Brian's Home!

Brian is finally home for good from Dover. We are so happy to have him home!! Unfortunately since he was gone so long, he doesn't have much time to rest, since his honey-do list has continued to grow while he's been away. First job on the list: Put the crib together!!! We're running out of time! :o)

Leaving Dover

These are pics from right before Brian left Dover. The two of him in Class A's are from a ceremony honoring all their hard work and the one of him in ACU's is from one of his last days of work there.

(Brian is 5th from the left)

Tornado in Colonial Heights!

What a day we had yesterday! Lily & I were just out enjoying some shopping time with some friends on a rainy day. We had been shopping in Target - we had just left & were planning on walking down to Old Navy which is in the same shopping plaza as Target - just at the other end. Jamie & I ran out to my car to stash our Target bags, while Kim waited on the sidewalk under the awning with all the kids (Lily, Stevie, Kallie & Haley). Just as we ran back to the sidewalk, we turned around & there was a big flash of blue light and a really loud noise, which at the time we thought must be thunder, but later realized it was not. We thought the blue light must have been lightning hitting a building & something exploding. We're still not sure exactly what that was, but right after that we started seeing all this debris flying through the air in a circle - heading straight towards us! We just stood there for a few seconds not believing what we were seeing when Jamie said "Oh my God, look at that huge piece of sheet metal flying through the air!" That snapped us all out of it & we went into the closest store to us (it was a clothing store called Catherine's). As we were all walking toward the back of the store, the doors to the store starting opening & slamming shut from the wind & one of the sales ladies told us to run to the back room of the store. We ran back there & waited for everything to be over. When we went back outside, everything was just total chaos. There were windows blown out of all the stores in the plaza, there were windows blown out of a lot of the cars in the parking lot, there were cars flipped over - some on top of one another, debris everywhere, shopping carts strewn all over the place - some on top of cars. We told the kids to go back into the back room of the store so they wouldn't get scared, but after being in there a couple minutes we were told everyone had to get out of the store because there was a gas leak! Jamie & Kim walked down the shopping center to see all the damage that had been done & the Dress Barn - that was TWO stores down from where we were - was completely demolished. There was nothing but rubble left to that store. Kim's car was not damaged and she was able to leave, but 3 of the windows in my car had been blown out, so we had to stay & wait for the police & firemen to tell us when we could leave. It was the scariest thing I have been through. Everything happened so fast, it wasn't so scary while it was happening, but once I got the chance to sit down & realize what had just happened, I was really upset. I just have to thank God that we are all safe & that the worst thing that happened to us was my car being damaged. There are so many what-if's - it's pretty terrifying to think about. The kids were all so brave. I think most were a little too young to understand fully what was going on, but I was so proud of them. They really supported each other & kept each other calm. Lily got a little upset when we were told about the gas leak & when she saw all the police, fire, ambulances & other emergency vehicles & also when she saw a few people that were hurt, but she did really well with everything. I think it helped that I kept calm & didn't let her see me upset - luckily I was able to hold most of it in until we got home & I was behind closed doors! But she is a real trooper - all the kids were. It was confirmed today that it was a F-1 tornado with winds from 86 - 110 mph! It was unreal how the tornado just came out of nowhere. We had no warning of any kind - it was not windy, the sky was not black or green, it wasn't even raining that hard! The sky looked cloudy, but still bright. We never saw a funnel or anything. News reports say that the tornado first formed on the other side of the freeway & that it jumped over the freeway & formed again on the other side (where we were). So we're thinking that when we saw the flash of blue light & the debris flying in the air, that it must have been reforming then.

Here are some pictures of the aftermath from the parking lot & shopping plaza we were in during the tornado:

Right after the tornado, as the emergency vehicles were arriving:

The store with the red sign on the far left of the picture is the store we were in. My car was parked directly in front of Catherine's, in the first parking space closest to the stores:
These cars were in front of the Dress Barn:

This A/C unit was torn from the Target roof & was blown across the street!

