Twin Update

As many of you know, my friend Molly had twins a week after Lauren was born.  She posted a great update about them today.  In case you were wondering how they are doing or want to see some pictures of adorable three week olds:


http://mollypiper.com

We Need A New Header

Lauren Marie Vandervort officially became part of the family on Thursday, July 22, 2010 at 8:44pm. 

She weighed 7 pounds 14 ounces and was 19 1/4 inches long. 

She currently has a little dark brown hair and dark blue eyes.  Long fingers & feet, and is just very petite! (Aaron was a full pound lighter ans an inch shorter, but Lauren seems smaller to me.)


She's doing all the little things newborns do... squeaky noises, some crying, some "gas smiles," etc.  She is not lacking in attention... we've hardly put her down since she arrived.  She's just so precious and we know all too well now that these sweet moments are fleeting.  Our 3 year old and 21 month old "babies" are a constant reminder that we have to savor every moment.  I reminded myself out loud at 5:30 this morning while the rest of the house was sleeping... even this icky meconium diaper is something to cherish.  I may not ever change another meconium diaper.  Enjoy this.  Delight in her.

Big Brothers are doing ok with the transition.  There have been some tears at times when Ian & Aaron would like to have mommy do something, but I simply can't. (Carry them to their beds or play wrestlemania...)  Ian has a deep interest in his sister.  Counting her toes, watching diaper changes, noticing her little noises, touching her hair, learning about umbilical cords (and belly buttons.)  Aaron is just quietly enjoying being part of this adventure.  Offering kisses and hugs and pats on the back "to help with burping."  It is a truly lovely scene, even though it is chaos, watching my little family turn to a bigger family, and my children loving each other.  I should mention that Ian is showing some signs of stress right now and has been having more tantrums, but we all have to remind ourselves of the huge change we are going through and that everyone needs a little extra slack.  I don't think it is as bad as it could be, and we are thankful for that. 

I'm doing well.  The labor and delivery of #3 was the easiest yet.  It was not easy, but it was nothing compared to Ian's traumatic birthday.  This time, I labored about 6 hours (2 of which were spent doing some serious Lamaze-ish breathing techniques and sweating through the thick of things... the anesthesiologists were backlogged & I had to wait for 1.5 hours for my epidural... after the contractions got bad enough to ask for one.  Yipes!)  Lauren was born after practically no pushing at all, in a flurry of activity, we were all surprised how quickly it happened in the final minutes.  8 minutes from the time the doctor entered the delivery room until she was out and crying.

So here we are.  A family of five.  We'll try to get a family picture soon. 

38 Weeks

**UPDATE**
Unless she chooses otherwise, our induction has been scheduled for 7/22/2010.




Pink shirt= Today, Black Shirt= 38 weeks with Ian.

No 38 weeks pic w/Aaron because he was already a week old!

Appointment was good. Everything is pretty much the same as last week... just waiting now.

37 weeks 3 days

Belly Photo

37 Week Update

So my OB is out sick... for the next 3 months.

Apparently he has some kind of terrible hearing problem & is now being treated at the Mayo Clinic. Pray for him! He's a great doctor & a very nice man.

So I saw a different doctor today, who I will probably see the rest of the time... interesting to get a "new" perspective on things.

First, I actually lost 1/2 a pound since last week, my BP was 120/80, my belly was measuring a little big this time, which probably just means the baby has moved positions. The baby's heart rate was 150 and everything else looked good.

There was no change in dilation/effacement from last week.

The doctor I saw today expressed a lot of disgust with the fact that "they" let me go so long after the due date with Ian and then ended up with so many complications... and he said, "If Aaron hadn't needed to be induced for his health reasons, they would've let you go again and had another 9 pound baby."

So... he said we're looking at maybe inducing a week early if I'm still pregnant at that point. I told him that sounded good to me. ;-) He said, "I'm assuming, since you had an epidural both times before that you're going to have one this time too, and if they're going to hook you up, we might as well help you out on the size of the baby."

So that's fine.

It was a good appointment. I'm pretty sure Roger's going to be home from his trip before it's baby time.

I'm going to take a belly picture later, hopefully!

The point at which they no longer...

...stop labor if it starts.

That's right folks. 36 weeks pregnant. Baby is head down and engaged. I didn't gain any weight since 2 weeks ago. My previously "borderline" high blood pressure was good today (and the last 2 appointments too) and is not a concern anymore. My belly is measuring "right on" at 36cm and baby's heart rate was 151 BPM. (I know "they" say the gender/fetal heart rate correlation is just an old wives tale, but it has proven true for me and my 3 children. Ian and Aaron never had a FHR above 140. Little Miss has never had one below 150. Maybe there's some truth to it!)

