One of us is in the care of medical professionals...

And it's not me! I had some trouble sleeping last night because I was feeling a little nauseated and crampy...I got up this morning, still tired, and claimed my spot on the couch. Awhile later, Nick wakes up and alerts me that he, too, has an upset stomach. At first I'm thinking how sweet it is that he's having sympathy pains, but it didn't take long for his gastrointestinal discomfort to far surpass my own. Feeling low on energy, I told him that maybe he should go see the doc to make sure he's not coming down with something. So he did. I just received a call from him at the clinic on the compound, and he is on his second bag of IV fluids awaiting a consultation from the doctor. Definitely didn't think that Nick would be the one with the IV on our due date...Praying for a speedy recovery from whatever bug is tormenting his stomach...

The Waiting Game

The good news is that Nick was able to complete his last training flight with his current company last night...The unfortunate news is that Emmy seems to enjoy toying with my emotions. I was feeling icky all day yesterday--tired, nauseous, uncomfortable contractions that were seemingly coming more frequently. Because I don't have a watch with a second hand (Nick is the one with the fancy military watch and the contraction calculator app) I decided to keep track of how many contractions I experienced while watching Oprah yesterday afternoon. I had a bunch! They kept coming while I made dinner and then started to subside a little bit after I ate. So I climbed on the treadmill while I watched Barbara Walter's 10 Most Fascinating People of 2009 (definitely had trouble understanding the rationale behind her #1 choice, but I digress.) The contractions came back and I would classify them as "not comfortable". By the time Nick came home from his flight, we were thinking that maybe we wouldn't make it through the night without needing to go to the hospital. Well, then I fell asleep...and slept great (no complaints, I just didn't anticipate I would)! Today, I have been supremely productive and have had very few, if any, contractions...So, it seems that Emmy has a sense of humor and wants to tease me a bit...I guess this is what I get for considering giving her the boot early, now she's going to keep me on edge. Touche, Emmy, touche.

39 week Dr. appointment

It seems that we're making progress! We are almost 3cm dilated and 50% effaced...We had a good chat with our doctor and decided to wait on the induction. We are going to give Emmy a little more time to decide her own birthday. We have now scheduled an induction on December 16th if she hasn't already arrived, although Dr. Anderson said he doesn't think we will make it to that date. So, for now, we've placed control back in God's hands...Nick is really looking forward to using his new contraction calculator I-phone app...haha! More to come...

Why must I be so indecisive??

Nick and I have been on the fence as far as inducing Emmy on Thursday ever since we completed our Childbirth Preparation class last weekend. We had to watch a video that said that "induction out of convenience is not a good reason". And that was our reason. So, we have been thinking that maybe we should give Emmy a little more time to come on her own before we "evict her" (I stole that terminology from the Landgrafs!) So, as of last night, we decided that if we are greater than 3cm at our appointment with Dr. Anderson today, then we'll move forward with the induction this Thursday. If not, we will schedule an induction on Wednesday the 16th (that's Dr. Anderson's next call shift) if Emmy doesn't decide to come before then...More to come!! Thank you so much to our cheering section!! We appreciate your love and support more than you know! :-D

Childbirth Preparation Crash Course...Better Late than Never!

We dragged ourselves out of bed early today to drive to Nashville to attend Vanderbilt's Childbirth Preparation Crash Course. We were, by far, the biggest procrastinators in the room...As we went around introducing ourselves and sharing our baby's due dates, most people were due in January, February and even March. We were the only ones to say, "Friday."

We took home a lot more than just immature laughs over the old-school birthing videos. We learned about what to expect in all stages of labor, when to call the doctor, relaxation techniques, the role of a support person (my favorite responsibility is that Nick should get on all fours for me to lean on if I should have a contraction while we are out walking), and some good advice for a smooth transition to life with baby.

Now, we are officially qualified to be parents, and we have a certificate as proof!


Nick's baby bump...He said it's a boy.


