A few snippets from our first days with Noah...
*Abby meets Noah: I could hear her voice coming down the "recovery" hall in the birthing center. Abby was giddy and a little nervous about meeting Noah. He was smaller than she expected, but that didn't matter to her. Abby immediately asked to hold him. She put her hands on his tiny head and brushed his downy-soft cheeks with her five-year old, pink nail-polished fingers. She looked so grown up to me all of a sudden. Her hair was a mess and her cheeks were pink from playing at school. She wore her uniform and climbed into the hospital bed with us, with her shoes on. There wasn't a hint of hesitation in her once she had Noah in her arms; she kissed him over and over and giggled at every sniff and wiggle that he made. She looked amazed when he yawned. The next day at school, Abby proudly showed off her hospital bracelet. Apparently her report to the class included two salient details: " I am a big sister, and poor daddy has to sleep on a tiny bed--his feet hang off the edge." No mention of poor mommy--I must have seemed fine to her. :)
*Abby leaves a rock on Noah's bassinet: A gift of sorts, Abby brought a rock to the hospital. (Grammar folks--the dangling modifier is purposeful; both Abby and the rock were gifts). I don't know if she got it from school or where, but she put it under Noah's hospital bassinet on a little stainless-steel shelf next to his diapers. The nurses comment on it--they guessed Noah must have a sibling who brought the rock to him. I offered to move the rock, but they said "No, leave it; it's his little talisman." Well, I suppose stones do mark great moments even in scripture. We have a bowl of rocks that we write important events on (a wedding gift to us, nearly 7 years ago now, from the Parks family). Abby's little stone gift looks different from the dark-gray rocks in the bowl, but perhaps it will be Noah's rock anyway.
* On April 12th in the morning, my mom called me in the hospital: "You're late for jury duty!" I laughed and thought, :"That's right, I'm supposed to be sitting in the courtroom about now! Oh well, let them come and get me."
*G changes Noah's diaper for the first time, gets hosed: I had heard that boys are tricky to change; they have a habit of spraying everything around them. It is TRUE. My first diaper change and the kid goes off like a (well-timed) fire-hose. Only ten days later and he has now gotten me, Matthew, our bed (a few times), the floor, the couch, himself. Want to come over for tea? I warn you, there are no safe places to sit!
*G and N's first night together alone--Matty went home to be with Abby after two nights away from her. I was lonely and afraid to be the only one there with such a tiny little baby. I think pregnancy hormones played a part in this, but I cried and blubbered on the phone to Matthew for a while; he listened patiently and lovingly and then suggested that I take advantage of the nursery and the excellent staff at the hospital so that I could get a few hours of sleep. Noah slept in the nursery for a few hours then spent the rest of the night asleep on my chest. The nurse did offer to take him back, but I wanted to keep him with me for the second half of the night. I was weary but proud of myself for keeping him. I felt brave. I felt like he and I were going to make it after all. This little boy brought me big comfort, and he and I really bonded in those hours together, alone.
April 20, 2007
student of the month
Yesterday the whole fam took Abby to school. I made that sound way too easy; let me start over. I was up with Noah from 4:30-7:30 a.m. He was wide-eyed and hungry. Abby made her way to our room after hearing Matthew and I talking to Noah (around 5 a.m.). Matty and Abby fell asleep again and I woke them up at 7:30 so that M could get A ready for school. I requested a wake-up call at 8 a.m., but time flew and I woke up at 8:35...totally unprepared to get into the car to go to Abby's school recital. A mad dash ensued and we were all in the car by 8:54 (she was due at school by 8:55). Noah was wailing because he was starving (I was going to feed him right before leaving the house). I grabbed a bottle of formula, which kept Noah happy during the recital, but also provided the ammo for his first world-class spit up episode--all over my nicest shirt that fits and in the middle of a large group of parents watching their kids sing patriotic songs. (Formula spit-up stinks). At that moment I realized I had forgotten to pack another outfit for him, and he was covered too. All of this faded into the background when Abby's teacher got up to announce that our own little Abby was "student of the month" in her class! Watching her walk over to her teacher to receive her star necklace and words of praise was a great moment. She smiled at Matthew and me and made sheepish grins to the rest of the onlookers. I remembered being about her age and singing in school recitals with mom and dad watching, and I wondered: How did I get here? My own daughter is singing and smiling up there and my son is in my arms; my husband is 30 and I'm turning 30. What a trip!