I'm 2 cm dilated and 60% effaced. We already know from experience that this doesn't really mean anything as far as when things might get moving... I walked around 3cm and 80% for 5 weeks with Ian... he was a week late!

So we're in the home stretch. +/- 4 weeks until we meet our baby girl!

34 Weeks = "42 Days Left"

^This was taken Monday night at Heinz Hall, when Roger & I went to see Anthony Bourdain Live!

According to my ticker, there are "about 42 days to go!"

I had my 34 week OB appointment today. I didn't gain any weight again... weird! My doctor was really concerned about my cough, but not concerned at all about the peeing while coughing.

"If you're still having troubles after you deliver and recover, we'll work on it then." Thanks.

She said since my cough is improving, albeit slowly, that they're not going to do anything else unless I get "bad" again. And my lungs sounded clear today. Super! As long as they SOUND clear... then why am I still coughing?!

My BP was good. Measurements are right on at 34cm. Baby's heart rate was 153. LMV kicked the doctor right in the hand while she was measuring me. Hee Hee! As far as the OB can tell, baby is engaged (dropped into the birth canal) head down, facing my spine/left side with her big bum sticking out on my right side. I agree with that assessment, my belly is lopsided. At our last ultrasound that was also the position Little Miss was in. She must like it that way.

I scheduled the REST of my OB appointments today... there are only 5 more. I go back in 2 weeks... and then every week after that.

Yikes.

Where has the time gone!??!

32 Weeks

Had my 32 week appointment yesterday. Didn't gain any weight from 2 weeks ago (when I gained 1 pound). The baby's heart rate was 155bpm and my belly is measuring "right on" at 32cm.

Praise God, my blood pressure was excellent yesterday! 120/74. There were some high blood pressure concerns, but it is now obvious that my blood pressure is not sustained high so we're doing fine. I didn't have the kids with me yesterday morning and that makes a huge difference. Entertaining them in the waiting room and exam room while waiting on the doctor is really not a fun job and it shows.

32 weeks. That's insane. Just 2 more months? Wow! I mean, I hesitate to say "we're ready," because I'm not sure anyone is really ever ready to bring a new baby home, but our hearts and our home are prepared. We're just waiting on Little Miss Vandervort to make her debut. (Hopefully not before Roger's next business trip in early July!) July 1st marks 36 weeks for us, the point where my doctors would no longer attempt to stop labor if it began, so we're within a month of that point now.

Won't be long!

A Little Football

This is Roger... probably in the only post I'll ever make.

So, we have a baby girl who will be here in around 10 weeks. As a dad, I think there's is something different about having a girl versus having a boy. Even at three years old, I can see the capability and possibility in Ian. He watches out for himself. In Aaron, he's extremely cautious and knows where to tread lightly. I really hesitate to say "I think they'll be just fine", but I also am not at all worried about their ability to adjust to the world, to make their way, to hold their own.

With a girl.... it just feels...... different.

Is it in a father's nature to feel extremely protective of his daughter ? I think it is. Hollywood examples abound. Mostly guarding his daughter from would-be boyfriends (thankfully, we have a few years to prepare for this type of confrontation...). But this little girl. It's just different. I feel like I really have to straighten up. fly right. do things by the books. set a good example.

The best analogy I can think of is : I feel like a running back who wants to protect the ball and stiff-arm the world.

... "stiff-arm the world". I like that.

Making my Heart Burst with Joy!

Sometimes for me, there is incredible joy in the most mundane of things.

Yesterday: Laundry.

When I looked at that basket of laundry waiting to be folded, I smiled. Even if it was just for a moment, until I realized there were 10 more "regular" loads to do after that "special" one.

30 Weeks

A Space of Her Own

I was waiting until we got home from our little trip to Washington, DC this past weekend to think about setting up the crib for LMV. (Little Miss Vandervort.) We also had an open house yesterday, so we had one more without the extra "clutter" in the bedroom. I use the term lightly because I wouldn't ever want to refer to a crib for my coming daughter as clutter, but it does take up formerly open space and does make the room seem a little more cramped. It is what it is.



We like having our babies in our bedroom for the first few months. It makes night nursing/wakings far easier. This time, we don't have a nursery dedicated solely to LMV, so her crib IS her dedicated space. At some point in the future we will be moving the boys into the same room, but we are trying to keep lots of things the same for the boys to help with the transition. We won't move them out of their own rooms/beds until after the baby is here and we've given them a chance to adjust to her presence in the family.

(I do think it is important, though, to actually have the crib out and set up so that we can talk about it and why it is here and who is going to be using it, etc.)

