Welcome to the World, LRG

When I was pregnant with E, she measured 3 days ahead at her 20 week ultrasound. She was born three days after her due date. L measured 1 week ahead at his 20 week ultrasound. I shouldn't have been surprised then, that labor didn't start until 5:11am on April 22, one week past his due date.

Since I'd been having contractions on and off for two weeks, I wasn't really expecting anything to happen. In fact, I was planning on calling the doctor to induce the following Wednesday, since my insurance would be running out at the end of the month, and we wanted to make sure we had double coverage for the duration of our hospital visit.

I took a shower at 6:30, with contractions about 5-7 minutes apart.

I went for a walk at 7:30, contractions the same, some much stronger than others, but still consistent.

Paul took E over to the nanny's, and we went for another walk. Things were still about the same, so when we got back home, we called the doctor. She told us to come to the office to do an exam and see if I was in active labor.

When we got there, she told me I was 6cm, and I needed to get to the hospital, probably sooner rather than later. We still had to stop at the store for a few things, then went home, picked up our luggage, had a snack, and headed to the hospital.

We arrived around 12:30 or so. My nurse, Helen Louise, reminded me of my friend Lucy. She had an awesome, dry sense of humor, which was nice. I got hooked up to the monitor, and got my first dose of penicillin, since I tested positive for GBS. I hate that stuff, but whatever.

Things never got awful. There were a few contractions that Paul had to help me breathe through, but nothing at all like when I was in labor with E. They never got any closer than about two minutes. It was pretty crazy. And my water hadn't broken yet. I was pretty sure that was why labor was so easy. I decided to forgive L for coming late and making me have contractions all last week.

I sat in the tub for a while, expecting to go into transition at any moment. Contractions were strong, but still about two minutes apart. I didn't feel the need to drop the f bomb, cry for my mom, or tell Paul to take me home (that's what I did with E). In fact, when it came time to push, I was surprised. I even ignored the urge for three contractions before I told Paul I thought it was time.

They covered me in towels and wheeled me back to the room. I climbed on the bed, looked at the clock and saw it was about 5:00 or so. Nice. I figured I'd have a 12-13 hour labor & delivery. Much better than with E. It must be true what they say about second children.

I decided to use the birthing bar. I was too tired from the hard labor with E that I couldn't squat when pushing time came, so I was determined to do it this time. I pushed about three or four times, and it hurt like a bitch. I felt like nothing was happening. I kept saying I couldn't do it, but Paul, Dr. Kawahara & Helen Louise assured me that I was, and things were moving along.

With the next push, my water broke. Out poured amniotic fluid and meconium. I thought it was strange that so much meconium would come out. I worried that because he was a week late, he was swimming in mec, and there would be complications with that.

With the next push, more meconium came out "like toothpaste," my doctor later explained. My doc turned about three shades of white. The nurse said something like "Is he vernal?" or "vertex?" or some medical v-term. At that moment, my doctor shoved her entire arm up my vagina. Well, maybe not her entire arm, but it sure felt like it. I was thinking that maybe he was facing the wrong way and she was going to turn him to face the right way. Instead, she gave me the bad news. "Dawn, your baby is breech - frank breech." Which means he was folded in half, with his feet by his head, and his little bottom coming down the birth canal.

I think I went into shock at that moment.

Within a minute or two, I had a shot in my arm that stopped contractions completely. I knew what was going to happen next and I was terrified.

They catheterized me, which is always a humiliating experience.

The anesthesiologist came in to explain what he was going to do and to get me to sign the release papers. I don't think I was really listening. Everything was spinning and all I could think about was the safety of my baby.

My main questions were about who would be holding our son after he was ripped out of me, and when I would get to hold him and nurse him. I was very worried about that.

I don't know how long it took for everything to get ready, but they wheeled me down to the OR, told Paul to wait outside and started prepping me for surgery.

It was cold and very bright in the operating room. The only other operation I've ever had was at the dentist to have my wisdom teeth removed, so this was all very new to me. And it was fucking freezing. And my husband wasn't there. Where was my husband? I kept asking for him, but nobody answered.

The anesthesiologist was ready to put in the spinal. I had to sit up and curl over my belly. Helen Louise hugged me close and whispered very gently into my ear, calming me. Since they weren't producing my husband, I made my doctor hold my hand through the ordeal. I'm sure she had to do other things. Thankfully, she saw my fear and obliged. And then I suddenly couldn't feel my feet. And I was even more freaked out.