Next Abby shared Noah for show-and-tell. She held him carefully on her lap and told her classmates the important details: "This is my baby brother. He is very soft and very cute. He likes to suck on my nose and sometimes my finger too. We have to change his diapers when he poops. I like to snuggle him and kiss him. He smiles when he dreams." Wow. Abby really does love Noah. She lights up with smiles when she gets to snuggle with him or hold him. Last night she had him in bed with her for a few minutes and she wanted him to stay for the whole night:
A: I want him to stay with me. He makes me feel not afraid.
G: But he is so tiny; how could he protect you?
A: I don't know, he just makes me feel better. I want a real person with me in my room.
G: I understand, sweetie. When he gets bigger, he will sleep in your room.
A: Mama, will Noah grow up to be a dwarf? He is so little.
G: (laughing) No. Dr. O would have told us. Noah will probably be nice and tall.
A: Will I be a dwarf?
G: No. You're going to be taller than mommy.
A: Are you a dwarf?
G: No. (Though daddy likes to make fun of my shortness!)
A: I'm tired...
And so it went. Abby slept through the night--our little "student of the month"--she is such an amazing girl. Not once has she expressed even the slightest bit of jealousy toward Noah! I now have to remind her that I exist if I want a kiss goodnight; the girl is smitten with this new brother of hers. We all are.
Next Abby shared Noah for show-and-tell. She held him carefully on her lap and told her classmates the important details: "This is my baby brother. He is very soft and very cute. He likes to suck on my nose and sometimes my finger too. We have to change his diapers when he poops. I like to snuggle him and kiss him. He smiles when he dreams." Wow. Abby really does love Noah. She lights up with smiles when she gets to snuggle with him or hold him. Last night she had him in bed with her for a few minutes and she wanted him to stay for the whole night:
A: I want him to stay with me. He makes me feel not afraid.
G: But he is so tiny; how could he protect you?
A: I don't know, he just makes me feel better. I want a real person with me in my room.
G: I understand, sweetie. When he gets bigger, he will sleep in your room.
A: Mama, will Noah grow up to be a dwarf? He is so little.
G: (laughing) No. Dr. O would have told us. Noah will probably be nice and tall.
A: Will I be a dwarf?
G: No. You're going to be taller than mommy.
A: Are you a dwarf?
G: No. (Though daddy likes to make fun of my shortness!)
A: I'm tired...
And so it went. Abby slept through the night--our little "student of the month"--she is such an amazing girl. Not once has she expressed even the slightest bit of jealousy toward Noah! I now have to remind her that I exist if I want a kiss goodnight; the girl is smitten with this new brother of hers. We all are.
April 15, 2007
April 14, 2007
We're home!
The Pearsons FOUR are home at last. This is Genna by the way; now you get my side of the Noah story! Born April 11, 2007 at 10:47, he weighed 5 pounds 5 ounces (and is a little less than 5 pounds at the moment). He is 17 3/4 inches long (his sister was born at 6 lbs. 5 oz. and 19 inches, but she was three days early, he is between 3-5 weeks early). They think he may be at about 35 weeks, or perhaps 36. Noah arrived in spectacular fashion. My blood pressure was up so I was put on bed rest. The next day I went in to the birthing center to have some labs drawn and the doc just didn't see the point in letting the baby and I remain in any danger of complications due to blood pressure, so she suggested that we induce. Abby was at school, my hospital bag was at home and partially packed, and the infant car seat was still in storage. We thought we had some time left to prepare! Delivery details: so they placed a tiny pill next to my cervix, which had me dilated to 3cm by the morning. A pitocin drip got me to 4 cm shortly after that (all of this causing only mildly uncomfortable cramping). Then Dr. Wilson (a doc from Ireland) said he would break the bag of waters to "get things moving." He also said I could have an epidural at any time so I said I'd take it right then. Well, the rest of the story is the spectacular part: In less than 40 minutes, I dilated from 4 cm to 10 AND had Noah--WITH NO PAIN MEDS. They didn't even have time to get the epidural placed (though they were rooting around in my back for the right spot for a minute or two). I told the nurse that I had a super strong urge to push. To our surprise, she felt the baby's head already crowning! I was in complete agony from about 30 seconds after Dr. Wilson broke my water until Noah was born, but he was born with one push for his head and one for the rest of him. I don't know if I had more than one contraction. Matthew said he just came flying out. The doc made it to the room just after Noah arrived. Matthew said he hopes his hearing is intact (I screamed so loud that my throat hurt the next day). I had no tearing at all, and therefore no stitches or extra worries about infection, etc. I am sore, to be sure, but I feel really good. My BP is back down. Noah is itty bitty, but very healthy. Matthew taught Noah to nurse! We needed to give him some formula to keep his weight up, so Matthew got to feed him using his pinky finger and a tiny tube. My milk has come in now and Noah is nursing well. I have more stories to share, but I am exhausted right now. Before I go though, I just have to say that Matthew is an amazing husband and dad; he is taking such great care of me and of Noah and Abby too. You're the best, Matty.