Nick enjoying his new "assets".

39 week date!

Nick and I are huge fans of comedian, Brian Regan. He has a hilarious way of making jokes about mundane things without swearing or being crass...Which, to us, is the sign of real talent! We had seen his specials on Comedy Central (and own his DVDs and CDs), but we'd never seen his stand-up act in person. We have talked over the years about traveling to see one of his shows because he has never been anywhere near us, but it has never happened. About a month ago, we decided to go on a fun date before Emmy gets here. For some reason, Nick looked up Brian's tour schedule and what-do-you-know he was to be in Paducah, Kentucky!! Only 90 miles from us! (You get used to driving long distances in search of fun when you live in a small town :-P).

So after Nick jetted home from work last night, we got on the road for Paducah! It was our intention to grab a quick dinner once we got there...Well, little did we know, we'd roll into town about half an hour before the show was set to begin. We stopped off at this little pizza parlor near the theater, hoping that we could grab some food on the run. Something you should know about the south, and particularly small towns in the south, is that people just don't seem to ever be in a rush. About 15 minutes after we had ordered (and fifteen minutes before we needed to be in our seats at the show), they were starting to prepare our order. We were the only two patrons in the place, but the three employees had spent all that time trying to figure out directions to the house of their one delivery order. So, Nick, who was thoroughly annoyed and very hungry, canceled our order and we shared a snack pack of Chips Ahoy cookies from the "concession stand" at the theater. I found the chain of events to be very amusing (Nick, not so much).

Despite our unfortunate dinner plans, Brian did not disappoint! We were rolling around laughing (I think Emmy was laughing, too, she was kicking around like a maniac!) Fortunately, the show was very appropriate even for her innocent ears! After the fantastic show, we hit up Hardees (one of the only places open in podunk Paducah at 9:30 at night). As we drove home, we were marveling over the fact that we were able to finally see Brian Regan, without traveling too far, just a week before our baby girl arrives...It was clearly meant to be!


39 weeks and feeling very ready to pop!

39 week date!

Nick and I are huge fans of comedian, Brian Regan. He has a hilarious way of making jokes about mundane things without swearing or being crass...Which, to us, is the sign of real talent! We had seen his specials on Comedy Central (and own his DVDs and CDs) , but we'd never seen his stand-up act in person. We have talked over the years about traveling to see one of his shows because he has never been anywhere near us, but it has never happened. About a month ago, we decided to go on a fun date before Emmy gets here. For some reason, Nick looked up Brian's tour schedule and what-do-you-know he was to be in Paducah, Kentucky!! Only 90 miles from us! (You gets used to driving long distances in search of fun when you live in a small town :-P).

So after Nick jetted home from work last night, we got on the road for Paducah! It was our intention to grab a quick dinner once we got there...Well, little did we know, we'd roll into town about half an hour before the show was set to begin. We stopped off at this little pizza parlor near the theater, hoping that we could grab some food on the run. Something you should know about the south, and particularly small towns in the south, is that people just don't seem to ever be in a rush. About 15 minutes after we had ordered (and fifteen minutes before we needed to be in our seats at the show) they were starting to prepare our order. We were the only two patrons in the place, but the three employees had spent all that time trying to figure out directions to the house of their one delivery order. So, Nick, who was thoroughly annoyed and hungry, canceled our order and we settled for a snack pack of Chips Ahoy cookies from the "concession stand" at the theater. I found the chain of events to be very amusing (Nick, not so much).

Despite our unfortunate dinner plans, Brian did not disappoint! We were rolling around laughing (I think Emmy was laughing, too, she was kicking around like a maniac!) Fortunately, the show was very appropriate even for her innocent ears! After the fantastic show, we hit up Hardees (one of the only places open in podunk Paducah at 9:30 at night). As we drove home, we were marveling over the fact that we were able to finally see Brian Regan, without traveling too far, just a week before our baby girl arrives...It was clearly meant to be!