Eventually, they let my husband in. That was a relief. They had him sit by my head. We held hands. I heard lots of weird noises, smelled something burning, waited and worried. I could feel pressure, but no pain. That was weird.

At 6:18pm, I felt a whole lot of weight leave my body, and second later, I heard my son cry. The doctor who performed the surgery (Dr. San Miguel) said "Wow, he was really breech!" (because apparently there are different degrees of breech) They held him up for me and he looked enormous. My first words were "Did I just give birth to a three month old?"

They cleaned him up, weighed and measured him. He peed all over the nurse, which was funny in the face of all the craziness. He weighed in at a whopping 9lbs, 9oz, was 20.5 inches long and had a head circumference of 15 1/4 inches. So, I probably wouldn't have been able to birth him anyway. At least not as a breech. If he'd been head down, things may have been a little different. Of course, if he had been head down, he may have arrived sooner.

Once he was clean, they took him and my husband away, and I waited while they removed my placenta and sewed me up. At first, I couldn't understand why they were giving me pitocin, and then remembered the whole placenta thing.

My placenta was on the front of my uterus, which had made it difficult for the doctors and midwives on my team to notice when he had turned breech. He was head down at the 20-week ultrasound, and I was being kicked in all the right places, so there were no concerns, and everything felt correct.

After I was put back together, I started shaking like a crazy fool. Probably from the shock. They covered me in warm blankets, and took me back to my room. I continued to shake for a good hour or so. At some point, my husband finally arrived with my son and I got to hold him. He was the most beautiful thing in the world, even if he did have a gigantic noggin.

The anesthesiologist told me that I would be able to wiggle my toes in about 45 minutes to an hour, and it would take about 4 hours for the meds to wear off. Every time the nurse asked me if I could wiggle my toes and I couldn't, I freaked out just a little bit more. What if I can never wiggle my toes? What if I'm paralyzed for life? How will I be able to care for my children? What will that do to my husband? I won't be able to hike, or ride my bike, or, or, do ANYTHING!

After about two hours, I could finally wiggle my toes, and I started feeling much better about that.

L had some trouble with latch. E was a natural, so I never knew that I didn't know how to teach a baby to nurse. The second night was difficult, as I fumbled with my nipple and a screaming baby. Luckily, the night nurse helped me out, and things got much easier from there.

He's a very easy-going baby. He sleeps well, has taken to his dad (and lets him soothe him), and when he's done nursing, he's done. It's very nice.

I think we've adjusted to the trauma, though I often feel like it's a little surreal and I was robbed of the childbirth experience. It also sucks that I can't go for long walks just yet, and I had to take some heavy drugs for a while. Healthy baby, healthy mama. That's what we are, and that's most important.

When I'm holding him and he looks at me and starts a little smile that shows his dimple, it doesn't matter anymore. I'll do anything for you, little guy. If sacrificing my idea of the perfect birth is what it takes to guarantee your health and safety, then so be it. Happy birthday, and here's to many more birthdays to come!

Contractions and Delivery Dreams

When I was pregnant with E, I had no contractions until labor began. They didn't stop until she, and the placenta, were out of my body. It was very nice.

Since Tuesday morning, I've had two false starts. At 3:30am, I started having contractions. They were pretty mild and about 30 minutes apart. They stopped around 6 or 7 that morning. I fell asleep in my chair and woke up to one at 8:15. I'd say that was just an aftershock, because there were no more after that.

Last night, after the board meeting (I went, thinking it would induce labor like it had with E), contractions started again at 9:24. They were every 8-10 minutes, and seemed to be getting stronger. I almost called the doctor, but Paul told me we could wait until they were closer together and we were nearly ready to head to the hospital. It's a good thing. They stopped at midnight.

So now we wait some more. Perhaps this is why labor is so much faster with the second child. Perhaps there is a lot of this starting and stopping going on. Either way, it's a real pain, and this kid is in big trouble.

I had an interesting dream over the weekend. I had a dream that I was in my room and Paul was in another room with E. I was leaning up against the wall and looked down to see L crowning. I called Paul into the room and pushed him out, saying "Oh good, you were here for the birth of your child." He didn't cry much, nursed for about five minutes, then turned into a two year old. I was worried, because we hadn't called Dr. Kawahara when he was born, so we didn't have his birth weight and measurements, and now he was suddenly two, and I thought we would get in trouble; not to mention the fact that we were suddenly very behind on immunizations.

