Tuesday, January 19, 2010

We're getting closer!!!!

Our baby boy is scheduled to arrive in less than a month and we are getting soooo excited! Along with the excitement, I am also getting a little bit nervous and scared. I know I will be ok because so many women have given birth, but I am still slightly anxious about what my own birthing experience will be like. The fact that I am terrified of hospitals doesn't help, but Cedars is a very nice place and I need to have faith that I am in good hands.

Even though Cedars-Sinai is considered one of the best labor and delivery hospitals in the nation, I am bothered by the number of women who get cesareans there. About 20 babies are born there a day, and they typically want to speed up the birth with pitocin if the labor isn't progressing fast enough. I would be so much more comfortable at a birthing center with the presence of a doula to coach me through a natural, drug-free childbirth. But we have this really amazing insurance that covers 100% of everything at Cedars, so it makes it difficult for me to state my case that I don't want the best of the best doctors at my fingertips. I mean, how do you argue that. I just choose not to argue because I am too emotional...hence why I will be having a baby there.

So in order to make myself feel better about giving birth in a hospital, I have been preparing myself in every way. I am hoping that if I go into labor with this mindset that I can do it, that I really can give birth in an epidural-happy environment without an epidural. I wrote out a detailed birthplan that lists all of my expectations in every stage of labor. It also says basic things like do not to offer me drugs unless I ask first. I've also spoken extensively with Marc about how important his voice is to the whole experience. He knows what I want and it will be up to him to stand up for me. To me, this is the most crucial element of our success, because when an exhausted gal is feeling all kinds of pain and a doctor makes a suggestion, I have a feeling that you end up telling the doctor to do what he feels is the best for me. But I think they lean towards doing what's best for them by speeding up the labor so they can go home.

And quite frankly, how do I expect anyone to understand why my birth plan looks the way it does? After all these years of medical research and advanced pain relief, what kind of crazy person would decline such wonderful bliss? Oh wait, that's right. ME. But why, you may ask.

There are tons of reasons why I view birth as a natural process rather than a medical procedure, but here are a few. Once your body is introduced to the synthetic hormones such as oxytocin, your body stops producing these hormones naturally. I'd like to take every step possible to prevent or reduce post-pardum depression. I realize that I am already a sensitive and emotional person and would like to do anything possible to minimize the stress of sleep deprivation and hormonal insanity.

Then once the baby is born, many moms say the challenge of breastfeeding is extremely tough. When you take the drugs, your baby is born on those same drugs and may be too out of it to want to eat. When they are born alert, they usually go straight for the boob to have their first meal. I plan on solely breastfeeding for the first six months if all goes well and everything is normal. So I really don't want to make the feeding process harder than it already is.

I also don't want to deal with the constipation after an epidural. Yes, an epidural slows down all bodily processes including labor. Ugh, with everything else going on do I really want to have trouble going to the bathroom. Yuck! No thank you if I can help it. But I'm also allergic to lidocaine, a local anesthetic in the same class as epidural. And lidocaine makes me really sick and gives me seizures, so I am deterred from all of that stuff. Not to mention my hatred for needles.

Ok, so enough of that. I could go on and on why my plan is the way it is. But ultimately if there is a complication, I will be in a hospital full of medicine and doctors ready to inject and cut me. And I guess that is supposed to give me comfort. At least I wouldn't have to be transported from the birthing center to hospital if there is a problem. And I realize that plans are made to be broken.

This past weekend was a 3-day weekend and Marc and I spent some quality time preparing for the baby. His room is about to look really fantastic. We got rid of the extra desk in that room and finally all of the furniture matches. The white furniture looks so sharp and clean in there against the bamboo floors and blue walls.

I think I've finally determined that there are two themes of his room to compliment both Marc and me. The themes are animals and sports. With all the yankees gear, it is a perfect place for all of the boys, including Marc and the big boys. And then of course the animal theme is a reflection of me. With matching white crown molding and furniture, I am thinking about putting up a white decal of an animal on the wall to brighten it up a bit more. I have a new infatuation with giraffe's after we got to feed the giraffes in Florida. They are the sweetest animals, and I love the way they roll their tongue out to get some food. And I found a really cute white decal of a giraffe that I think would look great on the wall.

This doesn't sound like me at all, but I can't wait to go to the doctor tomorrow. I am hoping he will have an idea of when the baby might decide to make an appearance. This is probably wishful thinking, but it would be so cool if he told me he thought the baby might come a little before the due date. I realize that probably won't happen. They don't like to guesstimate because it really isn't practical for them to predict the future incorrectly. I'm just getting very excited to meet our sweet, baby boy.

