The countdown is on!

This is the parking sign that Brian and I laughed at last week when we thought I might be in labor, went to the hospital at 11 p.m. ... and got sent home at 1:30 a.m. But tomorrow morning, at 10 days past my due date, the real deal begins.

My friend Denise snapped photos of me at work as I bid my co-workers farewell for the next 12 weeks. Amazing to think how much life will change in the meantime. Here's a photo of my work badge and baby bump. And here's another dubbed the "pregnant prom photo" with me and my friend Jaime. And here is Jaime's photo of my walking out the door. (Check out that baby bump. Yowza!)

We are humbled by all of our friends and family who have told us they're holding us in their hearts and prayers. It's probably fair to say that Brian and I are equally excited, nervous, thrilled and overwhelmed. (We're starting to sound just like new parents!)

I don't plan to update my blog until we're home with Baby B. In the meantime, Brian will be our chief communicator. Follow his updates on Twitter or on Facebook, if you're connected with him there.

Wish us luck. Parenthood, here we come!

Preggo 'remembories'

During the last nine months, I've been saving mementos that symbolize my pregnancy and some of the fun things I've done as an expectant mom. (Brian & I call them "remembories" -- our own combination of remember and memories.) I intend to box up the items and save them for reminiscing on a future rainy day. Now a week overdue, I thought it was a safe time to take an inventory of my stash. It includes:

• A speeding warning (Whoops!) from the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety, received during the drive back from vacation last fall (I didn't even know I was pregnant then.)

• My doctor's business card

• A dried rose from the bouquet Brian ordered to be placed on the altar at church the day we announced to the congregation that we were expecting

• One merchandise tag each from a Classic Pooh item we bought for the nursery and maternity clothes I bought

• Receipts from my first bag of decaf coffee and crib accessories (dust ruffle, fitted sheet, etc.) -- some of the first items for the nursery -- that Brian & I bought last fall

• Two pair of 3D glasses and movie stubs from "New Moon", "Avatar", "Alice in Wonderland", "Oceans", "Babies" and "Iron Man 2" -- just some of the movies I watched in theaters during my pregnancy

• Paint samples we mulled over when considering what color to paint the nursery

• Tickets and programs to various events I attended: a KU football game, an exhibit at the Wichita Art Museum, the Wichita Garden Show, Easter Sunday service, a speech at WSU by Schindler Jew Alexander White, Gridiron and a WSU baseball game

• Sheet music to "A Baby Changes Everything" from when I sang with a quartet at church before Christmas

• The "Don't tell us" name tags we wore during our sonogram to remind the sonographer that we wanted the baby's gender to be a surprise

• Nearly 50 greeting cards from friends and family in seven states

• Homemade signs announcing the week of my pregnancy for my baby bump pictures

• Two pink deflated "boobie balloons" from a breastfeeding class Brian & I took together (Blown up, they explain the anatomy of a breast. My theory? They're a shameless ploy to get husbands to accompany their wives to the class. It worked. The class was just one in a series we took this spring.)
  

• A sparkly "Mommy-to-be" sash from the baby shower my sisters threw for me in March

• A 42.5-inch-long multicolor piece of yarn that my friend (and mom to a brand new baby born Thursday) Lindsey exactly guessed would encircle my preggo belly during a game at a shower my friends threw for me in April

• Decorations, game pieces, invitations and mementos from both of those showers, including scrapbook pages thoughtfully signed by guests
  

• My first Mother's Day card and six romantic hand-written notes from the father of my child

• Business card-sized notes I designed, printed and included in my many thank-you notes inviting friends and family to follow Baby B. news online on this blog and on Twitter and to play in our online Baby B. guessing game

• A map of Botanica and a pine cone from our itty bitty babymoon

• Name tags I wore to various journalism events I attended this spring, including a Tweet-up and a regional high school journalism contest, where I volunteered as a judge
  

• Invitations for and thank-you notes from friends' wedding and baby showers that I attended while preggo (My friends, in turn, attended my baby showers, allowing us to celebrate our milestones together.)

Baby books

From coffee table to nightstand, a parenting book sits within reach of all of my favorite reading spots in our home. I've started a novel or two in the last few months but keep gravitating back to the baby books.

My friend Sarah loaned me a copy of the hilarious "Belly Laughs" by Jenny McCarthy. (Subhead: "The Naked Truth About Pregnancy and Childbirth" -- this book had me laughing at loud.) It reminded me not to apologize for enjoying the perks of the experience and commiserating in those more difficult aspects of pregnancy.



