January One

went something like this:

Here’s hoping night two is just a teensy bit easier! Dude. There’s tired and then there’s TIRED. I’m having a blast!

Since my milk came in two nights ago the little one has been enjoying that boob induced high. She can’t get enough!

Finally, we are waiting for our discharge papers and then we are going HOME!

Georgie and Meli and I thank you all so much for your warm welcome for our little girl. It’s all so overwhelming, but the outpouring of love has been almost more than I can bear. Thank you thank you thank you!

It’s come to my attention that when I let a couple of days go by without posting some of you may be freaking out a bit that I’ve had the baby. Nope. Not yet.

As of yesterday, everything is status quo. I’m not even a little bit dilated and the baby is still very much heads up. It’s looking more and more like a planned c-section is how we’re going to go.

Once again, I will remind readers:

PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE! DO NOT tell me all the things I can do to turn this baby and how c-sections are evil and hospitals are evil and doctors are evil and this is all some kind of plot so my doctor can go play golf. This is my birth and my baby and what’s right for you and your family may not be right for me and mine. PLEASE! Keep your opinions to yourself. THANK YOU!

I’m sure someone somewhere has done a study on the phenomenon I like to call “let’s scare the crap out of the poor pregnant girl who doesn’t know what she’s gotten into but because I’ve done this at least one time I have all the answers to every question about pregnancy, childbirth, motherhood, etc and know EXACTLY the RIGHT THING this poor pregnant girl should do if she loves her baby just a little bit.” Have you had any experience with this? Georgie tells me that I should just tell people that I’m stopping in at the spa for my mani-pedi-massage right before the c-section then immediately handing the baby off to a nanny who will proceed to feed the kid lead paint chips morning noon and night. THAT’S how much we love our baby.

Please, I pray I won’t be like that once I’m on the other side of this.

Meanwhile, things are in hyper drive around here. I’m not going to say when the birth will occur but suffice it to say we won’t be seeing the Ides. I mean, I will tell you all when it happens, but I’m not saying now. This morning I woke up around 6AM with all those lovely anxiety thoughts: what if I don’t love my baby? What if I become addicted to pain pills? What if I bleed to death on the table while my husband and new baby watch? LOVELY. Then, to calm myself down, I started thinking about all the things I’d LIKE to do before the baby comes. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Actually, a pedicure IS on that list.

Ann reminded me that I’m in that “last time” mode. Like, this is the last time I’ll ever get to take a crap by myself. Or the last time I’m ALONE. EVER. Or at least for the next 20 odd years. 😉

I did start a new project. Because that’s what every knitter should do right before they give birth. Add another project to the ones already started. It’s another FAMILY blanket and it’s garter stitch and if the weather wasn’t so shitty and it wasn’t so crazy dark out I’d take a picture. Hopefully tomorrow. I’m enjoying it and I think along with the denim log cabin these will be the perfect projects to knit during baby’s first few months. Please, whatever you do, don’t shatter the delusion. Thank you.

PS – Go congratulate these fabulous knitbloggers: Julia and Amy are having babies too! YAY!

So I picked a color for the baby’s room that’s proving almost impossible to photograph accurately. The picture above is photoshopped to be sure. The actual color is much deeper and richer. It changes with the light but we love it just the same. It will look fantastic with ANY accents. If the baby’s a girl, I’m going with purples! If it’s a boy, well, then, I can go with greens or reds or oranges, pretty much anything. I could actually use all those colors if it’s a girl as well, but somehow I’m LOVING the purple. (In case anyone is curious, the color is Pittsburgh Paints Manor Home, Eggshell, COLOR Nassau, 155-6)

G and I LOVE the room. Neither one of us can walk by it without stopping and going in and just standing there feeling the color. It is most certainly like the sea – the Caribbean to be exact – and it’s cool and warm and RELAXING. I hope the baby loves it as much as we do.

Don’t freak out about the pacifier the way my husband did when he saw it in the room. It gets around the NO BABY STUFF IN THE HOUSE rule because it was in one of those sample pack things we got from the Lamaze class. It wasn’t specifically FOR our baby and I’m not going to be using it anyway. Props don’t count in the mysterious world of Cara’s superstitions. 😉

By now, you’ve probably read a lot or heard about my fantastic SURPRISE baby shower that Ann threw for me last Saturday. You can read all about how Ann got one over on me here. Fun times! 😉 If you’d like to see some of the unbelievably generous and beautiful gifts I received – hit up all the pictures after the jump! THANK YOU!