Abby is in love with her baby brother. She thinks he is the cutest baby ever, and she is very proud about being his big sister. What a joy to see them together! Forgive my fogginess, but I am taking a muscle relaxant for a very owie neck (a result of looking down to nurse and admire Noah). More soon...
Abby is in love with her baby brother. She thinks he is the cutest baby ever, and she is very proud about being his big sister. What a joy to see them together! Forgive my fogginess, but I am taking a muscle relaxant for a very owie neck (a result of looking down to nurse and admire Noah). More soon...
April 13, 2007
Video of Noah in the hospital
Hi dear readers. Matthew again. I am home with Abby tonight, but before I left I took some video of a sleepy little Noah. Thank you all for your prayers, well wishes, and college fund contributions. Love, the Pearsons.
April 12, 2007
Noah Scott Pearson, 4/11/07
Hi all, Matthew here, guest-blogging for Genna, who is still in the hospital without an internet connection. I wanted to get some photos out to everyone though. Click on the photo to see more, and I will upload more pictures and video later.
Noah Scott Pearson was born yesterday at 11am, weighing 5lbs. 5oz. He's a tiny little tyke, but he and mom are doing great. I'm especially proud of Genna--she had the baby in 40 minutes with no pain meds! The doc was trying to give her an epidural but Noah wanted out! And actually, I don't think I suffered any permanent hearing loss as a result of it, so that's good. Thank you all for your prayers, thoughts, and phone calls and we'll post more updates soon!
Noah Scott Pearson was born yesterday at 11am, weighing 5lbs. 5oz. He's a tiny little tyke, but he and mom are doing great. I'm especially proud of Genna--she had the baby in 40 minutes with no pain meds! The doc was trying to give her an epidural but Noah wanted out! And actually, I don't think I suffered any permanent hearing loss as a result of it, so that's good. Thank you all for your prayers, thoughts, and phone calls and we'll post more updates soon!
April 2, 2007
honest opinion
Before church yesterday, I asked Abby what she thought of my outfit.
A: It's nice. But your belly sticks out a little.
G: (laughs).
A: Do you think people will think you're having a baby or that you ate too much?
A: It's nice. But your belly sticks out a little.
G: (laughs).
A: Do you think people will think you're having a baby or that you ate too much?
lip gloss and tighty whiteys
Abby woke me up at 7:30 this morning: "Momma, I have to get to school early today."
G: "Because you want play time in the morning?"
A: "Yeah."
Matthew drove Abby to school so that she could play for a while before class started. Right before getting out of the car, Abby proceeds to put on some (clear and glittery) lip gloss! Matthew came home to tell me that Abby looked just like me-- checking her lips in the mirror as she glossed and smacked. I told him that she reported getting an approving comment about the lip gloss from 4-year old friend Max (in another class, hence the desire to get to school early so that she can play with him before they go their separate ways). I think Abby has a little crush on Max. She called him her best friend and said she likes how his face looks. Matthew walks down the hall saying "Oh no, she has a crush. What are we gonna do?"
Then I related another conversation (from this morning):
A: Momma, why are girl undies called panties?
G: I don't know; that's just a name for them.
A: What is the name for boy undies?
G: Underwear?
A: No, something else.
G: Tighty whiteys?
A: Yeah! Those are gross.
G: Why? Are your undies gross?
A: No. Boy undies are gross because they go on butts.
G: So do your undies.
A: But girls aren't gross. Even daddy's undies go on his butt.
I did not ever clarify why boy bums are gross and girl bums aren't, but I took this whole conversation as an excellent reason not to make too much of her putting on clear lip gloss before school. As long as boys are gross, we're fine. Of course, if BBQ ends up being a boy, we will have more conversations like this one, I'm sure. Most of them will likely confirm her suspicions about boys--lovable and gross.
G: "Because you want play time in the morning?"
A: "Yeah."
Matthew drove Abby to school so that she could play for a while before class started. Right before getting out of the car, Abby proceeds to put on some (clear and glittery) lip gloss! Matthew came home to tell me that Abby looked just like me-- checking her lips in the mirror as she glossed and smacked. I told him that she reported getting an approving comment about the lip gloss from 4-year old friend Max (in another class, hence the desire to get to school early so that she can play with him before they go their separate ways). I think Abby has a little crush on Max. She called him her best friend and said she likes how his face looks. Matthew walks down the hall saying "Oh no, she has a crush. What are we gonna do?"