Speaking of, Ian helped me put it together this morning. He held the sides up for me as I turned the screws, I held the screws as he turned the wrench, etc. It was really cute how excited he was to help me. And then he decided that the space UNDER the crib is now his... as you'll see in the pictures... He got his pillow and blanket from his bed and put it under there, made a little space for himself to play.



And his final word on the new crib set up? "Mommy, I like baby sister's crib."

We'll see how much he likes it in a couple months when there is a baby sister in the crib.

So that should put some of my "nesting" to rest for awhile! We're moving right along. 30 weeks on Thursday.

Sticking her tongue out at us!

Nanny Nanny Boo Boo! Little Miss is a little spicy already! Yesterday she was opening and closing her mouth during the u/s (we got it on video!) and all of a sudden she stuck out her tongue and waggled it at us! Ha ha!

Here's a still from the video:

22 Weeks 5 Days

The follow-up ultrasound for the images they didn't get last time:




Little Miss is definitely a girl, is healthy & in the 48th percentile for size at this point, weighing in at just over a pound an about 10 inches crown to rump.

Ticker

Just wanted to blog this 'cause it is so darn cute!

Random News

• I had a doctor's appointment this morning. Little Miss is growing just fine. Her heart rate was 155bpm, my blood pressure was 115/69 (which is what happens when you are kid & caffeine free for the morning), only gained a pound (so, 2 so far) and everything is right on track.

• We'll be having another ultrasound in a couple of weeks because my OB is cool like that. He believes peace of mind is priceless for parents who have had trouble in previous pregnancies. So we'll get another peek at Little Miss!
  

• Dr. S. was grinning ear to ear with the news that baby is a girl and moreover that the kidneys are perfectly normal. He is truly a caring doctor. I happen to love him for his excellent care.

• Aaron is weaned. He skipped bedtime nunnies on Saturday because he was so tired when Roger & I got home from our night out w/o the kids. He was exhausted again on Sunday from a short nap day & skipped again. So I just went with it and intentionally we've skipped bedtime nunnies ever since.

• Aaron currently has a sinus infection for which he is on Augmentin. He's also still coughing from the cold Ian lovingly shared 2 weeks ago. Aaron's pediatrician called it "an asthma cough" and said if it wasn't better by Friday we'd have to do some oral prednisone to help him recover. It isn't better, but I really don't want to do prednisone. I think I'll give it until Monday.
  

• Ian is being his cute self. I don't really have much of an update for him!
  

• We're celebrating the birth of a sweet baby girl to our friends the Luskys. And news that practically everyone we know having babies this summer/fall are having girls! I seriously know about 20 women who are expecting right now and only one of them is expecting a boy. It's the summer of baby girls, I believe. Good thing, too, because the girl clothes right now are so stinkin' cute. Feel free to buy anything you see and send it to us. (Ha ha!) We also just found out that the Pipers are having TWIN GIRLS! Really, REALLY wonderful news this week on many fronts.

• *update* I just saw our neighbor out and she had a nice little baby bump! We've been cooped up all winter and hadn't seen much of them. She's due the same day as me (weird). They're having their 2nd baby, and it's a boy. I'm just amazed at all the new life around us!

• In not-so-wonderful news, Roger got rear-ended on the Parkway West last Friday (he is fine, never felt any ill-effects from it physically) and his car is crumpled. Apparently NOT unfixable, however, and for that we are grateful. We had just paid off the Camry in August and were really loving not having any car payments. We're also getting a new car seat out of the deal, too, because once a car seat has been in an accident, you really shouldn't use it anymore. The insurance will pay for its replacement. Love that.
  

Which?

Which pair of shoes will I be returning to Target?



The other day, I couldn't get past the little teeny shoes. Equally adorable, I thought it might be the perfect way to tell you all...

Of course before we talk about which pair of shoes, wouldn't you like to know that the anatomy is all looking good and everything is healthy. Most definitely there are two kidneys, two renal arteries, a bladder, ureters, etc. It is all there and it looks good.



There are 10 fingers and 10 toes and lips and eyes and a beautiful spine. Everything is measuring about a week bigger than what the due date says. That's no surprise. All of our babies measure big from early on. They won't change the due date.

Look at that sweet little nose!



After all the "finding a blank video tape" hubbub, it turned out they do DVDs. We didn't have one with us because we forgot to take one... they had an extra. Maybe I'll put some of the video onto here someday after I get to watch it. :-)

Here are baby's legs and feet, crossed so adorably in a, "Oh me? I'm chillin' out max in here," sort of way:




Oh, Ok fine. I know you're scrolling as fast as you can to the bottom anyway.