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You think you’re all so clever, don’t you! Getting one over on me! Well, CONGRATULATIONS because I had no freaking clue. I was never so surprised in my life.

Not sure what I’m talking about? Well, my wonderful, stupendous, fantastico friend Ann, the Janice to my Marge, managed to conspire and plot, with much help from all over, a baby shower for me! It was ridiculous! My mom, grandmom, sisters and niece all came out to LI from Philly. People traveled from near and far. Sent wonderful presents. I’m still all verklempt and shocked and honestly at a loss for words. Look for a much more detailed post to come!

The baby’s room was painted, too, and it looks better than I could’ve dreamed. G and the painter doubted my color choice but soon came around and have been proclaiming it the greatest color ever! I told them – I may not know much, but I do know color.

Then the biggest surprise of all came this morning. I went to the OB today for my 36 week check up and after determining that I’m not dilated at all, she didn’t feel the head in the correct position. She told me it was either too high still or not in the right spot, so she did a quick ultrasound and it turns out the baby is breech. Very breech. It’s high and the head is just under my ribs on the right. It’s deja vu all over again because guess what?! This is pretty much the position I was in 38 years ago. I was born by c-section, and it looks like my first born might be born that way too. Needless to say, this wasn’t the news I expected to hear today. I’ve been under the impression that the baby was head down. I’ve got some time to come to terms with what all this means and G and I and our doctor can make decisions about how we want to proceed, but I’m very disappointed. But you know what my wonderful husband said to me when I got home from the appointment? He said he’d been thinking about it since I called and the most beautiful wonderful person he’s ever known was born by c-section, so what could be so bad? God I love that man. It’ll all be good.

PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE! DO NOT tell me all the things I can do to turn this baby and how c-sections are evil and hospitals are evil and doctors are evil and this is all some kind of plot so my doctor can go play golf. This is my birth and my baby and what’s right for you and your family may not be right for me and mine. PLEASE! Keep your opinions to yourself. THANK YOU!

Okay. In case you haven’t heard, BITCH is the new black and I am fully embracing my inner (and sometimes outer) BITCH.

I’ll be back tomorrow with more about the shower, a picture of the baby’s room, and possibly a contest. I was dreaming about having a “when’s the baby the going to be born” contest, but now that it looks like it’s going to be planned, the wind has kind of gone out of the sails. We’ll see what I can think up!

THANK YOU again EVERYONE who was involved in this weekend’s events. I have no words! THANK YOU!

Thanks for all the comments on my belly cast and my beautiful nephew! I tell the baby all the time that the most excited people to meet him or her are Daddy and Eli! (And Mommy of course.) G and E are constantly asking, “When’s the baby coming out?” Soon, my sweets. Very very soon.

So you want to belly cast too? This cast is the fourth I’ve been a part of – my own, of course, and my sister’s three. It’s ridiculously easy to make! I’m sorry there are no pictures – there are pictures, of course, but they’re pretty revealing and even I’m not comfortable putting them up on the blog. Use your imaginations!

Supplies needed:

Petroleum jelly. (I’d get a new BIG jar.)

Plaster gauze. (We used this one which I bought at Michael’s. Any craft store will have it. Even if you think you’ve bought enough, get another one. We actually ran out and probably could have used some more.)

Drop cloths or towels or newspapers. (This is a MESSY project. We always do it in the bathroom because surfaces can be cleaned easily, but also, if you’re the one getting the cast done to you, you’re going to want to get in the shower ASAP.)

Bucket or pan (You need to dip the gauze in warm water.)

Some kind of chair. (One that can also be wiped down easily – we used a metal folding chair.)

Husband, sister, friend (You can’t do this yourself – get someone to do it for you that you feel really comfortable with – I wouldn’t necessarily recommend three kids 7 and under helping out – but it was still fun!)

We do the boobs – and after the first cast we realized that keeping the bra ON is probably better than taking it off. Also, keep your underwear on as well. I wouldn’t wear your brand new $60 nursing bra or your best undies. Things are going to get messy.