Radio Shack:

America's Best Eyeglasses:

This is the inside of the Dress Barn - 2 stores from where we were!

We are so grateful & lucky to be safe!! THANK GOD nothing worse happened!!! I am so thankful my family & friends are all safe - just shaken up quite a bit. And I thank God it didn't get near our house! I don't even want to let Lily out of my sight now & I couldn't stop hugging her & kissing her last night. I am so happy we are all okay.

New Doctor

I had my first appt with the new OB yesterday & oh, my what a difference!! I guess I didn't realize how bad the other doctor really was until I saw how good it can be. This doctor made a huge effort to make a personal connection with me (and with Lily, who came with me), spent over an hour with me, talked to me about what I expected during delivery, circumcision options, etc. - all of which the other doctor never did. He also seems very up-to-date on all the most recent studies and technology. I feel much more comfortable with him and I am so glad I made the decision to change doctors - even if it was late in the game.

Well, I am definitely 37 weeks - the doctor said you can't go by the measurements taken now - even ultrasound measurements - because at this stage in the pregnancy those measurements are not accurate. He said the most accurate measurement is the first ultrasound you have. If there are 2 babies conceived at the same exact time, they are going to be the same size at 6 - 10 weeks. However, all babies grow at different rates, so once you get to your 36th or 37th week, those same 2 babies are going to be different sizes. He said there was no way you can accurately gauge how many weeks you are at this stage of pregnancy from a measurement. He went back & looked at my 10 week ultrasound and said the measurements from that would put me right at 37 weeks. He said I am only measuring 34 weeks, but he is not too concerned with that. He said that could mean I am just going to have a small baby or that the baby's position just has me measuring smaller. He also told me that the old doctor sent me about a month too early for my glucose test, so those results are not accurate either. It just gets better and better, huh? I had about 20 vials of blood drawn yesterday so he could run all the necessary tests that had never been done. That was fun...let me tell you. At least the technician knew what she was doing & I don't have a bruise the size of a baseball on my arm today, like I did the last time from the other place. The doctor did an exam and he said the baby's head is faced downward & I am already 1 - 2 cm dilated - woo hoo!! He said it's not anything to worry about - that I could stay like that for weeks, but it's a start! I also had my due date wrong. I think I must have heard wrong when they told me in the beginning - so my actual due date is May 16th, not the 18th.

While we were at the hospital, I took Lily down to the nursery so she could see where me & the baby were going to be when the time comes & so she could see all the little bitty babies. She was so amazed at how little the babies were and she said "Wow, I've never seen a baby that just came out of it's mommy's tummy before!" She thought it was funny that some of them had lots of hair & some had no hair at all. All the babies were sleeping while we were there, but a couple of them moved around a little bit in their sleep & she thought it was the neatest thing. I think she feels more comfortable after seeing where her baby brother is going to be & knowing where I will be when I have the baby. And after seeing the babies she is more excited than ever to meet her baby brother. :o)

Well, I think that's all my news for now...my next appt is on Thursday, so I will update on the baby after that - and it's almost the end of April, so I will be posting all of Lily's pictures from school soon too!

Doctor's Appt Disaster & My Sweet Baby Girl

Sorry, but I need to vent - I still can't believe this guy! I had my final appt with my old OB yesterday & what a disaster it was! When I asked for a copy of my medical records, he looked through my chart and asked me where my lab results were (as if I should know!). After talking to one of his nurses, he realized he never sent me to the lab to get my initial blood work done back in OCTOBER! over 6 months ago!!! That would have been the blood work where they checked my blood type & screened me for hepatitis, HIV, etc...Why no one ever noticed - in the past 6 months! - that was missing is beyond me...I have a feeling that if I had never asked for my medical records, this probably would have gone unnoticed forever.