This past weekend I felt well and was able to get a lot done, but the weekend before I felt terrible. I had braxton hicks all weekend and felt dizzy and extra crappy on top of all the normal discomforts. Since then I've had sporadic false labor, but not quite as extreme. Maybe I was just dehydrated, but I'm really not sure why I felt like that. To put it in perspective, I actually sat on the couch and asked Marc to bring me a few things. I never do that. I don't play the pity game that I need this and that. Normally I figure if I need something I will get it for myself. So, for me to sit there and ask him to get me a glass of water is very unusual for me.

I can tell the baby is getting bigger every day. He feels so long in my torso that I worry he is going to get stuck in a bad position. I'm pretty sure his little foot was caught on the outside of my rib yesterday. It was sticking out so abnormally far that I was worried it wouldn't go back where it was supposed to be. But alas, the mysterious foot returned back to a place that was more likely to smush my small intestines than break a rib. Thank you little boy for helping your mommy get through this last month without breaking my bones!

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Happy New Year!!!

Marc and I had a white Christmas in Dallas, and an even whiter New Year's in Mammoth. We definitely maximized our last holiday experience before we become parents. It was truly wonderful to relax and spend time with family and friends.

While we were in Dallas, we had a little baby shower brunch at my friend Christina's restaurant, Terrilli's. It was a small group of special friends that I've known since high school. Here is a picture of my brothers and me at the dinner table.

Marc flew home from the freezing cold of Dallas a couple days earlier than me. I thought he would be bored if he stayed as long as I wanted to. Especially because I wouldn't be taking him out on the town. All I want to do at night is go to bed, and I didn't know how he would entertain himself while everyone was sleeping. Fortunately, my brothers took him out to a bar in Lewisville one night. Ugh, a smoky bar so didn't sound like fun to me. Marc said I probably would have puked within 5 seconds of walking in. Male bonding was probably good for the boys and I think they had a good time getting to know each other a bit more. The stories of their silly shenanigans never gets old!

On the day that I flew back to LA, Marc scooped me up from LAX and brought me straight home to repack my suitcase for Mammoth. Quickly and diligently I took a few things out of my suitcase and added a few items I thought I would need for the mountains. Marc was expecting it to take me a while to repack, but I was going from one snowy environment to another. It's not like I have very many clothes that fit or I needed to pack snowboard gear. I showered and was ready to go in less than an hour.

The reason this is most impressive is because I travelled for a total of 10 hours that day. On my flight from Dallas to LA, I had a stop in El Paso. And then I rode in the car for the 5+ hours to Mammoth with Marc, David, and Boogars. This is not an easy feat for a pregnant gal in her last trimester. The issues I have are the needs to stretch, get my blood flowing, and pee all the time. Good thing I'm not a prima donna and don't mind popping a squat beside the car in the mountains. Seriously, I would much rather be able to go exactly when I want to, rather than having to search for a dirty gas station where I have to wait in some ghetto line of white trash where I'm afraid to touch anything. Depending on how you look it, I'm either a super cool go-with-the-flow chic or maybe I'm secretly a mountain woman getting back to my roots. As long as I'm not peeing in my pants, I am happy. And believe me, I don't take it for granted that I'm wearing clean pantalones.

Yeah, I probably shouldn't be so open about it, but if I laugh too hard I might pee in my pants a little. Or a lot. Depending on the exact moment and if the baby is sitting on my bladder. Or if I recently drank a cup of water, I'm doomed. Ok, so fine, sneezing is also a problem. Yes, that is why I'm squeezing my legs together. I'm nervous about having an accident. All right, so maybe it also happens once in a while if I'm just sitting there. But I can't help it and am doing everything to prevent the worst. So if you will excuse me for a quick second, I'm gonna' run to the bathroom before I have a chuckle....

It was so great to see my little kitty when I returned home from Dallas. I could tell he missed me terribly, and he let me pet him for a solid 5 hours during the drive to Mammoth and was ecstatic to receive all the attention. I just loved having him next to me during the entire car ride. I never knew I could love an orange kitty so much, but of course I do!

Mammoth was a very chill trip for me. I was exhausted when we arrived and just wanted to sleep. I would stay up late with our buddies and play cards at night and get up early to eat breakfast with everyone in the mornings. But as soon as everyone left to ride the mountain, I went right back to sleep for several hours every day. It worked out perfect because I was able to catch up on rest and enjoy visiting with all of our packed condo full of friends. I thought I would feel lonely by myself during the day, but that certainly wasn't the case. I was too wiped out to feel left out of snowboarding. It worked out perfectly to stay home and nap with Boogars.

This is me with our fabulous friends in Mammoth at 34 weeks pregnant.

It was a spectacular way to ring in 2010....The best year ever!!!