Looks like we'll be keeping these ones:

17 Weeks Pregnancy Update

Not a whole lot to share. Good Appointment this morning even WITH both kids. Ian was supposed to go to school this morning but the public schools had a 2 hour delay, which delays the start of preschool until 10am. My appointment was at 9:45 so I couldn't drop Ian off. Oh well. Both boys were very well behaved... unlike Aaron LAST time when he was so misbehaved my blood pressure was through the roof!

My blood pressure was a little high for me today, but within the normal range. That's good because after my really high reading at the last appt I was having to take it at home and record the readings. I guess I don't have to do that anymore unless I want to.

I lost a pound. I'm not sure how that is possible with our trip to Florida and the fast foods on the way there and back and my bowl of ice cream for snack every night.

My belly is measuring right on. The baby's heart rate was 150 bpm. We scheduled the "big" ultrasound for March 3rd.

So if you want to "guess" the gender publicly you better do it now! Maybe I'll send a prize to one of the people who guess correctly! Everybody is doing contests these days, right?

Mostly still pudge going on in the belly area, but I took this this morning. 17 weeks exactly.

Pictures of the baby

Today I met with our geneticist at Magee Womens Hospital. No, there is no indication of any problems with #3, but our OB thought we might have some peace of mind if we did the first round of genetic testing.

Aaron's congenital kidney defect (aka Unilateral Renal Agenesis) was a fluke as far as we know. There is no reason to believe that the chances of the new baby having a congenital defect are any higher than any other baby. They did really want/encourage Roger to have a kidney ultrasound to find out if he has 2, but they said that would "simply be to satisfy curiosity."

So I had a blood test this morning and an ultrasound.

The blood test results will not be back for a few days, but the results of the ultrasound "were normal."

So we got our peace of mind we went looking for! And a couple cool pictures, too.

No, they cannot/did not try to tell the gender at this point. We have to wait 7 more weeks for that! (...holy crap only 7 more weeks until the big ultrasound!?!?)

We did see arms and legs and a beautiful beating heart at 156 bpm.


Major thanks and congratulations to Roger for spending the morning at home with Ian and Aaron! He said it went fine! That's GREAT! They were really excited to see me when I got home. 3 hours away with no hysterical crying is most definitely a step in the right direction.

It was meant to be

2009 was an exciting year for us in many ways. It started out rough, medically. On January 14, Grandma Joanne (my mom) had a heart valve replacement and 2 bypasses. She did well with the surgery, but recovery was very difficult. While she was recovering at our house, Aaron contracted RSV and ended up spending a week in Children’s Hospital with oxygen & breathing treatments. The Steelers won the Super Bowl, which Roger and I watched on a really old TV with bad color in Aaron’s hospital room eating Quaker Steak and Lube (that they delivered to us…for a premium!). We watched the Pitt students flood the streets of Oakland in celebration from Aaron’s window. It was quite a sight. Grandma ended up back in the hospital with an infection just after Aaron got home, but has made a full recovery.

In the spring, Ian turned two and had a Blue’s Clues party. Ian and Aaron both had surgeries. Ian had a new set of tubes put into his ears and Aaron had a minor urologic issue repaired. Both boys did great and have recovered well.

Aaron was released by his urologist for both his surgical repair AND his kidney problems in July. We’re so thankful for that!

We tried to go camping over the summer, but it must’ve been too soon. ;-) We ended up leaving in the middle of the night and returning to the campground the next day to pick up our stuff.

In the fall, Aaron celebrated his first birthday. We went to Disney world. We flew down, all four of us, with car seats and strollers in tow and met Grandma and Papa in Orlando. It was record-breaking HOT in Florida, even at the end of October! We had the best time though. Aaron’s pediatrician decided to put him on asthma medication for the winter to keep him from suffering from the same cough as last winter. So far, it is working! I never thought I’d say that having to do a nebulizer treatment every day with a 1 year old would actually be a blessing, but it is.

We hosted Thanksgiving this year and spent Christmas by ourselves. Christmas Eve Service at church was a disaster, but at least we tried. We really love being at home on Christmas morning. As you saw in the videos, Ian was so into it! The joy of a child at Christmastime is fantastic!

So here we are, about to enter a new year. As we prepare for 2010, we will also prepare for one more thing:

Yes. That’s right. We’ll soon enough be a five-some. We are expecting the 5^th Vandervort on July 29, 2010. To say it is a surprise is an understatement. Of course, we love surprises, so we think it is great. We’re scared to death to be outnumbered, but we’ll count our blessings and pray for a healthy little one. The one who is without a doubt a gift from God!