Reader, we have even more blog topics in the works for you including a new series or two and even a surprise (but you’ll have to wait a couple weeks for it so the hype can build up!)
As I’ve said before blogging is hard work and we only have so many ideas so if there is a feature you’d like to see here or questions you’d like answers to please drop me a line at mybabysdaddy@gmail.com and we’ll make it so.
Yesterday was doctor visit number two. Here’s the play by play:
3:43 – We left the house. Her driving, me holding the pee sample.
3:56 – The first road rage incident (darn them schoolbuses)
4:00 – Check in. Right on time.
4:12 – I mentioned that the sign up by the check in window says the docs recommend that ALL pregnant women get a flu shot. Momma says she’s not getting one. I reminded her that the doctors think it would be a good idea so maybe she should think about it. She then reminded me that she isn’t getting one. She’s my baby’s mother and I love her so I kept this thought to myself and let the topic drop. For now.
4:23 – She read a magazine, I held the pee.
4:27 – We were pulled from the waiting room. YAY! Through the door, ten feet down the hall and onto the scale for Momma.
4:28 – We were then sent to the ‘Sub-Waiting’ room to ‘sub-wait.’ I don’t know how to sub-wait so I just stared at the walls instead. Fun!
4:56 – Off to an exam room. A resident is helping the one doctor on duty that day treating all four doctors’ patients. The resident came in, asked if there were any problems (there are none) and set Momma up for the Doppler.
4:58 – We heard the heartbeat. It sounded like it is slowing down a little bit but there was no measurment
4:59 – The doctor asked if we had any questions. Momma did not. BUT I DID!! I asked if the flu shot recommendation is something they SAY or something they BELIEVE. Long story short Momma WILL be betting a flu shot. I kept the gloating to a minimum.
5:01 – The resident excused himself and asked us to stand by until the regular doctor can at least introduce himself to us.
5:17 – Dr. Mathus came in, said hello, ordered a blood test and vamoosed .
5:22 – Momma donated more blood to Tri-Lab, we scheduled our next appointment (Oct. 12), paid $5.31 (HUH?!) and went home.
5:34 – Stopped at the grocery so Momma could have some con queso dip with dinner. Heaven forbid she would have to go a day without cheese!
5:40 – Home sweet home.
So all in all we spent two hours and seven minutes to learn that she needs a flu shot. I know, this is all terribly boring, but the key to blogging is quantity, not quality!
Welcome back to another exciting episode. Depending of course on your definition of exciting! Horsey still sits alone on the floor (the cats are still watching) but we have a wall decoration to show now. As you enter the room you will see this wooden basket before you see anything else.
Many a many a year ago, (before TNH was even a twinkle in its Daddy’s eye) Daddy and some friends (George Hoff, Billy Griff, and Fickel) loaded up their chainsaws and pick-em-up trucks and headed out to Eckert’s Orchard in Millstadt. See, we were in need of some apple wood and some chainsaw time and they (Eckerts) had just bulldozed a whole bunch of trees. So, with permission of course, we drove out into the field, climbed atop a pile as big as a house and sent the sawdust flyin' to the tune of four truckloads of tree trunks. Good times, good times. Most of the wood was used in cooking fires (some darn fine bacon was cold smoked over it in an old computer) but some was saved and taken to Grandpa Horvath’s to be milled. This basket is just one of the many things that those tree trunks would become. Each of the 68 identical pieces was milled, cut, and laid by TNH’s Great-Grandpa Horvath.
Welcome to the first installment of ‘Room For Improvement.’ This is where we will chronicle the step by step transformation of the spare bedroom into the baby’s room. We will post updates and pictures showing all of the progress as it is made.
All we have this to show this week is a ‘before’ picture of the room empty save for the rocking horse in the corner. We (and by we I mean Momma) chose blue for the walls long before there was a baby on board. It is not indicative of gender so don’t assume. The horse was a gift from Grandma Carolyn. The cats keep a wary eye on it all day long.
