Attorney Work Product

Meet the Other Grandparents

I was a little too tired/out of it to post these earlier, but here's Alex meeting my parents. The woman formerly known as Momma (now Judi Nani) was there for all of labor and met Alex within an hour of his birth, PopPop followed two days later.

Meet the Grandparents

Alex met Grandma & Grandpa Wasylik last night for the first time. Much cuddling ensued.

First Bath

We had some issues with the bathtub (since resolved) and we were rushing to get to the doctor's office, but we managed to snap a few pictures of Alex's first full fledged bath.

Back to Fighting Weight

At his two week check up today, Alex was back to his fighting weight of 7 pounds, 11 ounces. He was also back to his birth length of 21 inches (when his head bounced back into a more normal shape, he lost half an inch!), and his head circumference is 1 cm larger than it was a week ago. He is filling out nicely. He also had his first shot today, And Mommy somehow survived.

To Market, To Market

Alex slept through his first visits to Target and Safeway yesterday. Both times, we managed to fill the cart around him. He woke up as we pulled into the driveway, then proceeded to latch himself on to me for oh, 4 hours straight. Methinks we need to eventually even out the sleep-eat thing.

One Week

Our little boy was one week old yesterday. What a difference a week makes! I composed this in my head right around 9:57 pm, and I couldn't believe that at that time last week I was flat on my back in an operating room hearing the doctor announce "It's a Boy!" All day, I thought "at this time last week I was bare-assed on a yoga ball at three centimeters dilated" or "at this time last week I was pushing with all my might making that little cone head." At one week, Alex has lost a little more weight than he should have, and we are working very hard to put more on him. It's harder than I ever thought possible, and the awesome responsibility terrifies me.

But the indescribable bliss of having him look up at me as he suckles and drifts off to sleep in my arms is worth every bit of lost sleep and every damn tear shed.

Hiccups

Back in March, I noted the first time I noticed that Alex had the hiccups in the womb. Well, as I type, he has his first hiccups outside. He doesn't seem bothered by them, though.

Sated

Alex, with belly full and happy, around 1 pm today.

Like a Rock

This morning, my son slept for almost two solid hours while not one, but TWO jackhammers tore apart the street not 15 feet from his head. So don't worry about talking too loud when the baby is sleeping.

Nicknames

In the brief five days my son has been in this world, he has acquired quite an impressive list of nicknames, including:
Alex (of course)
pumpkin
sweetheart
angel
sweet angel
angel face
baby boy
beautiful boy
brat face
bright eyes
cookie
cookie puss
snuggle puss
chooch
choochie pooch
my love
fussface
frog boy
mommy's little water fountain (we've already had several of those diaper changes!)
and my personal fave, Señor Fusspot (bestowed by his Daddy)

I am sure there are more. I may come back and add as they come to me.

Day of Firsts

Today (our first full day home) has been a day of firsts. Most importantly, Alex got his first taste of real live milk today -- no more colostrum for him! I was a little surprised (but very relieved!) to see it. My surprise translated into his first squirted faceful of breastmilk as well. This probably means the next few days will be tough on us both as he gets used to actually having his tummy full, and I get used to breasts like udders. But I am happy to be making progress on the milk front.

Another first was our first ride in the stroller on our first Fathers' Day. We went for a nice walk around the block as a family, Mommy, Daddy, Alex and Tucker. The weather was perfect -- not too sunny or warm, so we didn't have to cover him up too much, and he could see the world and get a little exposure to sunlight so he doesn't turn as yellow as his onesie. Mommy was pretty tired after that. Alex was more of a trooper than Mommy was; he probably could have made it all the way to the park. But Mommy still has a lot of hurties where they cut her, so we all went home. Mommy and Alex both had a nice nap at home.

During said nap, Mommy and Nani together gave Alex his first manicure (no polish). That's a terrifying Mommy job! Hopefully now, he won't cut his face when he tries to get his fingers into his mouth.

Just before we started this entry, I put Alex to sleep by singing to him for the first time. A combo of silly stuff I made up, and "Arms Wide Open" by Creed. Hormones being what they are, the latter had me in tears before I could finish, but luckily, he was asleep by that point. Which leads us to a final first: First one-handed blog entry with a sleeping baby on my chest. It certainly won't be the last of those, that's for sure!

Fathers' Day, 2003

The new Dad, asleep on the couch with his boys.

Home

I can't say how wonderful a feeling it was to walk into our home today with our brand new baby boy. He seems OK with his bedroom thus far (favorite spot: changing table), and seems to like it when Mom sits in the leather recliner, but I have a feeling that has more to do with the presence of her boobies than anything else.

Honestly, I am not up to going into all of the details at the moment -- it's 10:30 on the night of our arrival home, and it's been a looooog day; heck, a long several sleepless days. But I did want to pop in and thank everyone for all of their warm wishes and kind words. Mike printed out the comments and brought them to me in the hospital, and they really made my day each time (well, not as much as holding my new son, mind you, but you understand). What a lucky littlle boy he is to be welcomed into this world by so many eager friends and family.

