Just in case...

You think we are all awesome and noble, let it be noted that Henry is sleeping in a tent tonight. Because he wet the bed last night and the cleaning ladies come on Monday. So it will be a two night camp out.

I'm a Big Kid Now!

I just got back from my pelvic exam and I have stayed the same!!!! This is precisely what the doctor was hoping for and we are both very excited about the news. She gave me a choice between an extra shower a week or potty privileges and I chose potty privileges. I am very excited. I also now get to sit up to eat my meals. Rock on!!!

Potty privileges also means I get to...brush my teeth without a nurse bringing me my toothbrush and spit into a sink rather than a cup... wash my face with something other than a baby wipe...wear shoes occasionally...look in the mirror...not talk to my friends who visit over a bucket of pee...and, possibly the most important of all, FLUSH!

My Son Has Given Me Wings

My days are pretty boring these days. This is a good thing. My doctor says that you want to be interesting at a cocktail party but boring at the hospital. So I thought I'd give you a look at what is roughly my daily schedule.

6am--The nurses come in for my first dose of Nephedipene of the day and to test my blood sugar. (This keeps me from having contractions.) In order to get this med, they take my vitals as my blood pressure has to be 90 over 60. Lots of times my pressure is too low, but I've found that laying on my back usually raises it just enough. My low blood pressure is also one of the reasons the Dr's are hesitant for me to move around a lot. The low blood pressure is a side effect of the Nephedipene. We also listen to Henry at this time. I fall back asleep after this.
7-7:30--Dr. Murray makes her rounds. (She usually arrives around 10 minutes after I fall back asleep.)
8am--Usually by the time I fall back asleep, the nurse comes back in with my Heparin shot (to prevent blood clots). I get the shot in my belly and it is a good day when Henry doesn't kick me while I get my shot. I also get my breakfast at this time and tune into the Today Show for my daily dose of Al Roker.
9:15-9:45ish--I get my blood sugar tested again an hour after I finish eating. I also usually get put on the monitor for my hour long Non-Stress Test where they check for contractions and fetal heartrate. When the sound of Henry's heart beating doesn't lull me to sleep, I press a button every time I feel him move. The nurses always comment in hoe beautiful Henry's strip is.
10-11--Live with Regis and Kelly. Finish my NST. Bathe and get dressed for the day.
12--Lunch and then an hour later, my blood sugar gets tested. I usually get online at this time or sleep.
2--Time again for my vitals and Nephedipine.
3--Guiding Light and playing on the computer.
4--Ellen.
5--Dinner and then an hour later--blood sugar tested and MASH on the Hallmark Channel.
8--Another Heparine shot in the belly and either NBC or HGTV. Play with my Webkinz online.
10--Vitals, Nephedipene, listen to Henry and pray that I only get up to pee a couple of times in the night.

Occasionally I pull out my little hand mirror and check out my ever growing belly. In the past few days, I can see that Henry has both grown and found himself an odd position. I look like I have wings underneath my ribs. Dr. Murray tells me it is his butt on my right and his feet (which she guesses must be big like his Daddy's) on my left. It is really quite one of the oddest things I've ever seen.

Deflated

No new privileges.

My cervix is still dilated. In fact, I'm about a cm more dilated than last week at 2.3 cm. So I'm on my head for at least another week. But Henry is doing well. He appears larger (they didn't do measurements) and also does not appear to have much hair yet. And he is quite the wiggler.

I'd like to thank the Academy...

In the movie "America's Sweethearts," Allan Arkin plays this granola guru with crazy sayings (Life is a cookie, for example) who teaches John Cusack to name the things he is grateful for when life gets harried. I think this is a good idea, however, I do not think simply being thankful is enough. In the end, we all have Someone to be thankful to. There are so many moments for which we all are grateful, and yet I fear that we rarely say thank you to the appropriate parties. It would be a shame to simply lump all good things together and say, "I thank God for being good to me." (Though not to acknowledge this would be shameful as well.) So I want to specifically acknowledge some of the things that I am grateful for.