So then the doctor said he wanted me to give a second thought to staying with him & not switching doctors & he wanted me to schedule my next appt with him. If after I thought about it again I still really wanted to switch doctors that I could call & cancel my appointment with him. So even though I had no intention of staying with him, I told him I would think about it, just to appease him. So he wrote down that he wanted my next appt to be in 2 weeks. Now, I know after 36 weeks your supposed to be seeing the doctor every week, and even though I was not going to be returning, I was still curious, so I asked the nurse "Shouldn't he be seeing me every week now?" and she said "Not until your 36 weeks" I told her I AM 36 weeks - I'll be 37 weeks on Friday & she said "well, your measuring 34 weeks, so your only 34 weeks." WHAT?!? I told her "I don't care what my belly is measuring - it doesn't matter how big my stomach is- I am 36 weeks." and she said that there is a 2 week window where you can get pregnant & if you deliver anywhere between 38 & 41 weeks your considered full term. I told her I understood that & she said "well there's your 2 week window". I have never EVER heard of any doctor go by a belly measurement over the date of your last period! I have a friend here who was measuring 3 weeks earlier than her due date and she had her baby on her due date & she was 9 1/2 lbs! So much for measuring small...All I can say is that I am NEVER going back to that crazy doctor and I am so glad I decided to switch before it was really too late. He didn't do any type of exam on me or anything while I was in there - all he did was listen to the baby's heart beat & measure my belly. Unbelievable. I can't believe I didn't realize how bad he was before I got sick & all this happened. I guess it's a good thing I got sick...I was never happier to walk out of that place & I will NOT be looking back!

Now, on to sweeter news...

Miss Lily has been SO sweet lately. I don't know if someone has told her I need to take it easy & to help me out or if she is figuring it out on her own, but she has been super duper helpful lately. The other day I was laying down & she came & asked me what was doing - I told her I was resting & she said "Well, if you need anything, you just tell me & I'll get it for you - so you can rest" Awww, how sweet! Of course when I DID ask her to get me something she said "UGH! Why do I have to do everything?!", so I guess it's the thought that counts. ;o) Then last night she was in her room & she yelled down the stairs to me "Mom, what are you doing?" I told her I was cooking dinner, cleaning and picking stuff up & she said "I wish Daddy was here". When I asked her why she wanted Daddy here she said "So he can do all that stuff - you sound tired!!" lol - she's so cute :o)

I have an appt tomorrow with the new OB, so hopefully things will go better then. I will update tomorrow after that appt!

36 Weeks and It's Official! (we think...)

Well, we are in the homestretch now! Only 28 days till my due date and I am ready for it! As much as I love feeling him move around in my belly, the lack of sleep, the frequency of bathroom trips, the pain in my ribs when he sticks his feet into them and the general discomfort and uncomfortableness has me ready for him to come out & meet the world. He's been getting hiccups pretty frequently lately, which makes me a little nauseous and his lack of room in the womb has him sticking random body parts out my belly, which looks (and feels) pretty freaky. As long as he stays in there until Brian comes home May 1st (yes, he did end up getting extended until then), I will be a happy girl.

I will start my weekly appointments now, however, it will be with a new doctor. I know it's a little late to be switching doctors, but when I was sick a couple weeks ago & went to my original OB, he told me my illness was allergies and acid reflux & to take Benadryl and Tums. If the Tums didn't work, he wanted to me take Zantac. Well, I tried the Benadryl and Tums and that did absolutely nothing for me and since I was getting increasingly sicker, I went to urgent care where I was told I had a viral infection & was given antibiotics to prevent any further infection. When I went back to my OB for my regular check-up, he asked how I was & when I told him how sick I had been, he scolded me for not taking the Zantac - as if that would have cured my fever, aches, coughing and general feeling like crap. He wouldn't acknowledge the fact that he may have been wrong & it wasn't allergies and acid reflux and that just made me lose all confidence in him, not to mention respect for him. I thought about it over the week I was in MA and decided I would be more comfortable going to a different doctor. So as soon as we got back from our trip I went & got a referral to another doctor one of my friends here highly recommended. Hopefully this one will work out better than the last. I will also have to deliver at a hospital a little further away than the one we originally planned on, but the one I will be going to now has a specialized pediatric ER & ICU and has been named one of America's 50 Best Hospitals, so I have more confidence going there anyway - just in case there are any complications.