Then I related another conversation (from this morning):
A: Momma, why are girl undies called panties?
G: I don't know; that's just a name for them.
A: What is the name for boy undies?
G: Underwear?
A: No, something else.
G: Tighty whiteys?
A: Yeah! Those are gross.
G: Why? Are your undies gross?
A: No. Boy undies are gross because they go on butts.
G: So do your undies.
A: But girls aren't gross. Even daddy's undies go on his butt.
I did not ever clarify why boy bums are gross and girl bums aren't, but I took this whole conversation as an excellent reason not to make too much of her putting on clear lip gloss before school. As long as boys are gross, we're fine. Of course, if BBQ ends up being a boy, we will have more conversations like this one, I'm sure. Most of them will likely confirm her suspicions about boys--lovable and gross.
March 30, 2007
Jury Duty
Matthew walked in the door this afternoon and said: "G, you're a winner!!" Then he handed me a summons for jury duty--set for April 12. Now, I think serving on a jury might be really interesting, and I think it is an important part of living and serving in a democratic nation. But doing jury duty while 8 1/2 months pregnant sounds awful (do they give you "potty breaks" every ten minutes? Can you shift in your chair a lot? Are naps allowed? Would it be distracting to munch on grapes or apple slices during closing arguments? If your water breaks, do you have to raise your hand and tell someone, or can you just get up and call your hubby on the cell phone?).
So I filled out the "Request for disqualification, excuse or postponement." I laughed as I decided between checking the box for "Physical or mental incapacity," which required a doctor's note for people under 70 years old, and the box that claims "You have a personal obligation (not related to your employment) to provide care to another between 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., Monday-Friday. You must explain below why alternate care is not feasible."
I checked the latter. I subdued the urge to make wise-cracks about needing a plastic chair (just in case), access to an excellent anesthesiologist, and (if the kiddo arrives before said date) a qualified wet-nurse. I just wrote that I'm due May 5th and planning to breastfeed my infant. I'll let you know if they still want me.
So I filled out the "Request for disqualification, excuse or postponement." I laughed as I decided between checking the box for "Physical or mental incapacity," which required a doctor's note for people under 70 years old, and the box that claims "You have a personal obligation (not related to your employment) to provide care to another between 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., Monday-Friday. You must explain below why alternate care is not feasible."
I checked the latter. I subdued the urge to make wise-cracks about needing a plastic chair (just in case), access to an excellent anesthesiologist, and (if the kiddo arrives before said date) a qualified wet-nurse. I just wrote that I'm due May 5th and planning to breastfeed my infant. I'll let you know if they still want me.
March 23, 2007
the waiting game
We're at 34 weeks now, and the waiting game begins...when will the baby arrive? We're not hoping for anything too early, mind you, but I am feeling pretty ready to not be inhabited! As my energy becomes more sapped, Abby's is growing (correlation?); she was (literally) bouncing off the walls when she walked out the door for school today! She has been falling asleep during rest time at school--something she hasn't done for months--so I wonder if she's having another growth spurt. Her feet are now longer than my hands, and she is talking about sharing my clothes (and reminding me that the doc says she will be taller than her momma).
After school yesterday, Abby said "Let's go on a mommy and Abby adventure!" I was imagining a nap, but that was obviously not what she was thinking. So I suggested we go get manicures. She's never had a "real" manicure before, I mean the kind mommy doesn't do at home. I bit my lip and let her pick ANY color she wanted, no matter how wild. She went with a sensibly bright pink-fushia color, with glitter over that and flowers on her thumbs. They actually look very glamorous. I went with a french manicure on my already sensibly short nails. Funny how when your hands look nice, you feel more put together (even in your pajamas). Then we went to an art supply shop and got stretchy bracelet-making plastic wire, tracing paper, a flower stencil, and a kit to make a dolphin mosaic. I was thinking the mosaic would take her the whole weekend. She polished it off this morning before school. It has hundreds of pieces, but she apparently has some serious ability to concentrate on one thing till she's done with it.
This has been a big week for me: I finished and handed in my last seminar paper. This means I'm totally done with classes for my PhD! I have a ton of research and writing to do yet, but it feels great to have completed the coursework. I polished off my grading for the quarter (big sigh of relief) and handed in those grades, so now I have research for a professor to do, but on my own schedule!! I'm finally thinking about packing a bag for the hospital, wrapping up some scrapbooking so that baby #2 actually feels documented, and sitting quietly asking myself what I FEEL like doing! I have not had a chance to slow down like this in over two and a half years. No prelim studying, no papers to finish, no summer research projects to do. I'd take a deep breath if kiddo weren't pushing my lungs into my throat. :) Anyway, I feel really good about this time before baby arrives, and I'm actually super excited to see this little kiddo in person!!