Alexander Michael Wasylik

We are proud to announce the arrival of Alexander Michael Wasylik, born at 9:57 p.m. on June 11, 2003.

He weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces at birth and measured 21 inches in length.

Mother and child are both healthy, happy, and recovering from the big event.

The name Alexander is in honor of both the child's paternal and maternal great-grandfathers, and the name Michael is in honor of his paternal grandfather.

He is the most beautiful thing his parents have ever seen.

UPDATE: A few pictures are now online.

To the hospital we go...

We've made some progress on the ripening/effacing front, but I am still only 1 cm dilated. Soooo...tonight by 6 pm I should be in the hospital started on some medicine to get things even softer and riper (and hopefully, more open too!). Tomorrow morning, if labor hasn't started during the night, we'll get a kick start. There will likely be a baby before you go to bed tomorrow night.

So in the meantime, busy, busy, busy. Trying to get the house all prettied up so baby isn't embarassed when he or she comes home. There's no internet access at the hospital, but we'll try to pass the word ASAP. June 11th is a good day for a birthday, I think.

Nothin'.

Just so's you know. I am actually trying to do work today. Mom and I are going food shopping and for a nice long walk in a little bit.

Didn't work.

We did a bunch of errands, walked around, and had a nice spicy Thai dinner. Nothing came out of all that except some heartburn. Oh well, oh well. I'll check in again in the morning!

Magical Transformation

Dad just left for North Carolina, and when he passes back through in a week, he will be a grandparent. Weird. He kissed my tummy and told the baby "see you on the other side!"

Still no signs of labor (2:15pm on Sunday, for those of you keeping track at home). We're going shopping; maybe the walk will get things rolling.

Ahhhhh, relaxed.

We just got home a little while ago from our pamper session. Fingers and toesies look great and feel wonderful. Our whole bodies are looser and happier. I told the massage therapist I felt taller when he was done with me, because he had loosened up the tightness in my low back and hips, and then stretched out my arms and legs. I got off that table easier than getting out of bed has been for months! We followed the pampering with dinner at Legal Seafood, where our conversation was nil because we were both too blank to even think. But that's fine. We feel even more ready.

It's 10:30 p.m., and I'm just gonna read a little and then drift off to sleep. Maybe I'll have more substantive news tomorrow.

Powerless

That is, the power was out for a few hours this morning. And, it was raining like crazy. So, many plans for this morning had to be rearranged -- the lawn won't be mowed (again!), nor will any of the other outdoor jobs be done. We've redistributed the other jobs accordingly, but the lack of power put things like laundry and bills behind a bit. Oh well.

In the meantime, not a twinge. We're all just sitting tight.

40 + 1

Well, my unofficial due date is officially over; it's almost 1:30 am. No news yet. Got most of the work done; have a list a mile long of things to do after a good night's rest, in time for an early evening pampering, if baby doesn't make his or her appearance in the meantime. Perhaps this is the spurt of nesting/energy they talk about women having just before they deliver? I hope so! I'm still personally rooting for labor to start any time after church on Sunday.

Thankfully, babybean is still pretty darn active. Right after my late, late dinner, Mike was sitting across from me and could see from a mile away the major undulations of my tummy. His take? "The baby is packing up for the big move!" Let's hope so.

Update: Nothing to Update

5:30, still at work, still not a twinge. My in box and hold box are all clear, there is a neat but growing pile of out items. Most of my hand-off memos are finished. The files in my office are immaculate, the ones pawned off on my secretary aren't quite done, but just about every piece of paper has been processed by me and is out of my hair. It's slightly unbelievable! I'll probably be here a few hours longer, but then, I won't be back to the office for work purposes until October 1. Yay me!

Due Date

Well, here it is D-Day. I don't feel anything different -- no twinges, nothing. Which is probably even a good thing, given my schedule. Besides, the doctor and I have always disagreed on my due date -- he says it's tomorrow.

I've finally gotten it through my head that most folks just don't realize that I am this close to the big date. It's not like I wear a sign around my neck that says June 6th, and people have been consistently surprised in the past two-three weeks when I reveal when I am due. So while I am proud of myself for keeping the weight down, I wish things were just a tad more obvious. Maybe people would have given me more of a break.

But that doesn't matter now. My desk is almost clear, and things are almost handed off. Somehow, some way, it will all be done today, because it has to be. And whatever isn't just couldn't have been that important. Certainly this babe is much more important!

And poor Michael -- an all-nighter, a quick shower, then back to the office for another full day. He's got something like five pleadings in four different cases to file in four different courts today. Thank goodness he was on a Lawyer Ninja High when he came home for that shower; hopefully it will get him through the day and he can get some sleep soon. I personally am hoping the babe makes its appearance on Sunday or so -- gives Mike a chance to rest a little, gives Tucker a chance to get groomed on Saturday, gives Mike and I both a chance to have a massage and a little pampering on Saturday evening, and allows Mom and Dad the chance to get down to our house at their leisure. Get all of our brains in the right place for this life altering experience.