For my birthday, Brian gave me a copy of "Green Mama: The Guilt-Free Guide to Helping You and Your Kids Save the Planet" by Tracey Bianchi. I haven't finished it yet, but I love Bianchi's take on how spiritual life can influence a call to environmentalism.

Brian's been interested in the book, too, and we're both looking forward to teaching Roo about caring for Mother Nature.




When both our parenting class instructor and our pediatrician recommended that we read "The Happiest Baby on the Block" by Harvey Karp, Brian & I set out looking for a copy. I have mama friends who swear by the technique to calm a fussy baby. In part, I love reading it because it helps me imagine life with a newborn. Even though it'll inevitably include sleepless nights, stressful bouts of crying and the like, I cannot wait.

I, of course, intend to take the tips, suggestions, ideas and advice with a grain of salt. They worked for the authors, but we'll have to see if they work for us. Granted, I've been pummeled with advice (both solicited and entirely unwanted) since my baby bump made its debut. (What is it about a preggo belly that says, "Entire society, please step right up and give me an earful. I'd love to hear your soapbox speech right here, right now in the middle of the church foyer, the produce section, the work elevator, etc.")

I guess the bottom line is this: We still haven't mastered the whole baby-raising business or there wouldn't be the supply and demand of these books -- and the endless stream of "what you really need to do". Maybe I should shove all of the books aside and just stick with The Beatles' Blue Album lyrics. I at least plan to hum them to myself during the 3 a.m. feedings that lie ahead:

"There's nothing you can do that can't be done.
Nothing you can sing that can't be sung.
Nothing you can say but you can learn how to play the game
It's easy.

There's nothing you can make that can't be made.
No one you can save that can't be saved.
Nothing you can do but you can learn how to be you
in time - It's easy.

All you need is love, all you need is love,
All you need is love, love, love is all you need.
Love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love.
All you need is love, all you need is love,
All you need is love, love, love is all you need.

There's nothing you can know that isn't known.
Nothing you can see that isn't shown.
Nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be.
It's easy.

All you need is love, all you need is love,
All you need is love, love, love is all you need."

Homerun derby

Brian is playing on the church softball team again this year. (Click to view a post from last May.) We thought he'd have to sit the first few weeks out enjoying his job as the daddy of a newborn, but Roo's tardiness allowed us to enjoy an evening at the ballpark Thursday. It was a little chilly, I was stung by a bee and the team lost the second game of its doubleheader, but it was really a beautiful night nonetheless.

Brian said that he'll be proud to tell our kiddo that Daddy hit a homer and went six-for-six. I think there will be one more in the cheering section the next time Brian steps up to the plate.

Boy or girl?

Here's the current boy-girl breakdown on our Baby B. guessing game. (If you haven't taken it, it's not too late: just click to get started.)

• Boy: 60.7 percent
• Girl: 39.3 percent

And here are some answers to our most frequently-asked gender-related questions:

Q. Which gender would you prefer?
A. Either. Honestly. Brian and I talk about what life would be like with a boy or a girl. We love either scenario. And part of us will be thrilled -- and just a little disappointed -- either way. We both figure that our daughter could be a star athlete or our son could be a music prodigy. The gender isn't really the important thing here. The opportunity to welcome a child into our family is.

Q. Which do you think you're going to have?
A. Our hunches have changed throughout pregnancy. And sometimes we disagree on which gender our child will be. More times than not, though, we'd put our money on a boy.

Q. What will you name him or her?
A. We've had first and middle names for a boy and a girl selected for months. We love both for different reasons. And we're not telling. We likely won't even tell our families until after we've been able to spend some quiet quality time with our little one immediately after birth to make sure we're still 100 percent sure about our top choices.

Q. What will he or she wear in those early days?
A. Baby B. has a healthy stock of adorable gender-neutral clothing. But Brian and I did take a special shopping trip in which we selected a sweet pink dress and a strapping blue pants-and-shirt outfit special for the first trip home. (Yes, both selections have been pre-washed and are packed and ready for that dash to the hospital ... whenever it may come.)

Weathering the waiting game

Today, I am nine months and four days pregnant.

On Monday, Brian & I saw my doctor for our regular weekly visit. Everything looks great ... albeit late. We were given the option of inducing Thursday but chose to wait a little longer. So now little Roo, if he or she chooses not to join us sooner, has a scheduled birthday of Tuesday, May 18th.

In the midst of our appointment (while in a room with huge windows on the fifth floor of a medical complex), the tornado sirens went off. Brian and I crossed the catwalk to Wesley Hospital, grabbed some snacks at the cafeteria and waited out the storm. When a voice came over the speakers announcing that the hospital's emergency plan had been lifted, we headed back to our cars and caught sight of this beautiful rainbow. The evening was dramatic -- in a quintessentially Kansas sort of way.


