alibali

Reese Madeline arrived on Tuesday (8/27) morning at 10:53am weighing 9lbs 9 oz and measuring 21" long.  Full head of thick black hair, gray eyes like her sister, and enormous puffy cheeks like her mom.

Recovery has been so much better this time because the birth was so great.  They almost convinced me to go all natural but then I totally freaked out thinking about Ziva's birth and my cervix started closing as they were having me push.

Breastfeeding is going much better than with Ziva but Reese had jaundice and had to stay in the hospital an extra day so she was supplemented with formula to get her pooping and get her bilirubin levels down.  So, now we've stretched giant baby's tummy and my milk has to catch up.  BUT, I have milk.  I can hear her gulping and swallowing which is amazing since that never happened with Ziva.  We've dropped the supplementing down - it was 30cc (1oz) every 3 hours, we're now doing 15cc only when necessary i.e. she's been nursing for an hour on both sides and still flipping out - we top her off.  That happened around 8am this morning and then around 3pm I fed her for around 45 minutes and Ziva started flipping out and wanted mommy so I just passed Reese over to Mark and he topped her off and both girls have been happy since then.  So, while not really ideal, only 2 servings of formula today.  I'm sure night time will be rough but we're getting there. 

I'm 38 weeks as of yesterday and I'm ready.  I know it could be another month before baby makes its arrival but it could also be tomorrow.  I'm not holding out all my hopes there but that would be awesome.  I have absolutely nothing to do at work now which makes daily life go by sooo slowly.

I talked to the little one yesterday and mentioned that if he/she does decide to come sometime this week, I would be forced to love him/her a little bit more than his/her sister who waited until an induction at 42 weeks.  She'd still be in there if she could fit and just randomly reach out and ask for a new book.

A friend came and painted clouds in the nursery this past weekend so that's all done now.  Just two paintings to hang up but that's no big deal.  I even washed the newborn neutral clothes... something I didn't bother doing with Ziva.  Sorry kiddo.  Her clothes were all new, these are already worn and sat for 2 years.. plus our new washer and dryer are both awesome.

Ziva asks about the baby a bunch which is adorable. She was asking Mark in the car about her baby brother and he was trying to explain it could be a girl, we don't know.  She insists it's a boy, time will tell.  Last night when I was reading to her she stopped listening leaned up (not easy over my gigantic belly) and snuggled into me more and said I love mommy, I love baby, I love daddy, I love woofwoof.  I teared up and gave her squishy hugs and kisses.

We've settled on the names.  We've even settled on the Hebrew names.  Spoke to the Rabbi tonight - if it's a boy we'll do a bris and a baby naming for Ziva.  If it's a girl we'll do a joint baby naming ceremony which will be nice.  Funny that even though Ziva is hebrew he suggested a different Hebrew name.  I like the name though and the meaning so we're going with it.

That's about all.  I sent Mark out for ice cream tonight because, at most, I only have another month to get away with that.

I had a very vivid dream about labor/birth.  Not at all vivid in the fact that I saw/felt everything just vivid in that I woke up surprised I was still pregnant. I was in horrible pain and then blacked out.  Apparently, I ended up getting a c-section and when I came to, Mark told me everything that happened because I didn't know anything.  I wasn't upset about the c-section because I didn't have any pain and felt much better than my vaginal birth last time.  I was actually incredibly upset that I had gotten an epidural and was so disappointed in myself.

Then, I decided to go through my bag and it was just full of stuffed animals and toys for Ziva.  It didn't have anything that I actually wanted to bring and it didn't have my magical placenta releasng herb that my midwife has told me to bring with me.  Once I realized I didn't have it, I figured the c-section was for the best so I didn't have to deal with someone reaching in and pulling out my placenta, I was just still upset about getting an epidural.  I was in the middle of saying why I was so upset and then real life burst into my room at 7am to announce she had to go potty so I woke up.


I think it's weird that in my dream I was totally okay with the c-section.  I guess cause this time around, I trust my midwife.  If I end up with a c-section, I know it was necessary and not that she just wants to end my pregnancy/labor so she can get home.  I've thought about the epidural and figured I would just play it by ear.  If I'm in horrible pain and can't take it anymore, I'll get the epidural.  If I'm handling things perfectly fine, there's no sense in getting the epidural.  Weird that in my dream that's what upset me.