Of course, I'm a little nervous about the infancy period, and quite happy with my current two-year-old. It was a difficult time, and I'm hoping that it's a little easier the second time around. I'm sure having an infant and two-year-old will create new and interesting challenges. E seems pretty excited. She said the other day, very proudly "I'm going to be a big sister!" It was like she had just realized it. It was very cute. I hope she enjoys her new role.

The Countdown Begins -- 10

Ten days to D-Day! It's pretty hard to believe. Our house is still a mess, but I have managed to get some stuff clean. I've cleaned the bathroom and our bedroom, folded all the clean laundry and put it away, gotten the cloth diapers organized, and have the cradle ready to go (though, I doubt L will spend much time in there). I have a friend who may take our Litter Robot & cabinet, which will free up space in the living room, which will be nice. And maybe I'll get around to cleaning out the crap room before baby comes. Who knows. At times, I have no desire to do anything. At other times, all I want to do is scrub the walls.

So for now, I clean...and wait.

Advice for New Moms

When my friends are pregnant with their first child and asking me for advice, these are the tips I typically give them.

1. Read Our Babies Ourselves. Do it before the baby is born.

2. Once baby is born, stay in bed until you are fully rested. Baby won't care where he/she is, as long as he/she is with you, so stay there, sleep with your baby, sleep while your baby is nursing, sleep while your baby is awake. Just sleep, and don't get up until you feel awake and refreshed, even if it means not getting out of bed until 3:00 in the afternoon.

3. Get out of the house once per day. If this means walking out to check the mail, and then coming right back in, that still counts. Fresh air is good for your sanity.

4. Make a list of things that need to get done (laundry, cooking, floor needs to be swept, spit-up needs to be wiped up, cereal needs to be purchased, etc.). When friends come over to visit and ask "Is there anything I can do for you?" hand them the list and say "Take your choice."

5. Take advantage of the time people spend holding your baby. Go to the bathroom, take a shower, brush your hair, etc. You don't need to speak to them at this time. You will have plenty of time to talk to them while you're nursing.

6. Learn how to use a sling, wrap, ergo, whatever. Hands-free babywearing is wonderful, especially when your child wakes up every time you put him/her down.

7. Drink some wine when you nurse. It relaxes you, and the alcohol will be out of your system by the next time you nurse.

8. Find a support group - whether it's a baby & me group at the hospital, or a group of friends you have who also have babies close to the same age as yours, it's good to have a group of people to commiserate with.

9. Understand now that you will hate your husband, at least for a few months, and you really won't know why.

10. Keep snacks and water in the diaper bag, your car, next to your bed, and your nursing chair. You will be very hungry and very thirsty.

11. Don't allow any overnight guests, even if it's your mother who intends to help. These people do not know where the coffee maker is, where the forks go, or where to find that roll of toilet paper and will be asking you for instructions, which will only stress you out more. Give them the number of the nearest hotel, where they will be treated with the hospitality they expect.

I'm sure there are more tidbits, but this is all I can think of right now. I wonder how much I'll be able to follow when I have a newborn and a toddler. #2 is probably right out. :)

Borderline

So, I had my 3-hour glucose test about two weeks ago. During the test, I discovered that my doctor's office has a very comfy recliner in the waiting room. I also worked on knitting my first sock. I'm now almost finished knitting the second sock. I plan on wearing them in the delivery room. I doubt I'll wear them while I push the kid out since I was completely naked with E (having just come out of the jacuzzi tub), but I think it would be fun to have them to wear in the room before I get all crazy.

In any case, I survived the test, and Tuesday was my 32 week appointment. Molly, my midwife, explained to me that my test results came back and I'm "borderline." Basically, my glucose levels were stable, but my insulin levels were elevated. Therefore, I have to watch what I eat in order to maintain my blood sugar levels so that my insulin doesn't spike. She told me to cut back on the breads, pasta, rice, starchy veggies, chips, etc. I responded "so...everything I've been craving." Sigh. It hasn't been too difficult. I've looked up some information online, and as long as I start my day with protein, it shouldn't be too difficult. I also discovered greek yogurt, which is Ah-Maze-Ing!