I think we have officially (finally!) decided on a name for our little guy. His name will be Jake Thomas - and possibly JT as a nickname. (we think) - Brian & I both like that name, but it's not exactly what either of us wanted, so neither of us are 100% happy. However, we can't agree on anything else, so unless he comes out and totally looks like a different name, I think this is what it will be. I never thought picking out a name would be so difficult for us!

Lily is becoming more & more excited about the arrival of her baby brother. She is still a little concerned about us "needing her, wanting her, loving her" etc when the baby is born, but we have done our best to assure her that her place in our family is not going to be in jeopardy. She was in an especially bad mood on a recent trip to Babies R Us where she complained that "the baby was getting all this stuff and all she got was one thing" - but for the most part she is happy and looking forward to meeting her brother. However, she is NOT happy about our choice for a name and says her brother has to be named either Jacob (Jake is not acceptable to her) or David. :o) I don't see her getting her way, but with the way things have been going, who knows!

I will keep everyone updated on my drs appts once I get an appt with the new doctor. I am hoping he will be able to fit me in pretty quickly, as I don't have much time left. I should get my referral authorization number tomorrow and will be able to make an appt after that. Until then, here is the developmental progress for this week:

Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. He now weighs almost 6 pounds and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. He's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered his body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected his skin during his nine-month amniotic bath.

Just a quick update on Brian's recruiting: We still don't know anything for sure (gotta love the Army...), but since we haven't heard anything we are just going to go on the assumption that he will be leaving for school on May 26th. At least until we hear something different. He's hopefully going to be able to take some leave between the time he comes home from Dover until he leaves for South Carolina - so he can spend some quality time with us before he has to leave again and I'm sure he wants to squeeze in some time to work on his truck. :o) I will let everyone know when & if we hear anything more...

Red Rockets

THE RED ROCKETS

Lily's soccer team
Pics from Lily's first soccer game:
Waiting for the game to begin

Lily's "free kick"

Lily turning the ball the opposite way of where she's supposed to be going...


Throwing the ball in with some help from Coach Jamie

The pack chasing the ball

Rockets heading toward the goal!

Unfortunately Lily's team lost the game, but they still had fun, which is all that really matters. Lily was a little confused about which way the ball was supposed to go (she thought they were supposed to kick the ball into their goal) and she was a little discouraged when she couldn't get the ball (she said the other kids were bigger and faster than her) but she really tried her best and I think she will learn more and get better as time goes on. This was her first game after all! We are still proud of her for going after the ball, paying attention and doing the best she could!

Dance Recital 08

Lily had her annual dance recital this weekend. This year it was on a real stage & Lily was sooo excited. She danced so well & had tons of fun - she can't wait to do it again next year! We are so proud of her!!


Click to view video montage of Lily's dance recital!!


Dance Recital 08'

Practice Makes Perfect

Pics from Lily's last dance class before their recital:

Warm Weather!

After being in chilly Boston weather for a week, we were looking forward to coming home to some nice warm weather. We were not disappointed! Thursday turned out to be our first 80 degree day and we took full advantage:

Our Soccer Super Star!

Lily decided that she wanted to try & play soccer this season. When I first asked her if she wanted to play, she said soccer was for boys & she wanted to be the cheerleader, but a lot of her friends here are all playing on the same team & Miss Jamie (Stevie's mom) is the coach, so after going to a couple of their practices & realizing how much fun it would be to play, she decided she wanted to play after all, so we signed her up.

All ready to go to her first practice!

Stretching out
Going after the ball

Lily really impressed us when she started playing! She pays attention really well, she's not afraid to go after the ball, and she even scored a goal during practice! Goooo Lily!!

Lily practicing being goalie

Lily really seems to be enjoying her soccer time. Such a big girl!

Baby Shower

My mom hosted a baby shower for me & the baby-to-be while we were in Mass. It was lots of fun & great to see everyone!! Here's some pics from the shower & my ever-increasing belly...

The big sister got some gifts too...