So many people have told us about the severe-weather-brings-on-babies theory, but it's not holding true for us ... yet. And that's saying something considering I'm blogging during another tornado warning.

If Baby B. comes in the middle of a storm, I'm blaming it on Brian. I can't tell you how many times I've heard the story of his January birth -- weeks late ... and in the middle of a blizzard.

Meanwhile, Brian & I continue to be bombarded with advice about how to induce labor on our own: spicy food and long walks, just to name a couple suggestions.

For now, we're enjoying sleeping for eight hours a night, reading, hanging out with the pups and spending time together. This weekend, we had two dates in which we dined out and then caught a movie ("Babies" and "Iron Man 2"). We also celebrated my first Mother's Day together, and Brian surprised me with a gorgeous necklace featuring diamonds and emeralds (the May birthstone).

I am a very lucky Mommy-to-be, and one learning right off the bat how little control I actually have over this crazy thing called parenthood.

UPDATED: At about 9 p.m. Wednesday in the middle of a thunderstorm, Brian and I both thought that I was going into labor. We called my doctor's after-hours nurse line, and a woman quickly called us back. (She apologized that it wasn't sooner. She explained that she was without power and couldn't find her phone.) Nonetheless, she agreed that my symptoms indicated that it was time to head to the hospital.

At about 11 p.m., I was admitted to the labor and delivery floor. Around midnight, a doctor and nurse had assessed me and agreed that I likely was not in labor after all. At 1:30 a.m., after ample time to run some lab work and monitor baby and mommy, we were dismissed. We shared a good laugh when the nurse handed us the "Ready, Set, Wait" brochure about correctly identifying the signs of labor. All of the parenting classes we went to this spring mentioned the brochure and how we'd likely receive a copy if we found ourselves experiencing a false alarm.

Perhaps the best part of the experience was the opportunity to have a trial run. We've now had a practice shot of driving to the hospital excitedly singing The Black Eyed Peas' "I've Got a Feeling" ("Tonight's gonna be a good night!"), parking, being admitted, etc. And we both loved hearing Roo's heartbeat for nearly two hours on the fetal monitor. The doctor and nurse both laughed at how active Roo was and commented that all signs point to a happy and healthy baby.

I felt a mixture of relief and disappointment as we did the walk of shame back to Brian's truck, parked in the hospital parking garage in a "women in labor only!" spot. As a consolation prize, we stopped on the way home at the 24/7 donut shop where I celebrated by birthday earlier this spring, but they were out of donuts. Double ouch. We couldn't wait to get home, fall into bed and unwind from the crazy night.

OK, Baby B. Ready when you are.

Due date day

Today is May 8th, our due date. Brian and I slept in -- clocking in a lovely (and I'm sure soon-to-be-coveted) nine-and-a-half hours of shut-eye. He made blueberry waffles for brunch, and we finished a few little projects around the house.

I know Baby B. will make his or her appearance when the timing's right, but the waiting already has me glancing at the clock -- and honing in on my body -- more than usual. Tick-tock, tick-tock.

We visited Brian's grandmother this afternoon to deliver Mother's Day gifts to her and Janice, my mother-in-law. Brian snapped these photos while we were there:

'I just haven't met you yet'

My due date is just a day and a half away. I've loved pregnancy so much that part of me isn't ready for this experience to be over. But I have never in my life waited with such anticipation to meet someone.

At our weekly doctor's appointment Monday, our doc guessed that it'll be next week before I deliver our little one. Mother's Day will be a blessing whether I'm carrying Roo in my arms or as an expectant mother.


I snapped this beautiful photo on my way to work this morning and thought about how it represents this chapter of my life: Soothing, yet dramatic. A miraculous combination of heaven and earth. Something you want to remember forever.

One of the songs that has meant so much to me during my pregnancy is Michael Buble's "Haven't Met You Yet". I've seen sonogram pictures of my son or daughter, but I yearn for the long-awaited introduction.

Some of the lyrics that I find especially touching:

"And I know someday that it'll all turn out
You'll make me work, so we can work to work it out
And I promise you, kid, that I give so much more than I get
I just haven't met you yet"

"I might have to wait, I'll never give up
I guess it's half timing, and the other half's luck
Wherever you are, whenever it's right
You'll come out of nowhere and into my life"

"And I know that we can be so amazing
And, baby, your love is gonna change me
And now I can see every possibility"

"They say all's fair
In love and war
But I won't need to fight it
We'll get it right and we'll be united"