It was very difficult today at Sweet Tomatoes. I really wanted to eat the potato leek soup, and the mac & cheese, and the muffins and bread, and the cheesy scalloped potatoes, and the frozen yogurt... When I complained to Paul what a bitch it was since I'm pregnant and I have every excuse to pig out, he said "Now you know how I feel." Yeah, it sucks to have to change your diet. But when you think about it, why wouldn't you? It's either eat what you want and pay the price (in a higher birth-weight child who ends up with low blood sugar because of extra insulin and has a greater risk of diabetes and obesity, or in Paul's case, pooping blood), or change your diet and feel good. To me, it's a pretty simple choice. Besides, for me, it's just temporary. Just 7 more weeks to go. I can do this for 7 weeks. And it's not really for me, it's for my precious baby boy!

Books

In grad school, I was required to read Our Babies, Ourselves: How Biology and Culture Shape the Way We Parent. It pretty much changed my view of parenting, in a good way. I now send it to all my close friends who are pregnant and expecting. After speaking with a friend of mine who just got the book, I thought about all the other books I've read throughout E's life that I really like. Rather than totally overwhelm her with a list of books, I figured I'd just list them here, and then she and others can access it whenever they feel like it.

So here goes, in no particular order:

The Baby Book

The Vaccine Book

The Happiest Baby on the Block

The Happiest Toddler on the Block

I'll probably add more later, but E is begging for my attention right now.

Naked Baby Party

Tonight I held a naked baby party. Basically, it was a baby clothing exchange, kinda like a naked lady party, where you bring all your old clothes and get new ones. Since a many of my friends working on baby #2 are having opposite gender, it seemed like a good idea. What was great is that I got back some stuff I had given to my neighbor that I didn't realize I'd given her. One was the little ducky hat I'd made. I was thinking about making the ducky socks that go with it, but didn't know what I'd done with the hat. I'm glad I got it back!

I also got a ton of 2T clothes for E. That was nice, since she's kind of lacking in the clothing department lately. She has clothes, but I often find myself digging in the dryer desperately searching for a clean pair of pants.

For L, I got a ridiculous amount of clothing. I don't think I will need any clothes for this kid until he's over a year. That's very nice.

It was an extremely successful clothing exchange, and we have a couple bags of clothes to donate to Community Action, which is nice. On Monday, I'll drop the bags off at the Head Start center where I used to work. Janet took a few bags home to drop off at the main office in Hillsboro.

It's nice to be rid of some clutter, though I now have a giant bag of clothing sitting in the middle of my living room floor. I don't think I actually got rid of anything. I think I just traded the same exact amount of crap. Sigh.

Bodily Fluids

And the nosebleeds have begun. I don't remember having crazy nosebleeds with E, but I probably did. It's pretty annoying, especially when I'm driving in the car, between site visits and I don't have any tissues, so when I get to a school I have to immediately go wash the blood from my hands before I go to a classroom to meet with a teacher.

And then this morning, as I was snuggling with Paul, I felt a drip on my arm. And then I felt another. When I wiped it with my other hand, it was sticky. Yep, I'm leaking colostrum. Of course, today marks week 30, so I have 6 more weeks until I'm considered "term," 10 weeks until my due date, and 12 weeks until they want to slice me open and rip the kid out. While I can't remember when my boobs started leaking with E, I do remember having to pull out the boob pads while I was still pregnant.

The kid is getting big. He's big and strong enough to make my entire belly move when he kicks and moves. E finds it hysterical. She loves to sit on my lap, put cream (she calls it "peam") on my belly and watch L kick. She shrieks with laughter, saying "Baby L-L is kicking!" Of course, she goes a little overboard with the cream. She puts so much on me that even when I take a shower afterwards, I can't get it all off. She also likes to cram it into my belly button. In order to get it out, I have to squeeze all around it and push it out like it's a zit. It's pretty disgusting.

I didn't pass my glucose screening, so I have to take the 3 hour test next Saturday. Ugh. That sucks. However, I have good news, too!

I have insurance through work that will cover my delivery at Meridian Park! I don't have to go to a Providence hospital after all! I'm very happy about that! I guess I can deal with the bloody nose and leaking boobs. That's really nothing compared to some of the stories I've heard from St. V's.

Week 28 Glucose Screening

I have been dreading this glucose screening ever since I got pregnant. The shit they give you to drink is so completely foul, and with my last pregnancy, I failed, so I had to go in for a three-hour test. That means I had to drink three of those nasty, foul drinks. I should know in a week if I have to go through that ordeal again.