After school yesterday, Abby said "Let's go on a mommy and Abby adventure!" I was imagining a nap, but that was obviously not what she was thinking. So I suggested we go get manicures. She's never had a "real" manicure before, I mean the kind mommy doesn't do at home. I bit my lip and let her pick ANY color she wanted, no matter how wild. She went with a sensibly bright pink-fushia color, with glitter over that and flowers on her thumbs. They actually look very glamorous. I went with a french manicure on my already sensibly short nails. Funny how when your hands look nice, you feel more put together (even in your pajamas). Then we went to an art supply shop and got stretchy bracelet-making plastic wire, tracing paper, a flower stencil, and a kit to make a dolphin mosaic. I was thinking the mosaic would take her the whole weekend. She polished it off this morning before school. It has hundreds of pieces, but she apparently has some serious ability to concentrate on one thing till she's done with it.
This has been a big week for me: I finished and handed in my last seminar paper. This means I'm totally done with classes for my PhD! I have a ton of research and writing to do yet, but it feels great to have completed the coursework. I polished off my grading for the quarter (big sigh of relief) and handed in those grades, so now I have research for a professor to do, but on my own schedule!! I'm finally thinking about packing a bag for the hospital, wrapping up some scrapbooking so that baby #2 actually feels documented, and sitting quietly asking myself what I FEEL like doing! I have not had a chance to slow down like this in over two and a half years. No prelim studying, no papers to finish, no summer research projects to do. I'd take a deep breath if kiddo weren't pushing my lungs into my throat. :) Anyway, I feel really good about this time before baby arrives, and I'm actually super excited to see this little kiddo in person!!
March 7, 2007
Butterfly week
It has been a good week so far! Abby is learning about butterflies and is getting ready to study the life cycle of frogs. (I did spy a jar of tadpoles in her class yesterday). She is clearly learning about things she's interested in; just last night I asked her to close the back door to keep the "skeeters" out (mosquitos). She proudly said: "Momma, I know something that will make you feel much better. You don't have to worry about the boy mosquitos at all. They are not interested in biting you. Only the girl ones will bite. See, so you don't need to worry about the boy ones!" She is also coming up with all kinds of funny phrases lately. I walked out of her room for a couple of minutes, and upon my return she said, "It is so nice to have you back again." I think she's about as cute as they get! We're really enjoying our kiddo, and we're confident that the timing of bubba #2 will be a great fit for our whole family! Times like these make me realize how and why we do everything that we do in order to be a family--I'm so thankful for my Matty and Abby. Speaking of Matty-- I woke up this morning (after going to bed, exhausted, at 9:30 last night) to a sparkling clean kitchen. And over the weekend, he took some 10+ loads of laundry (our usual laundry PLUS all of the baby stuff from storage) to the Laundromat and brought them home clean and FOLDED! He and Abby have been having raucously good times playing games, and he and I have been enjoying mornings out for coffee after dropping Abbs off at school. We know these quiet times of just the two of us are about to look very different! Anyway--that's our story. Hope all is well with y'all out there.
March 2, 2007
the girl cricket
Matthew and I met eyes across the table and giggled as we watched our radiant, bubbling, wiggly little girl hum "You're a Grand Old Flag" while rocking her bent arms to the beat. This went on for quite some time; all through dinner in fact (and sometimes there were words, sometimes just humming with eyes closed, sometimes determined-to-crack-mom-and-dad-up grunts to the beat). This is the new Merryhill-attending Abby--brimming over with things to share and feeling very confident! The after school barrage of new info. and ideas included the following (in no particular order):
"Momma, I held the tiniest snail today. Snails have just one foot. Just one body part! How many do we have? The snail slithered on my arm; it was tickly and soft. I was afraid at first, but then I wasn't."
"Mr. Runion timed me on the playground. I rode the bike all around the sidewalk part of the playground."
"I was in a play today. Lots of people were there watching! I was the girl cricket! The only girl cricket!" When asked what she did as the girl cricket, she replied: "I jumped!" We later found out that she was the beautiful girl cricket that made the boy cricket sing at last (the whole point of the play)! This was for a school assembly in front of parents and everything.