So, because I had off Thurs/Friday for the 4th of July we decided to attempt potty training.  Ziva had a few accidents that weekend but overall did awesome.  Went back to daycare and did okay on Monday but then on Tuesday she came home wearing a stuffed to the brim pull-up.  I never brought pull-ups to school - she just went in underwear and I told them to put her in diapers (which we're now calling "thick undies" because Ziva does not want diapers) for naptime.  Where'd the pull-up come from and why was it so full?  I was annoyed.  Especially because the owner wasn't there and it was just 2 of the other workers so I was like WTF, why aren't you doing what I asked you to do?

She ended up having about 2 accidents a day at school.  On Friday, Mark asks how she's doing overall and how she is compared to other kids and yada yada yada.. he had already asked 2 other teachers there.  He does this a lot.  It annoys the crap out of me.  Ziva likes going on the potty, she asks to go on the potty.  She stops playing and runs over to the potty and pees - clearly she's doing something right.  But, because Mark needs to know exactly how she is compared to every other kid and asks 9 people eventually they're just going to say "eh shes doing ok".  She thought maybe it was too soon to be potty training because Ziva had 2 more accidents at school on Friday.  Then brought up another girl that potty trained around 2 years old but regressed for 5 months back to diapers and now is potty trained again.  Ok, but that's not my kid - every kid is different.  If Ziva regresses, that's fine but I'm not stopping what we're doing just because it's a little more work for daycare.

I kinda feel that with the amount of money I'm paying, if I decide to do elimination communication and have a 4 month old go diaperless, they should be cleaning up that mess all day long, but I digress.  I was really annoyed on Friday and said fuck that.  Especially when Ziva was deeply engrossed in watching something on youtube, stopped and said I need peepee! and ran to the potty.  Then, while eating dinner she stopped, got off her chair, sat on the potty and peed.  Clearly, the kid knows (most of the time) when she has to pee so why would I put her back in diapers?  I told her she's still a big girl but if she wants diapers that's absolutely fine.  She insisted she wanted the undies.

She can hold her pee for a loooong time.  Yesterday she woke up with a wet diaper at 7:30ish and didn't pee until 11:45 when I finally just said okay, sit down and you're not getting up until you pee.  She eventually peed and was very excited.  She then peed another 4x on the potty yesterday and didn't have a single accident.  Obviously, I can understand accidents being more likely at daycare because at home she doesn't have to worry about someone stealing her toy when she goes to the bathroom.  We keep a potty in the den where we normally are also so it's in her view.  I dont put her on the potty hourly, I just ask her often.  I know that's the opposite of what "they say" but it's working for us.

Wow, who knew I had so much to say about potty training.

Also, I'm almost 35 weeks pregnant.  Although I may feel like I've been pregnant forever, this pregnancy is going super quickly and we're going to have a baby here shortly.  That is so exciting and so scary.

Ziva is 2 years old today.  It's hard to wrap my head around that.  My dad is 59 today.  It's easier to wrap my head around that for some reason.

It was definitely not Good Morning America.. here's the clip that was on cbsnews today: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50146659n

Dale mentioned her part was mainly cut but you can see her quickly looking at a woman's belly in her office and then a few seconds later (maybe around 4:40?) she takes a woman's blood pressure.  Glad I got to see it.

I'm so far behind in writing that I'm just picking up on this weekend.  It's our 8th wedding anniversary today.  Crazy how time flies.

Friday night, our daycare had "parents night out" which she does every few months.  Basically, pick your kid up normal time, feed them dinner and then drop them back off around 7pm so you can have a date night.  They play, watch movies, eat cookies/random crap stuff, and generally just have an awesome time with their friends.  We went to see Iron Man 3D which was pretty darn good.  I really wanted to go for the popcorn factor and I was very happy with that and some cherry coke from the tap as well.  When we picked Ziva back up around 10:30 they were all sitting around snuggling in their pjs telling "scary" stories.. although it's all 2-5 yr olds so really they were telling fairy tales.  It was adorable.

