The Birth of a Superhero

Well it's as inevitable as gravity...what goes up must come down...baby goes in baby comes out...question is always exactly when... When contractions started Friday, November 12th, mommy thought, "This is it!"...but after a full weekend of steady but non-active labor inducing contractions still no baby... Monday came and mommy was so exhausted from lack of sleep that she stayed home and finally slept straight through the day!  Her belly was huge and uncomfortable...the contractions made it impossible to get comfortable even though they weren't painful and nothing was working in her favor...this made her very cranky:)  Working made the day go by so Tuesday and Wednesday she worked and tried to stay busy...Uncle Joey, mommy's boss, was nervous that she would end up delivering in the office lol, but no such luck!  When she left work Wednesday night, she knew the time was almost here... "Won't be seeing you tomorrow, we're having a baby" she told Uncle Joey (who just rolled his eyes cause this was practically a mantra of a very uncomfortable wishful pregnant woman...difference was this time she knew for sure!) 

Thursday morning the contractions were 5-6 mins apart so mommy went to the hospital to see what progress was being made but she was only 2 centimeters dilated and the contractions were still not that intense so the doctor sent her home to wait patiently.  Daddy went to work and Nonna came to spend the day with her very uncomfortable cranky daughter:)  They stayed busy and Nonna rubbed mommy's back to help with the aching from the contractions.  Mommy tried to get as much rest as possible knowing that the time was just around the corner.  Finally at 6:30pm, mommy said, "Time to go to the hospital!"  Nonna drove (since it is highly inadvisable for women to drive themselves to the hospital, thanks Aunt Katie;)  When we got there we found out that apparently EVERY baby in the area wanted to be born so the L&D rooms were full to capacity!  Dr. Greybush told mommy she was 3 centimeters and to keep walking around and they would get a room for her and then break her water.  Mommy called Daddy and told him to start heading toward the hospital while Nonna and her kept busy exploring the triage area, walking and talking. 

Daddy arrived and the nurse said they would get me a room in a couple more mins.  When the attendant came to move mommy, her water broke EVERYWHERE...and just like that active labor hit like a brick wall!  Mommy vomited ALL over the room...it was like a cut scene from the Exorcist!  Even christened Daddy's hoodie (though his reflexes prevented full coverage lol!)  They rushed me to the L&D room and got me set up...within 1 HOUR and 30 MINS Mommy went from 4 all the way to 10 centimeters and was ready to push!  At this point the contractions were so violent, Mommy could barely breathe...it felt like her ribs were collapsing her lungs...that's when she finally wasn't afraid of the epidural :)  But than the doctor came in and asked if Mommy was "allowed to push" because of her eye surgery in 2006?!!  Mommy wanted to slap the doctor for asking NOW and not over the last 9 months when she talked over her medical history! (In Dr. Greybush's defense, she was the only doc in the practice we never got to see and she didn't want mommy to lose her sight, but mommy would've thrown something if she could!)  So then they wouldn't give an epidural until they could get ahold of the retina specialist because they thought they may have to give a C-section!  Finally after what seemed like hours but wasn't that long, they got an answer and Mommy got drugs lol :)  Finally could breathe deeper and gained some energy...then it was time to push...well actually you started trying to walk out and Mommy told the doctor, "I'm not pushing but he's ready to pop out!"

Everyone moved into position, Daddy even got to hold mommy's leg and help her push :)  P.S. Daddy was AMAZING the whole time but he is Superman after all ;)  The rest of the time flew by...Mommy pushed, Daddy cheered and you kept working your way out!   It felt like only 15 mins and one final push brought a screaming you in this world!  You were mad as hell...maybe you were expecting something a little less cold and glaringly bright? lol!  They put you in mommy's arms and we looked at each other for the first time... it was magic...in a way that there don't exist words to describe...  Then Daddy cut your cord and they took you away to clean and weigh you.  You were 7 pounds, 6 ounces and 20 1/2 inches long!  Once you were clean they brought you back to mommy and daddy.  The nurses kept going on and on about how incredible everything went... This being mommy's first baby, it didn't really sink in what they were talking about.  But then they explained that it had only been 3 hours total for you to come into this world!  They had never seen someone deliver their first baby that fast!  Truthfully mommy had fully expected it to take at least 12 hours so even though it felt quick, she had no idea it went THAT quick!  Daddy went out to get Nonna and Zia Ria who were patiently waiting and apparently a whole bunch of other people showed up too:)  They couldn't believe you were already here! 