1. I thank Sloan for doing all of my laundry, making sure that I have sugar-free stuff in my fridge, and for uncomfortably cuddling with me in my hospital bed.
2. I thank Nurse Donna for teaching me how to use the bedpan all by myself like a big girl.
3. I thank Nurse Khristine for making me laugh, helping me with my knitting, and just being the all around bestest nurse in the whole world. I thank her too for telling me my belly is cute.
4. I thank Drs. Tidey, Murray, Troyer, and Love for their understanding of a mom's need to see her baby and supplying Sloan and me with over 20 different ultrasound photos.
5. I thank William, Sarah Grace, Caroline, and Natalie Johnson for drawing me loads of pictures to decorate my room with. And thanks to my great sister-in-law, Pam, for mailing them to me.
6. I thank Kate and Lee Cross, Chris McMahon, Heather Oberle, and my parents for bringing me soft toilet paper.
7. I thank the Hale family for bringing me loads of books and a computerized Sudoku game.
8. I thank Steve and Marti Shelby for bringing me communion.
9. I thank Sonya and Blair Collins for working on Henry's nursery and also John and Kaden Reece for putting Henry's crib together.

I know there are more people I need to thank out there, but they're playing the music and this gold statue is a lot heavier than it looks...

Happy Birthday Stef!

How 'bout them VCU Rams?!! Let's go TARHEELS!

Oh, how I love Fridays! I've had a massage, a shower, and Sloan will be here all weekend!! And I spent the whole morning napping.

I have now been in the hospital for one month. All the doctors are pleasantly surprised that I have kept labor at bay this long. They keep telling me that I'm doing a great job. I suppose that all of my lolling prior to my admission to the hospital was just training for the serious lolling I'm doing now. I have, however, become quite the self-sufficient patient. I've mastered the bedpan, moving my bed up and down, maneuvering my 8 pillows without any falling on the floor, and I do all of this with my bed tilted to a 30 degree angle.

Hee Hee and Willie Wonka

Sloan and I had a relaxing weekend. We watched this really groovy Lamaze video. First of all, this DVD was obviously dubbed from a VHS tape made in the late 70s/early 80s. Seondly, basically everyone--women and men--had mullets and short shorts on. There also was a man who looked just like Billie Dee Williams. Nothing like child labor with Lando Calrissian. Sloan and I decided that it actually is a good thing we couldn't take this class in person as we are not mature enough. The instructor said things like..."Concentrate on your special place"..."Stroke it out"...and "You can use both hands." When she started teaching one of the breathing techniques and said "Make the pattern hee hee blow" Sloan and I just lost it.

Sloan is the best husband in the whole world. This weekend he brought me clean laundry, helped the nurse change my linens, watched HGTV with me, hung up pictures in my room, fetched me water, and even helped empty and clean my bedpan. He even sung the Willie Wonka song each time he did this because the gloves they use in my room are blue and look like Johnny Depp's gloves. He certainly is my favorite.

Things that make me laugh

My friend Shannon told me that she is inspired by my ability to continue to keep a good attitude despite the fact that I'm stuck in a bed and I pee in a bucket every hour. What she doesn't understand is that I've always admired her for being one of those pretty people who is always well groomed, perfectly accessorized, and just is all around one of "the pretty people club." Seriously, if she wasn't always smiling and didn't spend most of her days ministering to orphans and refugees, I would find it difficult to be friends with someone so perfectly lovely. To have her praise is like a Freshman on the Chess team getting kissed by the homecoming queen.

I am not quite sure why I am still in good spirits, save for the fact that I know a lot of people are praying that I'll be. I mean, generally, whining, freaking out, and complaining are some of my favorite things to do and I admit, that when it comes down to it, I am really tired of being itchy and my greasy hair. So my attitude is really not my doing, but God's.

I also think the fact that I am married to the second funniest person on the planet helps a lot. (I hold the current title and apparently was first runner up as Most Humble.) Sloan does a great little number inspired by the Sharks and the Jets that is sure to make you pee in your pants. Or, if you are like me ans can't wear any pants--wet the bed. And my situation really does provide me with many reasons to laugh. Using a bedpan is hilarious. My compression tights that I wear to keep blood clots at bay are these thick white thigh highs. Very naughty nurse and this makes me laugh. I also seem to have a little crush on Al Roker and you just can't have a bad day if you start it off with Al and Matt.

I also have great friends who visit me and send me great links to funny web pages. Thank the aforementioned pretty Shannon for the following----http://www.wholesomewear.com/.