Nausea Checklist

Ok - here's what I tried:

* Vitamin B6 - noticed no difference either way
* Ginger Ale (real stuff) - gave me lots of 'urps' so that made it worse
* Ginger Tea - noticed no difference either way & don't have a strong taste for ginger
* Saltines - works nicely eating a few of these every hour, I have packages of crackers EVERYWHERE!
* Eating many small meals - same principle as the crackers thing, I have apples, bananas, or yogurt as snacks between meals
* Chiropractic Adjustments - offers temporary relief from nausea & indigestion
* Sea-Bands - just got these yesterday evening, so I will let you know how these work, they work by using accupressure.

Any other ideas?

Reading Old Stuff

I know more & more people are starting to see this blog and may have never read a blog before. So, here are some tips.......If you want to read older stuff (like from last month) look at the sidebar and scroll to Archives and pick the month you want to look at........another tip......you need to register (it's FREE) to leave comments.......you can start your own blog too (it's FREE too).....

Neglectful of Stuff

So, this nausea thing is getting old. I feel bad physically, but also feel like a bad person. Since I feel like crap most of the time, all I really want to do it sit and stare at the TV and sleep, maybe read a book. Other than that I have been neglectful.

My house is a mess.....well, not really a mess.......but desperately needs to be vaccumed, swept, amd mopped and dusted....boy does it need to be dusted.......and we are having a party this Saturday and it all needs to get done.....

I have been neglectful of my personal blog....hardly type a word on there anymore.....and I haven't read the blogs I normally read.....I just have not been on the computer, which does have it's good side, as I haven't been buying on eBay too much.....

I've been neglectful to friends as well.....usually I am calling people and making plans......I feel like I dropped of the face of the earth.....I kinda have....I just feel like crap so much that I don't want to be a downer.....and I am not sure what things will make feel ill....there are so many smells that get me sick.......

Part of the issue is that I have not told all my friends yet. I am slowly telling them and then I think it makes sense to them and they are happy for me and feel bad that I have been sick.....

I am going to make a better effort to do more things anyways, even if I do feel bad.....

Baby Shower Date Set

Yes, I know it seems early. But hey I'm a planner, would you expect any less?

You're supposed to do it 4-6 weeks before the baby is born, really only giving yourself 3 Saturdays to choose from.

Picking the date turned out to be rather easy because one of the weekends is Easter, another weekend Rebecca already has plans (I may take the NCE test that same weekend), so that left April 8th (Saturday).

So, now the date is set.

In the Know

All parents and siblings now know that we are expecting. We plan to tell more family and friends around 12 weeks when we are in our Dr. appt. and get to hear the heart beat.

--- J

Was I a Big Baby?

I suppose you might think this is in response to my post about being a weakling, but it's not. I am talking about the actual size I was as a baby, when I was born. We were with some friends last night and they were talking about the size they were as babies and the size that their kids were as babies. So, I figure I should find out for sure how big I was, as well as how big the daddy was.

Weight:
Length:
Head Circumference:

The daddy has a big head, well mine is pretty big too, but his is rather large. I am wondering if we were born big headed or did we just become that way (I suppose the way that is phrased I am opening up a whole can of worms.)

--- J

Early Girl Names

So, here's a start on girl names. Just like boy names we started out with about 30 and eliminated half of them and this is what we have left. The daddy says I have a strong pull towards Eastern European names for girls.

• Abigail
• Anika
• Arianna
• Cassandra
• Charlotte
• Emily
• Emma
• Hannah
• Isabel
• Jasmine
• Madeline
• Madison
• Samantha
• Tabitha
• Veronika

--- J

Weakling......

So, I've become a weakling. I was probably well on my way, but I think pregnancy has sped that up. I'm tired and always feel like I am on the edge of puking. Things feel so much heavier (actually I read that you get weaker strength-wise while you are pregnant, but the strength is supposed to come back after delivery.) And I guess my eyesight could change (get worse) while I am pregnant and go back to normal after delivery. Plus, not to mention that many foods and smells make me ill. Actually, last night a smell made me ill enough make me puke. It really was not pleasant.

I pretty much only want to eat chicken noodle soup, a plain sandwich, plain noodles or mac-n-cheese, white rice, cereal w/milk.......pretty much anything plain without a lot of flavor....I call them safe foods, actually most of the safe foods are without color too. I do like flavored yogurt and this vanilla, carmel pudding (from Jello, in those individual packages.)

You would think when you get pregnant that you would get stronger in all aspects so that you can protect yourself & your child -- but noooooooo! -- you get sick and weak and lose your vision.

On a slightly different note -- had my doc visit today and everything looks fine so far. Am 8 weeks along. We'll have another appointment in a month and then we will get to hear a heartbeat.

--- J

I Get Concerned Sometimes

I was rushing this morning, trying to get all of my various morning things out of the way. 30 minutes earlier, J went through the same routine -- running out the door in a flurry. How do we do that with a kid? How early do I need to wake up?

It's these things that concern me. Not just this, but all of the time issues.

