the best things about not being pregnant...

my feet are no longer swollen. i had forgotten how skinny they really are. i love them!

my wedding ring almost fits. i still have some finger chub to lose but it will be nice to wear it again. it's been several months now.

my shirts cover my belly! but unfortunately, i still have to wear maternity and stretchy pants.

i can stand for longer than 2 seconds without burning feet!

i'm useful around the house. granted, i got used to being waited on but i don't really have any excuses now except for when i'm nursing.

i can go on walks and do yoga. tonight i did a FitTV yoga workout. i'm gonna be sore in the morning. it felt really good to stretch and use my muscles for the first time in almost 2 weeks.

and best of all..........

I GET TO SLEEP ON MY BELLY!! never take for the granted the freedom to sleep on your belly. the last month or so of pregnancy i hated sleeping but now it is the most wonderful thing in the world (next to my new little bundle of cuteness, of course!)

here are some pics of me and lincoln:

new friends

here are a couple of lincoln's new friends:



Everyone has been asking about the cats and how they are adjusting to Lincoln...I think Archie likes him. Lincoln was even blessed by a sneeze in the face this morning in bed.



Reed and Shannon have been eagerly waiting to meet Lincoln. We hope they grow up to become good friends. Now they just sit next to each other and sleep!



I LOVE HIS SQUISHY CHEEEEEEEEEEEKS. THEY ARE SOOOOOOOOOOOO KISSABLE!



Josh and I love his superman stretch!

Lincoln's debut

Lincoln Emanuel Gubser was born Monday, March 19, 2007 at 10:33pm at home.

I was in labor from first indication to final push for 12 hours. not bad! time flies when you are in pain! I had an acupuncture appointment at the beginning and i think it helped move things along.

Details:

8 lbs. 15 oz.
21.5 inches long
some brownish reddish hair
dark blue eyes
and cuter that anything else in the world.

pictures

What an awesome kid

we love this new little bundle. josh and i are in total amazement. he is able to hold his head up and scratch me with his sharp finger nails.

i had my first indication of labor around 10:45am on Monday. I had just eaten breakfast with Alyza. she put fresh chiles in the eggs. i think that helped get it going. then...i had an acupuncture appointment. during the treatment i had 5 contractions within 45 minutes. the drive home was difficult because i had 3 contractions. i started keeping track of them at home around 2pm. my brother was concerned because he didn't realize that i was supposed to be in pain. haha! after hours of painful contractions (which remarkably flew by), i pushed for 23 minutes. it had to be quick because the mid-wife said his heartrate had plummeted to 60. it's supposed to be in the 100's. so i pushed and pushed and out he came. he was beautiful and fine. no signs of distress. just pink and slimy!

he is a very peaceful baby. the only time he cries is when his bowels are involved. diaper changes (except for the last one done by josh), gas, burps,... his cries begin with a very cute squeel. as long as he is comforted and covered he's happy! we love the variety of faces he makes. such a cuite!

i am doing well. in pain, of course, but getting better everyday. breastfeeding is challenging but going fine and will get better with time.

i am very impressed with josh and his parenting skills. he knows what the babe needs and does it without complaint. we are definitely a team! love him!

more pictures

Actually, day 4

i had a visit with my mid-wife today. it was a good visit and we discussed some options. here it is: we looked over my records from my ultrasound in november and it said that lincoln was probably conceived 4 days later than we originally thought, therefore, we changed the due date to 3/13/07 instead of the ninth which would make me only 4 days overdue as of today the 17th. this is significant because at 2 weeks overdue i have to get a biophysical workup that costs around $300 to determine the health of my baby, placenta and amount of amniotic fluid, etc. so i don't have to worry about that until the end of this coming week or beginning of next week. can't afford $300 at this point. so she suggested i get accupuncture to help induce labor. it worked for her sister so i'm excited and it is much cheaper at $20-35 a visit. pray and hope that it works! she didn't check me internally but did say that my fundal height is 40 cm which most women never get to (fundal height is, essentially, the size of the belly). she also estimated lincoln's weight at 7 lbs. i feel more positive after this visit today. i was really getting drained feeling like there was nothing i could do. hopefully the accupuncture will work!!!!!!

day

New day...new attitude

With encouragement from my bf Alyza, I am keeping all thoughts about this waiting period and the birth positive. Yesterday was kind of a crappy day and so I need to have an attitude change in order to remain sane!

Still, no baby but maybe this is just a big lesson in patience.

GET HIM OUT OF HERE

Lincoln is SIX days late so far....ahhhhhhhhhhh. Get him out of here. It hurts. Waking up is excessively painful as well as walking, standing, and sitting. Spicy foods, pineapple, walking, eggplant parmesan...nothing has helped to get things going. What is he waiting for? Doesn't he know that I'm not an extended stay motel? Lease is up, buddy! Geez!