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Picture Update

MERRY CHRISTMAS! 33 1/2 Weeks Pregnant


32 1/2 Weeks Pregnant

Saturday, December 19, 2009

HO HO HO!!! 32 Weeks Pregnant

Who knows the difference between Santa Claus and Tiger Woods?

Santa stops after 3 hos...hahaha! I couldn't resist.

It's hard to believe we have less than 8 weeks before the baby is supposed to arrive. Tis the season to be jolly for so many reasons! Between Christmas and Hanukkah and holiday parties galore, it's all happening!

We have continued to prepare for our little one's grand debut. We finished our childbirth classes on Thurs. and earned our certificate of completion. I'm so glad we did that class. We definitely learned some things, but I think the ultimate advantage to doing a class like that is to educate the guys on what the gals are going through. It helps them be more sensitive and understanding to the woman's needs. It is probably easier for the pregnant one to emotionally prepare for the life changing events ahead since they are the ones carrying the child. And I felt like at every class I got 3 hours of Marc's undivided attention. And of course I liked that. :)

Marc is blowing me away with his preparations. He just came home with a stroller the other day. It wasn't the one I wanted, but it was a great deal and fits our infant car seat. He taught me how to use it last night and it was absolutely adorable. He wanted to make sure I did everything correctly so I didn't jeopardize the baby's safety or risk waking him up. Does this even make sense? Isn't it usually the girl convincing the guy that we even need a stroller? Although it wasn't the original stroller I had picked out, I quickly decided it was perfect.

Also, I asked Marc the other day if he would take maternity pictures with me this weekend. He said no problem in a flash. Really? He is so go with the flow and happy to do it. I've heard of many girls begging their guys to do stuff like that. So we are all scheduled to take pregnant belly photos on Sunday after he plays volleyball. People say that makes the pregnancy so much more memorable and can be a special keepsake for the baby one day in the future. I think all kids are curious about what their mommies looked like pregnant. I know I still am...There MIGHT be one whole picture of my pregnant mother in existence. And I still don't know where it is and if it really exists!

Next on the agenda is to find a crib. I'm looking for a white sleigh crib from Pottery Barn to match the white crown molding and the rest of my pottery barn furniture in that room. Marc is actively helping me find the best deal, so I'm sure we'll have a crib in the next few weeks. We're on a roll!

Monday, December 7, 2009

It's a party.....I mean it's the best baby shower I've ever attended!!!

Welcome to the best baby shower I've ever been to! This was less of a baby shower, and more of a royal celebration! Look at all the people who came! Our house was full of special friends and family for the exceptional occasion, and we had a fantastic time.

Marc invited more people than I did! And I can't believe how many of his guy friends came. I guess they knew that if Marc was involved that we would have never ending amounts of delicious food and football ready to devour and enjoy.

There were many aspects of this party that made it uber spectacular, and this homemade cake is just one component. I love how it says both of our last names, Perry and Newhaus and gives him the number ONE. Pamela baked it and Kristi decorated it. It was better than any store-bought cake I've ever eaten and there is no tool to measure the amount of thoughtfulness included.

I need to take a moment to rave about how marvelous my friends are. The two main hostesses are my dear friends Kristi and Pamela and they went above and beyond my wildest expectations. Pamela's mom and Nori also came bright and early in the morning to help the girls set up and worked all day on taking care of everyone's needs at the party. They set everything up from beginning to end...from the first guest's arrival to the final guest's departure. They didn't miss a single detail and worked their butts off all day long.

First of all, the decorations were phenomenal! The center pieces on the tables were the most adorable teddy bears. Each bear was dressed as a sports icon related to Marc or me. Each bear wore a jersey onesie that will ultimately be for the baby. Representing were the Cowboys, Yankees, Lakers, and Dodgers, and each bear held an array of balloons. So now little Perry Newhaus has more teddy bears than he ever could have dreamt of loving. My friends clearly put hours upon hours of thought and preparation into the sports-themed extravaganza. It was AWESOME!!!!


I just can't say enough good things. Marc and his friends had a great time despite the fact that they were technically at a baby shower. Between football and friends, I think it's safe to say they were feeling festive and fortunate. My mom was thoroughly impressed by our wonderful friends. And I was completely flabbergasted that all these people would do so much for us.

By the conclusion of the shindig, I was so overwhelmed and exhausted that I kicked off my heels and plopped down with all my new sporty companions. What could be more comforting at the end of the suaire. I was beat and I hadn't even done any of the real work. It's a tough job to have fun at your own party. Hahaha! I don't expect to get any sympathy there!

Now it's the calm after the storm and I get to relax for a minute. We have many magnificent baby gifts to organize before I start sending out thank you notes. This is the fun part because everyone spoiled us rotten with kindness and generosity. The yankees won out with the most common gifted sports theme, so it looks like our little one is predisposed to be a yankee just like Daddy Marc and Grandpa Bernie.