I took E with me to the appointment. I told her we were going to listen to L's heartbeat. When I went in to give my urine sample, I told E that I had to leave it so they could make sure that L was OK. So then, whenever the nurse and midwife did anything (temperature, BP, pulse, doppler, etc.), E asked "Is Baby L-L OK?" It was so precious.

When Paul came home from work, I had E announce the good news. "Daddy! Baby L-L OK!" She was very proud to be able to relay that little bit of information.

I was very proud to relay this little bit of information: I've gained only 10 pounds so far in my pregnancy. That's good news, since I was already 30 pounds overweight, and 10 pounds heavier than I was when I got pregnant with E. Hopefully when I lose the baby weight, I'll keep it off this time.

28 Weeks

Back to baby #2. I'm 28 weeks pregnant today. I have officially entered my third trimester. I have 12 weeks to go! Yippie! Unfortunately, this also marks the phase where I become bigger than a house, can't fit into any of my shoes, can no longer walk at a reasonable pace, get heartburn for no apparent reason, and have to drink that nasty sugar drink for the gestational diabetes test. Blech!

Monday is the day. When I did it in my last pregnancy, I tested positive the first time, and had to take the day-long test. I cried and cried when I found out. I thought I had done something wrong and I had ruined my child. Luckily, it turned out that I didn't have it, and everything was fine. But pregnancy hormones being what they are, I couldn't help myself. I hope I pass the test on the first try this time. I hated having to drink that nasty, thick, syrupy stuff. And with this pregnancy, I'm not even into sugar like I was with E, so it'll be even worse.

Hmmm...what else is going on? Oh, I have heartburn. I have it so bad that the other night, I woke up with nose burn. Seriously. I had acid all the way up my esophagus and into my nose. The only upside to that is that I'm also getting sick, so I was able to breathe through one of my nostrils that night because the acid ate away at the thick mucus in my nose. But I'm now sleeping sitting in a semi-upright position, with pillows all around. I don't remember having to do this so soon with E. I haven't begun to notice the 3am trains yet, so I guess that's a plus. Perhaps I'm just so freaking exhausted from work and dealing with a toddler that I can't be bothered with waking up to the trains.

Another interesting note is that when I wake up, and L moves around, I go back to sleep pretty quickly. That never happened with E. When she danced in my belly, I could not get back to sleep. After she was born, I missed the feeling, so I wonder if having it again is so comforting that it's putting me back to sleep. Whatever the reason, I'm loving it! Go, L, Go!

PTBC, Day III

Today was the big test. We left the house for most of the day. We left the house at 9am (or probably 9:30 or 9:45, even though the plan was to leave at 9am. Such is life with a toddler), and headed to the zoo. I lined the car seat with a cloth diaper, and packed three changes of clothing, just in case.

When we arrived at the zoo, E was dry. I put her in the stroller, and headed into the zoo. My plan was to have her sit on the potty before we entered, but to my surprise, the zoo was free today (not that it really mattered, since we have a membership, but it still threw me off), so I ended up forgetting to stop at the bathroom, until we were almost to the primate exhibit. We stopped at the bathrooms before visiting the chimps and orangutans, and E went without fuss. I'm glad she did, since the orangutans freaked her out. Next, we visited the lions, which did not scare her. She probably could have watched them all day. Go figure, my kid's afraid of monkeys, but not of lions.

We used the potty two more times at the zoo. Once before lunch and once before we left. Then we headed to the grocery store, since I needed to pick up some stuff for dinner. I planned on having her go potty when we got to the store, but I forgot. When I remembered, I was too lazy to take her and figured I would deal with the consequences of a wet car seat and screaming child.

E amazed me by staying dry through the car ride home, peeing like a champ when we got home (and pooping a weekends' worth of poop, since she didn't poop yesterday), and taking a nap without much complaint.

While she was sleeping, I spoke with my friend Ashley, and we made plans to meet for an early dinner. I met her at the Lucky Lab in Multnomah Village, and we hung out for about two hours. At one point, I asked E if she needed to go potty, and she said "yes," and did her business in the bathroom. Just as we were talking about getting ready to leave, E said "Get the poop out." I asked her if she needed to go potty again. She replied that she did, and once again, she performed. Amazing.