Saturday morning I was supposed to have a midwife appt but it was rescheduled to next week.  I feel like I've gained 80 lbs since my last appt which was 6 weeks ago at this point.  Either way, Bobbe and Steve came to pick up Ziva because they were going to do that while we went to my appt and wanted to do it anyway even though we were rescheduled.  They went for breakfast, to the park, to the ecology site, and generally just wore her out.  In the meantime, we hit up some garage sales, had a nice lunch out together, and then went to the Habitat for Humanity Restore to check things out for updating the apartment.  Didn't get anything there but a few ideas at least.  We bought a dresser for baby #2, we're getting/borrowing a crib from a friend, and we bought one of those rock and play sleeper things that are all the rage nowadays from a yard sale.  Baby #2 is in good shape as far as stuff goes, just need to pick out paint and actually make the room a room instead of a pile of mish mosh baby stuff.  That night we went over to Dave & Tiffany's and Ziva and Sophie wore out their energy.  Ziva smacked her nose into a cup or something and got a bloody nose, what else is new?

Sunday she slept in until 9:45 when I finally was like, okay we need to get up kiddo.  Definitely not complaining about that.  We cleaned.  We played, Ziva fell on a wooden box and smacked the corner of her head.  She is a magnet for bruises lately.  I feel horrible, she is more bruised now than when she was starting to walk and learning to fall.  I guess she's also more gutsy and fearless now so that's an issue.  Luckily, it has just been quick crying and bruises and nothing really major.  Friends came over for cinco de mayo celebration and we ate some good mexican food and then they begged and pleaded to see our horrible Vegas/Elvis wedding video.  It was ridiculous seeing that because we probably haven't watched it in a good 6 or 7 years.  I look so scared and the video quality is horrendous.  Elvis is still amazing.

All in all a nice fun filled packed weekend.  So not looking forward to work tomorrow because it has just been kicking my ass lately and ridiculous things are happening.

8:30am - Wake up, drop Ziva off at daycare.  Can't fall back asleep so I play around online
10:30 - Mark wakes up, we decide to go out for a lovely pancake breakfast before our final walk-thru at noon
11:45 - arrive a bit early at walk-thru.  THERE IS A MOVING FAN AT THE HOUSE!!!  She is supposed to be OUT of the house because it has fallen into a short sale situation and we need to do a clean walk-thru.
12:01pm - Our realtor's colleague shows up for the walk-thru and sees what is going on (Our realtor was at her Grandma's wake that morning so couldn't make it).  I'm literally vibrating with anger at this point.  I've never wanted to hit someone in my life and I want to shake and possibly punch this lady.  We were supposed to close in NOVEMBER.  We couldn't close last week because she was in Jamaica on vacation.  She cannot pay her mortgage so everything has been put off but can go on vacation.
12:30 - We do a walk-thru with the realtor even though there is all sorts of stuff still in the house.  The movers are visibly drunk and stink of liquor.  Closets are full of clothing.
1:00 - our lawyer is cursing out the seller (to us on the phone).  Tells us the closing, which was scheduled for 2pm has now (obviously) been pushed back to 4pm so she can gtfo.
2:00 Sit in startbucks and enjoy a green tea frap.  Mark turns to me and says "ya know, the house is really nice, I really like it".  I should hope so!  Do you know how much money we're spending??
2:45 - we go back to the house because she said she would be out no later than 2pm.  The moving truck is closing up and pulling away.  Oh wait, ANOTHER moving truck pulls up.  I shit you not.  We call lawyer again. 
3:30pm -  Lawyer talks us out of smacking the lady, tells Mark to go and ask her when she'll actually be out. She says to Mark: "Stop rushing me!  You can't rush me out of my house!  I need time to get out. I'm not going to the closing I already signed all my papers."  No, this is no longer your house, you picked 1/30 to close, gtfo.  We leave because the closing is 30 minutes away.  Mark's dad goes to the house, makes sure she gets out and gets the key from her.
4:25 - We actually begin signing papers.  Everyone on "her side" is apologizing to us for the craziness we've dealt with over the 4 months. 
4:45 - Her lawyer asks us for $900 because she just filled the oil tank up and we're supposed to pay her for it.  I politely say "no thank you"  Both lawyers look at me like I"m cuckoo bananas.  Mark and I start listing all sorts of stuff wrong with the house (nothing at all big, we just wrote down EVERY LITTLE THING).  Her lawyer leaves to make some phone calls and see what he can do.
4:50 - Lawyer asks us to split it 50/50.  We say no, thank you.  Our lawyer chimes in and mentions every stupid thing we've been through over the past 4 months.
4:55 - Her lawyer makes another phone call and tells us we're good to go.
5:00 - everything is signed and we own the house!