I hope all my friends and family know how grateful and appreciative I am for so much love and support. Thank you to all of you for being the best of the best!!!

Friday, December 4, 2009

Prepared Childbirth Series

Last night was a RIOT!!! I dragged Marc to childbirth class at the hospital. HAHAHA!!!

Originally, when he said he would go with me, it didn't seem like it was a big deal so I signed us up for the three Thursday evening classes for a total of nine hours. But when it came time to get ready and head out the door, he was full of regrets that he had ever agreed to such a thing. Thanks to rush hour traffic, I got to listen to his complaints for a full hour as I drove us to the dreaded classroom full of hormonal, pregnant women and their partners. He explained that this was just something women with nothing better to do sign up for. Of course that hurt my feelings a tiny bit and I wondered why he agreed to it in the first place if he was going to be so ornery about it. I told him he needed to get over it because I'm the one who paid the $150 for the classes and he can just relax while I chauffeur him there. Plus, I'm the one who gets to go through the pain of childbirth, so the least he could do was be nice and supportive.

Upon arrival to the hospital, we found our class full of expecting couples. I figured Marc was miserable being there so I did the honors of introducing the both of us and our unborn son. We found out that we don't get the maternity tour of the hospital due to the swine flu, and with the extra time we will practice more breathing exercises and relaxation techniques. That works out great for me because I am shooting for an all natural drug-free childbirth. In between texts and emails on his blackberry, Marc told the instructor that he was already prepared for me to go into labor because he watched a youtube video of an elephant giving birth. Needless to say, he wasn't the only less than ecstatic daddy in the room, and everyone laughed at his comment.

By the second half of class, everyone seemed to be a bit more comfortable in that room. I mean, hey, we're doing it for our future children, right. I don't want to go so far as to say we enjoyed ourselves, but honestly I really did! It's helpful for me to think of having a baby as a natural process rather than a medical procedure. And I find comfort in the fact that Marc will better understand what I am going through.

Believe it or not, when we got home Marc said that he was GLAD that we went to the class with me! WHAT?! He said he appreciated how informative our teacher was and that it was a good thing to be prepared. I think it also made him appreciate me a little more. He saw that almost every single mom-to-be was quite a bit heavier than me and that I am very healthy in comparison. He told me several times that I was the cutest girl in there! Maybe he just felt bad about his previous complaints, but I'll take the sweetness any time!

So, for next week, we are going to get an early start over to childbirth class to beat rush hour traffic. And to kill time, we are going to do my favorite thing and have a bite to eat across the street at Jerry's Deli. Marc definitely realized that childbirth class was the least painful thing about having a baby, and I'm grateful for his reluctant compliance! Whew!

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving!!! (29 Weeks Pregnant)


Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, and this year ranked up there with the best of them. We shared the special holiday with Marc's family in Florida. I love his parents and am so excited that our unborn child already has so many family members and friends that love him with all their hearts. He has no idea how lucky he is!

Marc told me, "Congratulations! You survived Thanksgiving. Not many turkeys made it through Thanksgiving!" I had told him how when my mom was pregnant, my dad called her Butterball at one point. So now I'm also getting compared to a butterball turkey....my mistake telling him that story. But I promise you I'm no turkey. ;)

Travelling was a bit more difficult than usual for me. I thought I was just getting so tired because maybe that is normal in the 3rd trimester. But my dizzy spells and fatigue were at an all time high, and my doctor called twice while I was away to tell me I was anemic again and to make sure I was taking iron pills. I felt like I could have slept through Thanksgiving week at the rate I was going. And I didn't want to take iron pills because of constipation. But now I seem to have it all figured out a week later. Lots of salads, fruit, and green drinks, and I'm taking the iron pill every other day instead of every day so I can go to the bathroom. Now I am feeling a little more energetic, but don't know how I'm going to manage getting on the airplane for Christmas.

Today I am 30 weeks pregnant and we are getting ready for our baby shower this weekend. My mom is flying in on Sat. and I'm getting everything ready for the festivities. This house used to be stuck in the 90's with grey carpets and grey walls from floor to ceiling. I've been warming it up with earth tones and making it a cozy place to live. We have hung curtains, painted walls, rearranged the living room, added throw rugs and plants, and hung artwork. It's looking better and better all the time. Turning a bachelor pad into a family home is a process, but I'm knocking it out one step at a time. With the high ceilings and all the natural light that comes in, it is a great palette to work with and I've been having so much fun making these improvements! It is becoming home sweet home!!!

Now Marc is installing a washer/dryer so it is my cue to leave before they solicit any more of my help.