We got home around 7pm and played, then started getting ready for bed around 8. She peed before bedtime and I put on her overnight diaper (We're keeping her in diapers for naps and overnight until she's dry 5 times in a row. So far, she's been wet every morning, and dry two naps in a row). During snuggle time (part of our bedtime routine), we talked about how awesome she's been doing going pee on the potty and keeping her panties dry. She kept asking me to tell her more about the weekend, so we talked about how much she's progressed from Saturday until today. When I mentioned that she wet a lot of panties on Saturday, she got upset. I reminded her that she was still learning, and that she's been doing much better. I also told her that every now and then, she'll probably have an accident, and that's OK. It's all part of the learning process.

When it was lights out, she didn't make a sound. Typically, she'll cry (read: scream "Mommy! Daddy!" over and over again) for a little while, just to let us know that she doesn't want to go to sleep. Tonight, nothing. I figured she was building something up, but it's been 20 minutes, and no noise. Well, except I can hear her picking up her water bottle and putting it down every now & then so I don't have to go check for breathing.

So, I think at this point, I can say my child is potty trained. While I'm still reminding her when we're out, and I'm telling her to go before we leave the house and before and after sleeping, she's telling me at other times when she needs to go. In addition, she uses the potty at school and at the nanny's, and was really only wetting her diaper at home and refusing to use the potty for us. She's been independently pooping on the potty since she was about 18 months old, and all of this told me she was ready. It was just a matter of finding three full days to implement the boot camp.

Having worked in early childhood for the past 10 years, I've potty trained a lot of children, and I've also seen the pitfalls that parents fall into when potty training. One of the biggest is falling back into the diapers. On Saturday, E went through about 12 pairs of underpants. I was worried that we had started too soon. After all, she's only 26 months old. Typically, children aren't really ready until 2 1/2. Since we had 25 pairs of panties, I told myself that I wouldn't worry until we had blown through all of them. We still have 9 pairs that haven't been touched. I've seen parents panic and go back to diapers long before then. When diapers become an option, children don't learn to control their bladder, they learn to control their parents. They pee on everything until their parents break down and put the diapers back on.

Another pitfall I've seen parents fall into is the use of a sticker chart or reward system. While I've used reward systems for children in the past, I've used them for special needs children, not typically developing children, as they need more external motivators to perform tasks. Typically developing children learn the system quickly, and can use the reward system to their advantage. Parents will say "if you go pee pee on the potty, you'll get a sticker" and after a while, the child has the parent holding out the sticker, begging the child to pee on the potty. The child has control.

My belief is all about natural consequences. On Saturday, I didn't ask E to pee on the potty. I mentioned it, I suggested it, I asked if she needed to go. She said "no" every time. I let her pee herself. I made her clean in up. I made her deal with her own wet, pissy clothing. I made her put her clean clothes on, all by herself. She can't (or, I should say, couldn't) pull her pants up over her bum. It was frustrating. When she peed on the potty, I helped her get dressed. She learned quickly that things are easier when you go on the potty than when you go in your pants. Now, when I ask if she needs to go, she'll say "yes" if she needs to, or "no" if she doesn't. If I tell her I think she should go before we leave the house so she doesn't pee in her car seat and have to sit in her wet pants for the car ride, she'll go without fighting me. It's pretty nice.

If you're thinking about taking the dive and potty training your child, good luck. Remember it takes time, patience and a lot of underpants.

Potty Training Boot Camp

We began our potty training boot camp Friday night. E did well, and had one accident just before bedtime. On Saturday, we gave her unlimited amounts of milk, and let her do her thing. She had about 12 accidents. Most were half-accidents, where she caught herself peeing and ended up finishing on the potty. Each time she had an accident, she was responsible for taking off her wet clothes, putting them in the diaper pail, and putting on new clothes.

The last accident of the night was while we were Skyping with my in-laws. When we Skype, she sits in her high chair, because it's the only place she'll stay still. She likes to strap herself in. Well, she began struggling in her chair at one point, and wouldn't speak. I kept asking her to use her words, and then I saw the pee coming out of the bottom of the chair. It really upset her. When we were in the bathroom and she had calmed down, I reminded her that she needed to tell us that she needs to go potty.

This morning, she woke up with a wet diaper. Two hours later, Paul asked her if she needed to go potty. She said she didn't. And then she yelled "Pee Pee!" and ran to the bathroom. Her panties were just a little bit wet, and her pants were safe, which was good, since she was wearing her Thomas pj's. That was the only clothing change we've had to deal with today.