After we walked out, I just immediately felt lighter.  That's the only way I can describe it.  We immediately went and changed the locks on all the doors.  In the end, because of the short sale and waiting and bs, we ended up saving around $8000.  Not too shabby.  Not bad at all. 

I'm packing like a mad woman and Mark has been painting like a mad man.  We weren't going to repaint all the ceilings but, he figured we might as well just do it now and get it over and done with.  We're moving in on Feb 9 and hopefully the condo will be rented out quickly because the thought of paying 2 mortgages is rather scary.

Sooo, haven't posted in a while and I won't be posting for another week because we're heading to Disney tomorrow!

I said I would never go to Disneyworld with a baby in diapers but, well, things change once that baby is here, don't they?  I'm excited and sooo looking forward to a week off of work as well.  There is so much stuff in our luggage.   I did fine packing my stuff but I worry that Ziva MIGHT need this and that and this other thing and oh no, what about some extra cheerios JUST IN CASE.  Can't forget a spare blanket for her and clothes and her elmo doll or the teddy bear?  Do I bring bother or just one and then it turns into a giant bag and a medium bag and a carryon and and and and and...

And, then I just realized we need the stroller and diaper bag too ahhhh  I'm hemming and hawwing over whether or not I should bring her carrier.  She hasn't been in it forever but on the last plane ride it was great to strap her onto me and force her into a nap.  So, do I take up some valuable carryon space for a carrier I may or may not use? 

I don't knowwww. 

disney disney disney

So that house is a no-go.  It was on the market for 6 months with no takers.  All of a sudden 3 offers - we were all at the same and then one person decided to waive an inspection  Seller opted for that one.  I'm totally bummed but, from a seller's perspective, it makes absolute sense.  It was a great house, great property, low taxes, and had an apartment to help with mortgage.  It completely sucks but I guess it just wasn't meant to be.  Granted, those people could somehow decide not to sign the contract and it could come back to us but I'm not going to hold my breath.

This all happend on my birthday which kinda stunk.  Then we went out and celebrated with friends and good food.  Ziva slept at my in-laws for the night (first time ever!).  She did fine.  I was all weirded out.  They didn't believe us when we said she sleeps in on the weekends.  She woke up around 7:30, Steve went in, Ziva took one look at him and went back to sleep.  Around 8:30 or so she got up.  They then gave her a nap at 9:45.  She pretty much only naps once a day now so I was worried about that.  Anyway, we went for a hot stone massage and facials on Saturday and then as the day progressed I just felt myself getting sicker.  Temp (when I checke it) only went up to 100.5 but I was getting shivers and sweats and all that fun stuff.  Today has been a lounging day.

Ziva is awesome.  She gives hugs and kisses now - even says muah when she kisses.  She can point out her (or your) belly, eyes, nose, feet, mouth, and brain.  Brain amuses me. We're working on ear.  I showed it to her and she showed it to me a few minutes later but that was the only time I tried. She can say mama, dad, uppa (up), duck, more, nana (banana), night night, elmo, and uh oh very consistently.  I feel like Im forgetting other words - she no longer says cooper or dog which is weird.  She points out ducks and quacks.  She can moo like a cow but sometimes says mmmmm instead of mooo which makes me laugh.  She will also say "baa" but can't figure out how to oink like a pig.  She can run, wave, clap, point, shake her head yes or no (and mean it), go upstairs and down (if it's just one stair she can easily go up/down otherwise she crawls) sign more and all done.  She does another sign too but I have no idea what it is.  I'm guessing daycare taught it to her?  Need to ask them about that.  She picks out her shoes every day and will match up our shoes into pairs and wants to decide what ones we should wear as well.

I also realized that I make a lot of random sound effects through out the day.  I know this now because Ziva copies most of them.  It's pretty funny.  She laughs all the time.  Even if I just pretend to tickle her she cracks up.  She's a very happy girl but can also throw her serious face at you when she wants something and you are just not getting it.