Several people have asked Momma and me about baby names. While we have not yet chosen a name (we don’t even know if we’re expecting a boy or a girl yet) we do have several under consideration and no we will not share them with you. Momma says it’s possible to pick a name only to find out that the name doesn’t fit come birth day. This didn’t stop her from purchasing a couple of baby name books and asking me to peruse them. Because she is my baby’s mother and I love her I overlooked this contradiction. Of the tens of thousands of names listed I could only pronounce about 800 and I wouldn’t even name a pet rat 700 of those. She gave me a little grief when I only found a name or two that I actually liked. Because she is my baby’s mother and I love her I shall try again to play the name game even though it’s tough to go about when you still can’t be gender specific. If you wish you can offer tips and suggestions via the comments button below.
Keep in mind that the Giovanettis have informed us that the name Logan is off limits to us because Andy is an X-Nerd and in the event they have a boy, he will be named after Wolverine.
Your laugh here.
Apparently the ‘webmaster’ has fallen asleep at the wheel. He doesn’t realize that with the millions and millions of cyber-destinations out here you need to keep plugging away to keep the visitors from jumping ship. So in his extended vacation we’ve decided to lend a hand. And, we might add, give ourselves some love. See, it seems we’ve been given a backseat in this whole baby scenario. No more free reign in the spare bedroom. No mention on this here blog (until now). And no doubt the future holds less lap time, less feather duster time, and less tennis ball time. Not that we’re bitter, we just want our 15 minutes too. Here we are, alphabetical-like.
Caesar here. I was orphaned and adopted at a very young age and learned everything I know about being a cat from Cleo. Only problem was Cleo didn’t really know how to be a cat either. HA! That was a strange coupla years. Hobbies include shedding, furball tossing, and getting attention. Man do I love getting attention. I like ‘bonking’ my head into things. Furniture, feet, hands, faces, it doesn’t matter. My ‘grandma’ Carolyn taught me a cool trick where I jump up onto somebody’s shoulder when they are least expecting it. She’s the only person that thinks it cute though so the practice was banned after the hot coffee incident. I like to think that I like to crawl under the covers, but I don’t really like it that much. I get scared easy, I’m kind of a chicken.
I’m Cleo. My hobbies include sleeping and eating. There really isn’t time for anything else anyway. If you aren’t Brian or Teresa or if you don’t have Pounce treats for me I really have no use for you. I used to be #1 around here, and then came this unending parade of annoying critters. What is this Noah’s Ark? You know it’s very hard to get my 22 hours sleep each day what with all the interruptions. Oh look, Wang Chi is eating the rug. Idiot. And Caesar has a hairball going the wrong direction. On the tile please. Gross! And Nola is incessantly squeaking that %$#@ elephant. QUIET!! It’s a wonder I let them all live here. I’m going to bed.
Hi, I’m Nola. I’m one year old and have so much energy that I have to pant ALL THE TIME to use some of it up. My hobbies include eating cookies, fetching tennis balls, going for walks, eating cookies, digging holes, unstuffing Kong, eating cookies, barking at the scary bike riders, going to the golf course to chase carts, and eating cookies. Cleo and Caesar don’t like me very much but they tolerate me so it’s OK. Wang Chi really likes to talk to me and we play “Ring Around the Kitty.” This is where he lays on the floor and meows while I walk tight circles around him as he smacks me in the face (them paws are FAST!!) and eventually bites my ear. It is SO MUCH FUN!! I can’t wait to do it again! Wang Chi is awesome! Sometimes my people let my friends Neko or Sadie come over and we run and run and run until we just can’t stand up anymore. Good times, good times.
Hey everybody, my name is Wang Chi, or is it Ricardo? I get confused ‘cause they call me both a lot. And I’m easily confused! I love everybody, even the dog. She thinks I’m playing with her when I’m really just beating her up. She’s not too bright! I like to play with/eat ponytail holders, rugs, Nola’s ears, the loose strings on the drapes, twist ties, bugs, and the fibers from the carpet on the cat trees. If you ever come to our house and you can’t find me, just push the crushed ice button on the fridge and I’ll come a-runnin’! I love that ice! I also like to lie in the middle of the floor of the busiest room of the house and meow as loud and as often as I can. It makes me impossible to ignore! When I’m not playing you can bet I’m sleeping right in somebody’s face (and I mean RIGHT IN THEIR FACE!) Again, impossible to ignore.
Well, that’s us. Hope you enjoyed our fifteen minutes. Maybe the ‘webmaster’ will put fantasy football aside long enough to add a post this week. If not, we may be back!