We didn't give her unlimited milk today. She had her usual dosages. We also took a two hour excursion outside this afternoon. We walked to Home Depot. Before we left, we reminded her that she should go potty, and she did. Before we left Home Depot, we reminded her that she should go potty, and she did. We stopped at John Barleycorn's for lunch. Before we left, we reminded her that she should go potty, and she did. We got home, she took a nap and woke up dry. She remained dry for the rest of the afternoon. We took another excursion for dinner, walking to Sweet Tomatoes. Once again, she went potty when we reminded her. When we got home, she said she needed to go, but then didn't when we got to the bathroom. She did go right before bed, though.

Tomorrow, I plan to take her out for a much longer period of time. We're going to visit the zoo or Children's Museum, depending on the weather. We'll see how that works for us.

Potty Training

This blog has nothing to do with being pregnant or growing a child inside my body. Instead, this post has to do with growing a child outside my body, specifically, my toddler. She is 26 months old, and has been using the potty for quite a while. When she was about a year old, she developed a poop face. I think it was because she had GI issues and often had constipation and hard poops. In any case, when I would see her poop face, I would hold her over the toilet because I didn't want to change a poopy diaper. By 18 months, she was pooping on the toilet pretty consistently, and for the past 4 months, she's been telling us when she needs to poop.

Since she turned two, she's been peeing on the potty for the nanny, the people at her preschool, and sometimes for us. She kept her diaper dry for two days at my in-laws' house over Christmas break, using the toilet pretty consistently, and even telling my mother-in-law that she needed to pee a couple times.

So, since we have another hellion on the way, we figured we might as well get her potty trained so that we don't have two in diapers, and so we're not trying to potty train when we have a newborn.

Today is day one. We've been telling her all week that today would be the day of panties, which made her refuse to use the toilet all week. Every time we suggested it, she would scream and throw herself on the floor. She was anticipating it, and wanted to get her money's worth from those diapers, I guess.

I picked her up from preschool today, took her home, changed her soaked diaper, and put her down for her nap. When she woke up, I asked her if she needed to go potty. She said she didn't. Her diaper was dry. I let her pick out her panties. I figured she'd have an accident in 10 minutes. She didn't. She helped us make dinner, ate dinner, and began to play. She didn't have her first accident until 7:15 tonight. She handled it well, saying "pee pee!" We ran with her to the bathroom, and she even had some left for the potty. She took her panties off by herself, peed, freshened herself up with a wipe, put her wet panties in the diaper pail and put on her new panties. She wanted me to put the wet panties away, but I told her it wasn't my pee pee. As she was putting her new panties on, she kept saying "Pee Pee in panties." It will be interesting to see how she does as she has subsequent accidents this weekend.

Heartburn

I have heartburn. I hate heartburn. I get heartburn from taking my vitamins. I get heartburn from eating toast. Dry toast. Most people get heartburn from spicy foods, eating too much, laying down after eating.... I get heartburn just by thinking about food, taking a sip of water, and bending over to pick something off the floor. It fucking sucks. Yes, I dropped the f-bomb over heartburn because that's how bad it is.

With E, I ate hot wings like they were going out of style. I pigged out on a regular basis. I went to bed immediately after eating. I didn't have to sleep in an upright position until after I was 30 weeks along.

I mentioned today at dinner that this pregnancy is not typical. My friend asked, "How so?" My husband replied, "Because it's not like the last one." Fucker.

Seltzer

I just received the most awesome Christmas present from my sister -- a seltzer maker, called sodastream. When I was pregnant with E, I craved seltzer like a mad woman. All there is to drink in Portland is "sparkling water," which sucks. It has absolutely no fizz. To top it off, most sparkling water beverages around here are sweetened. That ain't seltzer. There were many times I asked Paul to fly to New York to get me real seltzer.

I no longer have to. I can make my seltzer as fizzy or as flat as I want. AND, if it loses its fizz, I can re-fizz it. How freakin' awesome is that? I made a bottle, drank a few sips and burped the biggest burp in the world. Ahhhh, so refreshing. Paul tried it, and made a funny face. He just doesn't understand the appeal of seltzer. I guess you just need to be an east coaster.

The box I got came with various flavors to add to the fizzy water. You can make actual sodas. Unfortunately, they're all sweetened with splenda, which is something I won't touch. But there are flavored stevia drops that you can get. I made some vanilla soda from some drops we had, which wasn't bad. It also came with unsweetened flavors, which will make some nice flavored real seltzer that I love. I can't wait to make myself a bottle to bring to work tomorrow. YUM!