Big News!!

We had an unscheduled ultrasound yesterday (don't worry-everything is fine and always has been fine). While we weren't expecting an answer to our big question until next Thursday, we now have the info we have been waiting for.

Come March, we will have a son!!

The biggest challenge of my life

Last night at the bar Steve Steketee, Steve Durrell and I were talking about all of the toys we had when we were kids. We had matchbox cars, wood blocks, Lincoln Logs, Legos, cardboard bricks, action figures, big wheels, and of course the wide world outside of our houses. Lots of these were simple toys, requiring us to use our imaginations, and we loved it.

Are toys like that anymore? All of the Lego sets I see come with a "final design". You buy the blocks to make a particular thing. Gone are the sets of miscellaneous geometric Lego bricks (in red, blue, yellow and green) that we would use to build whatever we could imagine. Our finished designs weren't as cool as a replica Millennium Falcon, but we didn't need that.

Do kids even find these toys fun anymore? Those simple toys now need to compete with fancier toys, video games, and 24 hour kid's television. Can a parent keep their kid interested in these simple things, without turning them into a social outcast?

I admit, I'm a tad bit lazy. I've been planning on getting on the excercise bike for the last 4 months. I've used it once. When I come home, I want to sit out the couch. Maybe take a nap. Being a parent is a lot of work. Being a good parent is a ton of work. Am I up for the challenge? Will I be a great parent? Will my kid play with simple toys, have an imagination, want to play outside? None of this will happen unless I (and Bobbie Jo) really work at it.

I know that all of these feelings are things that all other soon-to-be parents think about. I don't think that any of these thoughts are unique. All of my friends are great parents, all in their own ways, but they have all made it work. They are raising their kids to be upstanding members of society. I see it in all of my interactions with them and their kids. I still question how I'm going to do it.

I've been wanting to make this post for quite a while, but had difficulty putting it all into words. I've disabled comments on this post as I know we will immediately get lots of "You are going to be great parents" posts. I'm not fishing for reassurance, I know we'll be a great Mom and Dad, but I'm still terrified.

Thanks for listening, and know that we will be asking you for advice sometime in the near future.

-James

Email Subscription (repost)

We've had lots of people ask why we don't email people when we update the blog. If you want to receive an email when the blog gets updated, enter your email address in the box of the right side of the page. The system will automatically send you the posts as they become available. It works out pretty slick.

Doing well

Just a quick update to let everyone know that the soon to be mommy is feeling much better. She still is tired a lot, but the sickness has almost completely gone away. Her belly is hurting from all of the muscles and skin stretching and tearing (the muscles, not the skin). Her belly is rock hard, it's not like a fat belly that jiggles, it moves as one solid mass when you push on it. The body changes and discomfort mean she's not getting a very good nights sleep though.
As we cuddled in bed before I went to class this morning, the baby fluttered when I rubbed Bobbie Jo's belly (I think it likes me). I couldn't feel anything, but Bobbie Jo assures me that it knew I was there. It's fun to believe even when we both know that isn't the case.

I think it is going to like me when it comes out though.

A "fluttering" feeling

We had our appointment on Monday, and everything went as planned. Bobbie Jo peed on a little stick, we heard the heartbeat, doctor thinks it's a girl, etc.. We scheduled the next appointment for November 8th, and should have an ultrasound and find out the sex then. We hope to have video of that, and I'll hopefully get it posted here. It's going to be difficult waiting for 30 days.

Bobbie Jo is pretty sure she felt the "flutter" of the kid moving yesterday when she got out of the shower. She spent most of the day poking at her belly trying to get it to move again. No luck-the kid does what the kid wants to do. She had been told that she could expect to feel the baby around this time, so she had been waiting for it to happen. I'm amazed to think that it's about the size of an adult hand (in length).

No other news, other than we went out and bought Bobbie Jo some stretchy preggers pants on Saturday. They're comfortable, and she looks great in them (of course).

That's all for now.

Plumbing and the Baby Bump

We have an appointment on Monday, and had hoped we would get to find out what kind of plumbing the kid is going to have. Unfortunately we'll need to wait another 4 weeks to find out, we won't be having an ultrasound this time. The waiting is killing us. We feel like we should be doing something, but aren't really sure where to start. Everybody we've talked to has let us know that this feeling is not uncommon.

Bobbie Jo is looking great, she has a cute little "baby bump". We both think it's getting bigger by the day. She thinks she looks fat, I disagree, but I keep losing the argument. Quite honestly my beer belly is still bigger, but that doesn't console her at all. If you see her, make sure to let her know how good she looks, she really does.

The waiting between appointments is tough, not knowing 100% if everything is going well. We'll be happy to hear the heartbeat on Monday, to keep us going for another month.

Lastly, some jerk at her work ate the half-burrito she had in the fridge. DON'T EVER EAT A PREGNANT LADY'S BURRITO THAT YOU FIND IN THE FRIDGE. IF YOU DO, YOU ARE A JERK!!!

Thanks for readin'.