Of course, once he is born (if ever) this will all be out of mind, however, right now it's barely bearable. Hopefully, he's waiting for Alyza, who arrives this afternoon.

still waiting

We are still waiting for Lincoln's arrival. He is 3 days overdue so far. Any guesses on when he might come? This is a pic of my outrageously huge belly. I can't believe it.

no Lincoln yet

i'm one day overdue so far. take a guess when he might arrive! thank goodness family is in town to keep us distracted.

today may be the day or it may not

well, today is the official due date for lincoln but as we all know there is no precise prediction of birth short of induction or c-section. both of which i am not interested in.

i have a meeting with a naturopathic doc for our family to see if she is a good fit and then i have what will hopefully be my last pre-natal visit at noon. let's pray that there is something happening down there. lincoln is very active in my belly and i hope thats because he's getting into position to move out! can't wait to meet him.

this is the most recent photo of my enormous belly. i have had some killer low back fatigue/ache this week and i think this picture is a perfect example why.

how schnitzel...i'm huge!

Green Cleaning

check out this post my fellow environmentally-minded friend, Steph, has on her blog. It's about cleaning without harsh chemicals that harm you and the earth.

www.bansheewigs.blogspot.com



also, I wanted to mention a point that Josh brought up...if you should avoid using something, i.e. bleach, when pregnant than it's probably not good for you EVER! think about it. bleach destroys everything it touches which includes the water systems.



Wipe your tush with recycled paper...it saves trees!

no babies yet

just wanted to put out an update. lincoln has not arrived yet. keep pryaing and crossing your fingers that he'll arrive this week or, at the latest, next week. everyone wants to meet him!

This is what happened the year josh was born:

Jimmy Carter is president of the US

President Carter announces punitive measures and embargos against the USSR in retaliation for the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan

Mount St. Helens in Washington state erupts in a violent blast estimated to be 500 times as powerful as the Hiroshima atomic bomb

Ronald Reagan is elected the 40th US president in a sweeping victory

US Representative Michael O. Myers is expelled from the House for his role in the Abscam scandal

Hewlett-Packard announces release of its first personal computer

Microsoft announces their version of UNIX, Xenix

Christina Ricci, Chelsea Clinton, Venus Williams, Jessica Simpson, Macaulay Culkin, and Jake Gyllenhaal are born

Philadelphia Phllies win the World Series

Pittsburgh Steelers win Superbowl XIV

New York Islanders win the Stanley Cup

The Empire Strikes Back is the top grossing film

"Lady" by Kenny Rogers spends the most time at the top of the US charts

U.S. viewers get caught up in the "Who Shot J.R.?" cliff hanger on the soap opera series, Dallas, which is solved on a November 21 episode, drawing a record numbers of viewers

This is what happened the year i was born:

Ronald Reagan becomes president of the US

Minutes after Ronald Reagan becomes president, Iran releases 52 American hostages that had been held captive for 444 days

President Reagan is shot in the chest by would be assassin John Hinkley

Space shuttle Columbia, the world's first reusable spacecraft, is sent into space

A suspended walkway in the Kansas City Hyatt Regency Hotel collapses, killing 113

A female former lover files a "palimony" suit against tennis star Billie Jean King

President Reagan appoints Sandra Day O'Connor to be the first woman on the Supreme Court

The Pac-Man video game is introduced in the US

Alicia Keys, Elijah Wood, Kelly Rowland, Anna Kournikova, and Britney Spears are born

Los Angeles Dodgers win the World Series

Oakland Raiders win Superbowl XV

New York Islanders win the Stanley Cup

Raiders of the Lost Ark is the top grossing film

"Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes spends the most time at the top of the US charts

MTV debuts on cable television, playing music videos 24 hours a day

Gimme a Break premieres

Pre-natal update

I had a pre-natal visit yesterday with my mid-wife. No predictions for Lincoln's arrival - it's impossible. My mid-wife said if she was able to do that she'd be rich.

My iron count has not changed although I feel better and less anemic. So I'm still taking mass amounts of supplements of all kinds.

Yesterday, the little bugger was posterior, which means that his back is facing my back and he is face up. However, he quickly turned back around into the more ideal position of face down and back facing my stomach. I have to do various movements that help him get back into and stay in position and avoid laying on my back since gravity pulls him around back. I poke around at my belly all the time trying to figure out where he is. Darn guy!

Well, I have about 8 days until my due date. I can't believe it. Josh is a little overwhelmed but very excited. He plans to take a little time off from working on the house to spend time bonding with the baby. I am really excited to hold him and love him. I, however, have been taking advantage of my last days as a woman without children to sleep-in, read, and relax.