I work a 'regular' job. I leave the house at 8AM, drive an hour to work, I'm there from 9AM-6PM+, then I drive an hour+ home. On an average night, I get home at about 7:30. What time do young kids go to sleep -- 8:00? So, I get exactly 30 minutes a day to spend with my child.

That sucks. A lot.

How am I going to be an involved parent? How do I create a tight bond with my child when I never get to see him/her?

Moving closer to work isn't an option, and I could never make the type of money I make working closer to home. I could get to work earlier, but I'd still end up being here until 6PM most days. My company talks about flex time, but it's a tough sell for someone that manages people and processes.

I love both of my parents, and would never say anything bad about how they raised me. The did a good job, especially considering I was one of four holigan boys! But I don't remember my dad being around a whole lot when I was younger, and he had the luxury of shorter hours and a short commute.

I want to be there for my kid(s).

The other problem is weekends. For the last 5 years, I've been spending much of my time working on the house or on cars. If that's my only free time, I'm going to want to spend it with my family. Who's going to fix the plumbing if I'm taking junior to a soccer game? (An actual plumber, I suppose...)

I'm VERY EXCITED to be having a baby. But I want to be the best Dad possible. How do I juggle everything?

Making Stuff for Baby

I like making gifts for people and getting homemade gifts from people. Some of my favorite things were made and given to us by someone. There is something so satisfying about saying "I did that." or "So&so made that for me." My favorite wedding present has to be the afghan my grandma made for us. We use it all the time. I have a small picture frame my great-grandfather made in our living room, actually in close proximity to the afghan. Every Christmas, the manger my great-grandfather made comes out. The have this beautiful wooden CD case (huge & heavy) that my parents made for the daddy. This was one of the first homemade gifts he ever got and he sure appreciated something homemade then. The daddy also has some sleeping pants his mother stitched for him. I have an afghan and pillow set my mom crocheted for me that I used all through college, now it sits in a trunk waiting for a cold day (or a room to match). I have several wonderful pictures that my dear friend Jessi drew for me. I look around and there are so many things that people made for me and it's wonderful.

That was a long introduction to say that I hope people continue with that for our children, well, we'll just start with child. But you know what I mean.

I just bought a pattern to make Boppy slipcovers. I have the Boppy, but it's just white with no cover. And we all know that will quickly get dirty. It costs $20 for 2 slipcovers @ Target or $22 for one at Pottery Barn. I think that price is a little nuts. Anyways, I had been looking all over the internet for a free pattern for a boppy cover, but had no such luck. So, I broke down and bought one on eBay. This woman made her own pattern and instructions and is selling them. So, I can't just go to JoAnn Fabrics & buy a pattern. I have read on a few blogs that they bought this exact pattern and it was very easy to make the covers. So, for $10 for the pattern (yikes! I know!) I can use this HUGE box of fabric I have (basically free since it's already paid for and sitting there) and make several covers before baby comes. It doesn't need a zipper (I hate stitching zippers). I imagine it needs snaps or velcro to close it. I plan to make several so that anytime there is one or 2 in the wash I always have a clean one on hand.

With all that said, I have been looking for free patterns for baby stuff online. Basically i decided it was not worth buying any patterns from JoAnn's, as everything they have patterns for I can find for free online. I also found patterns for knitters and crocheters (I have not become one of those yet, so far it just is not working for me - but I know people that like it.)

Here is what I found patterns for: mittens, footies/slippers, hat, bibs, burp cloth, blanket/quilt, diaper covers, AIO diapers, diaper liners, bathrobe/hooded towel, bunting, toys, sweaters, shoes, nursing shirt, & Umbrella stroller accessories.

If anyone wants links to these, please let me know. I can send them to you. The patterns are for sewing, knitting, & crocheting. I think I will have to make the nursing shirts, as I don't like how much they cost in stores and the pattern seems sinple enough.

2004 Popular Baby Names

Here's the list.

On the boys list I guess it would only be #1 that I like. On the girls list I like #'s 1, 2, 5, 6, 7 (alternate spelling though), 9 & 10.

I actually like names 9 & 10 so much growing up that I had dolls with those names. I think though that I like 2, 5, & 7 best.

---J

Preliminary Boy Names

We just started with boy names, so we'll get to girl names soon enough. I went through the boys names in one book and boy, there are a lot of strange names out there. I made a list of the ones I think are ok and then ran that list by the daddy and eliminated some. This is what we have left (all for first names):
* Caleb/Kaleb
* Hunter
* Isaac
* Jacob
* Conrad
* Lucas/Lukas
* Nathaniel
* Nicholas/Nikolas
* Reese/Rhys
* Shaun/Sean
* Sloan
* Tabor
* Tristan
* Viktor

So, here is a dilemma we are in. The daddy hates alternate spellings on most names, but because our baby will have such a common last name I want it either a common first name with an alternate spelling or an uncommon first name.

Anyone see anything that might cause a kid to get made fun of because of their first name. You know - like Sick Nick? or Fat Matt?

We've got 33 weeks to come up with final names. This is just a start. Stay tuned for girl names.

--- J