Wish us luck.

Emotional Wreck

Note to self: Do not try to work up until the very end of your next pregnancy, dingbat. You will find your professionalism drained away, yourself crying at the drop of a hat, and your energy nil. Just don't do it.

Now stop crying and get back to work.

Tick-tock

I suddenly feel like the Jeopardy! theme song is my new leitmotif. Every time I talk to anyone, the subtext is "any minute now! any minute now!" and that weird little ditty is the soundtrack in my mind. It's an odd feeling. Having the certaintly of a week from today being the last possible day is starting to get less scary and more comforting, so that's good.

Mike and I ditched plans to join friends for cheap burgers at a smokey bar and instead spent last night having a nice dinner with a lot of good conversation. Afterward, we found ourselves in the living room chatting about college days for a good hour. Somehow, we managed to learn things about each other that we hadn't known before. That was comforting, too, and a testament, I think, to our marriage. It is going to be so important to remember to focus on each other as well when the time comes for us to be all-baby, all-the-time. But I think we are aware enough of the potential pitfall to not let it happen.

Yesterday, I had a piece of Dove chocolate -- the ones with the fortunes on the wrappers -- and my wrapper told me "It's the anticipation that makes the pleasure." Let's hope that's right.

Date Certain

Well, the doc walked into the exam room this morning, took one look, and said "darn, you're still pregnant." My blood pressure is fine, my weight is fine, my urine is fine. Baby still feels to be around 7 lbs which is good (and not quite two Tucker units -- doc also pointed out that the shape of baby is much different than the shape of Tucker). I'm just still pregnant. Pregnant with no further progress except the occasional cramping-- still about 1 cm dilated, cervix is softening, but that's about it. Of course, my due date isn't until Friday, and that can be the case right up until I go into full fledged labor, so it doesn't mean all that much.

But what it does mean is that I had some choices to make. The doc's view is that much past one week late, and one isn't helping one's chances of a vaginal birth by waiting things out -- that one's chances of a vaginal birth are actually a little better if you induce around one week late rather than wait. He presented me with two options, based upon when he is scheduled to be in the hospital: induce on Wednesday June 11th, or wait until Friday the 20th, exactly 2 weeks late, with some intensive fetal monitoring in between to make sure baby is cool with going that late.

Even though I don't really want to go down the induction road, I chose the earlier date just so we can all have some certainty in our lives. I go back to the office next Tuesday (if baby doesn't come sooner! Please come sooner!) in the morning for an assessment. If I am looking favorable for induction, he'll send me home with instructions to show up at the hospital bright and early the next day. If not, I'll go to the hospital that night for some pre-induction induction stuff (and hopefully, a good night's rest nonetheless).

I hate to give this child so much pressure at the very outset -- please come on your own between June 8th and June 11th! It feels a little selfish, honestly, and I really hope we don't have to go there. But if we do, well, baby's birthday will still be no later than the 12th. Mark your calendars.

Comfort Food

As the pregnancy is winding down, I am realizing that I have been fooling myself when I have said that I haven't had any cravings. Certainly, Mike has been lucky enough to not have me send him out in the middle of the night to find an open Dairy Queen in the middle of the winter, or anything like that. And I haven't sought out particularly odd food combos. But in retrospect, my "cravings" have been for the comfort foods of my youth. They include:

Artichokes -- I have eaten more artichokes this pregnancy than in probably the several years prior. I'll make myself two and call it dinner. Not exactly a balanced meal, but yummy.

Pierogis -- Go Mrs. Ts. When nothing else sounded good to me, I would have 5-6 of these with sour cream and call it dinner. Again, not balanced, but it made me happy.

Breakfast foods -- In general, I am a big fan of breakfast. Unlike my husband, if it's 11:30 and we're about to eat our first meal of the day, I want eggs or pancakes while he wants a sandwich or burger. This feeling has intensified during pregnacy. Last weekend Mike and I decided to go out for our first meal of the day at around 1 pm (hey, give us a break, we won't be sleeping in again for a long, long time!) and he said to me "I assume you want breakfast food?" I burst into tears at how thoughtful that was. Then went to IHOP for pancakes and eggs. Since Mike isn't big on breakfast foods, I don't make waffles or pancakes or even my beloved Palacsinta (Hungarian Crepes) all that often, and we generally don't do the "breakfast for dinner" thang. But while pregnant, I've stepped up my breakfast food cooking, even if it also meant making something else for Mike.

Fried Eggplant -- This has been one of my favorite dishes ever since I was 5 or thereabouts and Mom tricked me into liking it by teaching me how to prep and cook it myself (note to self: remember that trick!). But I don't make it too often because it is just so fried. Still, made it at least twice during the pregnancy, plus order it at Luigis when I get a hankering.

It's not pickles and ice cream, but it's what I've craved.