Other tid bits: The Jr. Kindergardeners will go to the Sacramento Zoo at the end of this month; next week is butterfly week in Abby's classroom (she's thrilled!); Abby started a new trend in her classroom--she requested a gold, puffy paint heart in the center of the (gold puffy paint) sun on her hat, which led to ALL the girls in class asking for such a heart in their suns. Abby is super happy about this. She's bringing her own flair to the class, for sure. She had a tough time falling asleep last night (for obvious reasons, I think), but I let her snuggle next to me while I graded papers and she was out in a matter of 5 minutes! Her later bed time did not hinder her from springing out of bed at 7 a.m. and saying: "I need to get to school; we're playing a game early today." Matthew told me she won the memory game tournament handily yesterday. Finally, I should mention that when we went to pick her up at 4:30 yesterday (giving her ample time to play after school, or so we thought), she requested that we go on ahead to the grocery store and leave her at school to play some more. We get the feeling she likes her new school.
"Momma, I held the tiniest snail today. Snails have just one foot. Just one body part! How many do we have? The snail slithered on my arm; it was tickly and soft. I was afraid at first, but then I wasn't."
"Mr. Runion timed me on the playground. I rode the bike all around the sidewalk part of the playground."
"I was in a play today. Lots of people were there watching! I was the girl cricket! The only girl cricket!" When asked what she did as the girl cricket, she replied: "I jumped!" We later found out that she was the beautiful girl cricket that made the boy cricket sing at last (the whole point of the play)! This was for a school assembly in front of parents and everything.
Other tid bits: The Jr. Kindergardeners will go to the Sacramento Zoo at the end of this month; next week is butterfly week in Abby's classroom (she's thrilled!); Abby started a new trend in her classroom--she requested a gold, puffy paint heart in the center of the (gold puffy paint) sun on her hat, which led to ALL the girls in class asking for such a heart in their suns. Abby is super happy about this. She's bringing her own flair to the class, for sure. She had a tough time falling asleep last night (for obvious reasons, I think), but I let her snuggle next to me while I graded papers and she was out in a matter of 5 minutes! Her later bed time did not hinder her from springing out of bed at 7 a.m. and saying: "I need to get to school; we're playing a game early today." Matthew told me she won the memory game tournament handily yesterday. Finally, I should mention that when we went to pick her up at 4:30 yesterday (giving her ample time to play after school, or so we thought), she requested that we go on ahead to the grocery store and leave her at school to play some more. We get the feeling she likes her new school.
March 1, 2007
off to a new school
Here's Abby in her uniform! She started Jr.Kindergarten today. I'll send an update when we pick her up from school this afternoon. Last night she told us we couldn't send her to school with "Yo-baby" or blues clues yogurt anymore, because it would seem "babyish" to the other kids.
February 7, 2007
LOTS of BBQ
With 12 weeks left until our due date, this is the state of things: My belly feels smaller in the mornings and larger by the evening/night time. I'm still riding my bike to school, but I'll cut that out as soon as I feel less balanced. Hopefully that wont happen for at least another month and a half. I don't want to ride the "gimp wagon" (a service the school will provide to people who have broken a leg, sprained a toe, etc.), but I'll do it if necessary. Baby kicks a lot every day, particularly when (s)he hears Abby or Matthew yammering. We toured the Birthing Center in Davis this week. Abby was fascinated! She came home with all kinds of doctor's gear (including an umbilical cord clamp, which I'm hoping does not end up clamped on anything vital)and has been practicing on her baby dolls. This kiddo is READY to be a big sister!
I know I have been slow to blog, but between teaching a class, taking a class, researching for a prof, wife-ing, mothering, and gestating, I find myself fairly worn out most days. I think to blog often, but then I decide that the quietude of just resting is more appealing. All is well; we are enjoying the wonders of preparing to be a family of four--the talks, the laughs, the belly-watching, the role-playing...life is good.
I know I have been slow to blog, but between teaching a class, taking a class, researching for a prof, wife-ing, mothering, and gestating, I find myself fairly worn out most days. I think to blog often, but then I decide that the quietude of just resting is more appealing. All is well; we are enjoying the wonders of preparing to be a family of four--the talks, the laughs, the belly-watching, the role-playing...life is good.
our 5 year old young lady
Sweet Abby wore this dress (from her grandmother) for her 5th birthday party. I couldn't resist blogging at least one photo of her in it! An update on Abby: She is getting ready to start attending a private school! Beginning on March 1, she will go to Merryhill School. (Anyone interested in contributing to the cost of this is welcome to do so! We figure that we will be able to actually afford private school in 2 years, once we get "real" jobs). Since Abby can already read, and since she is beyond the public school Kindergarten curriculum in other areas too, we decided to look for a better fit for her. We are thrilled with the school we've found and are tightening the (figurative) belt in order to afford to have her there--this as belts become a far off memory for me with my growing belly... Anyway, we will have to post pics of Abby in her uniform (as soon as we get one for her).
looks like a teenager
Abby likes to listen to music as she falls asleep. Usually this involves me singing, but she also likes listening to CDs. We put the music on a different player now (after finding her crashed out with the headphones still on), so that she isn't sleeping with wires. But this image made us laugh. Our kiddo is really growing up!