Step 1: Cut the plaster gauze into strips. You’ll want some long ones that will cover all the way across your belly and you’ll want some shorter ones to fill in places and really there are no wrong answers here. But it’s good to have them cut BEFORE you start. Cut more than you think you’ll need and keep the scissors close by so you can cut some more when you run out.

Step 2: SLATHER yourself with petroleum jelly anywhere and everywhere you want the plaster to go. Just gob that shit on until you ARE petroleum jelly. Go past the edges of where you think the plaster will land. Get help for this. You’ve got a big belly and there’s skin you can’t see/get to. Basically, when the plaster dries it will literally POP off your body because it doesn’t stick to the skin.

Step 3: Get as comfortable as you can in the chair while still maintaining a big belly. You don’t want to stand with the cast on – it’s not bad per se, but it does get kind of uncomfortable and you’re going to want to sit down. I sort of had my ass on the edge of the seat and leaned back.

Step 4: Fill your bucket or pan with warm water. I don’t know that the water technically needs to be warm, but why would you want to put cold water on your body?

Step 5: Dip one of the strips in the water – you don’t have to soak it, just make sure it’s all wet. Then artfully drape it across the belly!

Step 6: Repeat Step 5 until the entire area you want to cast is covered. As you go along, smooth out the edges with excess water and fill in places that seem like they might need more plaster. The plaster has already started to harden, but you can’t hurt things by using MORE. In fact, if you don’t use enough, it will be flimsy in areas and that’s not good, so MORE is better.

Step 7: Once the area is covered and things are as smooth as they’re going to get (or you’ve run out of plaster) sit there and look pretty. It’d be nice if you had some water to drink nearby because it can get kind of hot with all those kids running around and the bathroom starts to close in on you but hey! You can feel the cast starting to dislodge! Cool! The whole thing probably takes about a half an hour (but can feel much longer.) Don’t rush it – it won’t be completely dry when it pops off, but it will be dry enough on the under layers of plaster.

Step 8: GENTLY take the cast off once you’re sure it’s ready. Trust me. You’ll know. Or you won’t be able to take it anymore and you’ll take it off anyway. It will literally just pull away from your skin.

Step 9: Put it on the chair or floor, but makes sure that the heaviest part (probably the bottom of the belly) is what’s supporting the rest of the cast. It’s nowhere near fully dry and you don’t want to collapse it.

Step 10: Rip your bra and underwear off as best you can (I’d suggest wearing something you don’t necessarily care about) and get in the shower. Use a washcloth to get the petroleum jelly off, but really, the plaster just disappears from your skin.

Step 11: Dry off. Admire your new cast. Try not to think about where you’re going to put it in your house so no one sees it, especially your dad and your father-in-law. 😉

Voila! Belly cast!

There are a million kits out there, but seriously, so not necessary. I think I bought a kit the first time we did one for my sister, but quickly realized (when the kit came with a jar of Vaseline and plaster gauze) that we could do this ourselves no problem. Also, if you google belly cast, there are a million and one websites out there to tell you how to do it – maybe better than I just did. Some people use plastic under the cast in stead of petroleum jelly, but I think I would have a hard time keeping it from slipping. It’s true that the petroleum jelly coats the inside of the cast, but that’s easily wiped away.

At a later date, you can always take more plaster and smooth out areas that you’re unhappy with or need more reinforcement. Once it’s totally dry, you can decorate it, display it, celebrate it, or hide it in the attic like we do.

Have fun!

Belly cast! DONE!

My belly looks so small (I guess compared to the boobage!) My sister definitely enjoyed exacting her revenge. I’ve done three casts for her and her verdict is it’s a LOT more fun to be the one on the other side of the cast. The kids were super excited and had a blast. I didn’t pass out and/or throw up, so I was very happy.

I’ll give some details tomorrow – today things have moved into high gear at baby central. I found out yesterday that the baby’s room will be painted next weekend. Yeah. I haven’t even thought about color and the house is no where near ready, but next weekend it will be. P-A-N-I-C!

Here are some more pictures from the weekend. My (almost) 3 yr old nephew is completely and totally enamored with my belly. He loves this baby so much it’s the most wonderful time! I bought a $20 fetoscope for G for Xmas and the kids love to try to listen. I’m pretty positive they’ve never heard the “heartbeep,” but I can hear it pretty well.

Off to buy paint! UGH!

* Crush On You