January 17, 2007
Birthday Girl
Abby is FIVE! Here she is in front of her school door this morning. Cupcakes, giggly friends, and a day all about her...perfect. This evening she picked her favorite--Thai food--for dinner. We had a lovely feast at Thai Bistro in Davis, and after eating way too much (we had sate chicken, calamari rings, lettuce cups, and panang curry chicken), they brought Abby a birthday treat of fried bananas with ice cream. I love that she wanted to go to Thai Bistro and not Chuck E. Cheese (she's never actually been there).
January 10, 2007
who's the boss?
While playing with dolls tonight:
A: This girl is going to be the mermaid. But I'm not the boss. I'm only the third boss of the bubba (BBQ).
G: Who is the first boss of the bubba?
A: daddy.
G: And the second?
A: you.
G: What about you? How many bosses do you have?
A: one.
G: Oh? Who's your boss?
A: mommy.
G: what about daddy?
A: he's your boss.
This totally cracked me up--all of it! We haven't had conversations about "bosses" really, but I love hearing her thoughts on things we haven't directly talked about.
A: This girl is going to be the mermaid. But I'm not the boss. I'm only the third boss of the bubba (BBQ).
G: Who is the first boss of the bubba?
A: daddy.
G: And the second?
A: you.
G: What about you? How many bosses do you have?
A: one.
G: Oh? Who's your boss?
A: mommy.
G: what about daddy?
A: he's your boss.
This totally cracked me up--all of it! We haven't had conversations about "bosses" really, but I love hearing her thoughts on things we haven't directly talked about.
January 8, 2007
Wisdom, snot, leg cramps, and organization
What a wild weekend this has been. I'll try to recap it briefly: M had his wisdom teeth pulled on Friday; well, drilled out is more accurate. The dentist had to cut his gums and drill into the bone in order to remove a root tip. Besides being a VERY painful recovery--I'll get to that in a sec-- M endured this without being sedated, since our insurance doesn't cover that expense. He was numb but was totally aware of the entire procedure. He's a little traumatized by it, but he will recover. The pain on Friday night was outrageous. He only had Tylenol-3 and that didn't touch the pain. A late-night run to pharmacy and we had vicodine and valium (for muscle spasms). Those made him loopy but not much more comfortable! Saturday morning in urgent care brought some relief by way of an injection to the buttocks (Abby thinks that's funny) of toradol. Since then we've stayed ahead of the pain and he is currently organizing our hall closet.
On to snot: Abby has a cold that began last week. She is now in the stuffy/runny nose phase, which means lots of vaporizer filling and vicks vapo-rub slathering. I've unfortunately come down with the cold myself (and can't take decongestants because I'm pregnant). Then last night, just as I thought I might actually get some sleep (i.e. 20 minutes after turning off the lights), Abby wandered in with leg cramps. So I ended up giving her some tylenol and rubbing the poor kid's leg until she could finally sleep. I slept in her bed till 7:15 this morning.
We stayed home from church today-- snotty Abby, sneezy and baggy-eyed G, and chipmunk-cheeked Matty-- what a miserable crew! It hasn't been a bad day though; we're making more progress on our apartment as we settle in and prepare for BBQ, and we got to hang out together and laugh. I'm ready for a LONG winter's nap.
On to snot: Abby has a cold that began last week. She is now in the stuffy/runny nose phase, which means lots of vaporizer filling and vicks vapo-rub slathering. I've unfortunately come down with the cold myself (and can't take decongestants because I'm pregnant). Then last night, just as I thought I might actually get some sleep (i.e. 20 minutes after turning off the lights), Abby wandered in with leg cramps. So I ended up giving her some tylenol and rubbing the poor kid's leg until she could finally sleep. I slept in her bed till 7:15 this morning.
We stayed home from church today-- snotty Abby, sneezy and baggy-eyed G, and chipmunk-cheeked Matty-- what a miserable crew! It hasn't been a bad day though; we're making more progress on our apartment as we settle in and prepare for BBQ, and we got to hang out together and laugh. I'm ready for a LONG winter's nap.
December 31, 2006
Now is the time for turkey
The other day M brought home a turkey that the grocery was practically giving away after the holiday, along with all of the trimmings. We decided to cook the turkey and just save it for weeknight dinners. Also, since we wern't interested in a big presentation, we tried a new cooking method from our favorite cookbook The New Best Recipe (p. 377).
What follows is Matthew's explanation of why we'd go to the trouble of cooking a bird right after the holidays: This recipe, called "Crisp-skin butterflied high-roast turkey" is an attempt to solve the problem that plagues most roasted birds: by the time the thigh is cooked, the breast is so dry it needs to be thoroughly doused in gravy to be edible. This problem can be solved with chicken by roasting it at a high temperature for a shorter amount of time, but a turkey is too big to be thoroughly cooked using this method, unless you flatten it out by butterflying it. As you can see in the picture (sorry, we tasted it before taking the pic), a butterflied turkey is one with the backbone and ribs cut out, and then the breastbone is flattened using a rolling pin (or sledgehammer, whatever you have lying around). This way, the legs shield the thinner part of the breast when they are arranged as shown, and this 12-pound bird was only about 2-3 inches thick all the way around. (Note from G: The process of de-backboning and sledge-hammering the bird is gruesome--I'll never look at my marble rolling pin the same way again--I suggest you attempt this only if you've got brawn and a stomach to match it! Even the sound grossed me out; I went and took a nap--no joke.)
Second, the problem of the drippings causing a lot of smoke (because you're cooking the bird now at 450 degrees) is solved by putting your dressing (sans butter, because the drippings season it) in the roasting pan under the turkey, which is then placed on top of the pan on a broiler grate and brushed with butter. The roasting only takes about 90 minutes, at which time the thigh is up to 175 by the time the breast is at 165, leaving both parts fully cooked and still very moist, not to mention that crispy skin. The other secret is to brine the turkey in about 1/2 cups each of salt and sugar in a large stockpot with about a gallon of water. This step allows the turkey to absorb the seasoning throughout the meat and causes it to retain more moisture during cooking. We left ours to brine overnight in the fridge and it was just right.
Finally, we took the backbone and giblets and roasted them in a pan with some celery, onion and garlic to make a base for the gravy, because, of course, you sacrifice the turkey drippings for the stuffing, which, by the way, turns out at least as good as any in-the-bird stuffing.
So there you have it folks, delicious turkey, stuffing, and gravy in under 2 hours, with the only sacrifice being the presentation (though we think this butterflied bird looks nice). So now that all of these items are on a fire sale at the grocery, it's time to give it a try!
What follows is Matthew's explanation of why we'd go to the trouble of cooking a bird right after the holidays: This recipe, called "Crisp-skin butterflied high-roast turkey" is an attempt to solve the problem that plagues most roasted birds: by the time the thigh is cooked, the breast is so dry it needs to be thoroughly doused in gravy to be edible. This problem can be solved with chicken by roasting it at a high temperature for a shorter amount of time, but a turkey is too big to be thoroughly cooked using this method, unless you flatten it out by butterflying it. As you can see in the picture (sorry, we tasted it before taking the pic), a butterflied turkey is one with the backbone and ribs cut out, and then the breastbone is flattened using a rolling pin (or sledgehammer, whatever you have lying around). This way, the legs shield the thinner part of the breast when they are arranged as shown, and this 12-pound bird was only about 2-3 inches thick all the way around. (Note from G: The process of de-backboning and sledge-hammering the bird is gruesome--I'll never look at my marble rolling pin the same way again--I suggest you attempt this only if you've got brawn and a stomach to match it! Even the sound grossed me out; I went and took a nap--no joke.)
Second, the problem of the drippings causing a lot of smoke (because you're cooking the bird now at 450 degrees) is solved by putting your dressing (sans butter, because the drippings season it) in the roasting pan under the turkey, which is then placed on top of the pan on a broiler grate and brushed with butter. The roasting only takes about 90 minutes, at which time the thigh is up to 175 by the time the breast is at 165, leaving both parts fully cooked and still very moist, not to mention that crispy skin. The other secret is to brine the turkey in about 1/2 cups each of salt and sugar in a large stockpot with about a gallon of water. This step allows the turkey to absorb the seasoning throughout the meat and causes it to retain more moisture during cooking. We left ours to brine overnight in the fridge and it was just right.
Finally, we took the backbone and giblets and roasted them in a pan with some celery, onion and garlic to make a base for the gravy, because, of course, you sacrifice the turkey drippings for the stuffing, which, by the way, turns out at least as good as any in-the-bird stuffing.
So there you have it folks, delicious turkey, stuffing, and gravy in under 2 hours, with the only sacrifice being the presentation (though we think this butterflied bird looks nice). So now that all of these items are on a fire sale at the grocery, it's time to give it a try!
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