So that my dear Professor X is the story of your birth...you made quite the entrance into this world...though that really shouldn't be too surprising given who you are! ;) And with your arrival, your mommy was dubbed and officially inducted into the superhero hall of fame along with you and your daddy Superman.  On November 19th, 2010, a fairy princess became Wonder Woman and joined her boys in the fight for justice and the protection of all mankind and fellow superheros!  Welcome to the world Xavier, it will never be the same again! 

Ode to Fall Babies:)

Well my little caramel latte, you will be a fall baby no matter when you decide to make your appearance!  And while I find summer babies sizzling ie your Daddy lol, as a fall baby I can truly brief you on the joys that lie in being a "Fall Baby".  First things first...there's the weather...fall brings about a change to the hot humid days of summer, cool breezes and drops in the humidity make the warm air a delight to experience...early morning air smells crisp and fresh while mid-afternoon sun makes you feel like a little kitty cat curled up in a sunny spot on the porch!  Along with the beautiful weather comes the masterpiece God paints in the foliage... vibrant shades of red, orange, yellow and brown mix gracefully with the various shades of green..slowly transforming the picture outside the window to one of ripe abundance...waiting for children to run through collecting leaves, apples, pumpkins and all manner of items to decorate and create something amazing with their imaginations!  That was one of my favorite day dreams while waiting for you...imaging you, me and Daddy running through piles of leaves, picking pumpkins and apples, sipping apple cider and going on hayrides... Not to mention eating the awesome food your Nonno and Grandpa make come Thanksgiving time!  I'm hoping you come a little early so I can enjoy that food this year and not be in the hospital with that nasty clinical fare : P



Xavier's 1st Halloween Costume



This whole journey together has been an amazing ride, my little baby...and I can only imagine that you being here, finally, in our arms will be the most spectacular moment of our lives...each day that we get closer, I try to stay busy with the small things left to do but my energy is fast depleting!  This past weekend was your Grandma's birthday and also Halloween so you and I skipped the housework and headed on over to Jersey while Daddy worked!  Of course this being your "sorta kinda" first Halloween, we couldn't let you go without a costume :)  Not with Mommy being such a HUGE fan of costumes lol!  And not to mention the perfect shape for numerous ideas...what can I say you making me REALLY round has it's advantages!  So I came up with the perfect costume for you!  But then the more I thought about it, the more I thought you should have one and I should have one that goes along with it...actually the original idea started out as this... You as a jack-o-lantern... of course a baby one lol!  Then Daddy was trying to decide if he would dress up this year and I told him to go as a black cat...which he didn't find too amusing...though what can I say when it comes to word association jack-o-lantern = black cat...they always go together in my mind!  But that gave me a brilliant idea!  You would go as a baby jack-o-lantern and I would go as your little black cat friend who climbed inside lol :)  Technically, you're inside of me...but hey it works!  So far our costume has been a success...thank you my little inspiration lol!  Mommy couldn't have done it without you...well could've, but then it wouldn't have been as perfect! 

Mommy and Xavier - Halloween 2010



Your Grandpa made a delicious dinner for all of us and we handed out candy to all the neighbourhood kids, holy cow were there a lot of them!  They didn't stop coming until well after 9pm!  And some not-so-little kids came as well :)  Boy, some of the costumes were great!  Mommy spent most of the time sitting and watching the action while holding your cousin.  You didn't care for her sitting on your "house" too much lol!  I can just imagine the two of you running around and tussling on the floor when you're a little bigger!  Next year for Halloween, you and Daddy can go as superheros or something fun like that! :) 

And someday when you're older, Mommy and Zia Lina will take you to Carnevale in Italia so you can experience that as well!  The costumes are amazing and Daddy hasn't seen Italy yet so it'll be high time to finally get him there lol!  Of course we can't forget trips to the Ren Faire with your fairy godmother Ina ;)  She's made you the most amazing little elf hat!  You're gonna look so handsome!  When you get a little bigger, we'll add a cape and maybe a Non-sharpened sword ;)  You'll have to wait a while to play with the swords Mommy and Daddy have!  I'm sure you'll enjoy the Pirates and Jousting just as much as Daddy no matter how old you are!  We're so excited to play with you and see you grow and enjoy using your imagination to fight evil dwarfs and dragon-slaying knights :)



Oct. 22nd - 4 Weeks 'Til my Little Man is HERE!!!

Unless of course he decides to make an early appearance?  I was in a mad rush to enter this world and decided to arrive 2 weeks to the day before my due date of October 28th...and I was the 1st baby!  Daddy on the other hand was late by a few days...so who knows?!  Today was the very 1st of my WEEKLY maternity appointments, very exciting stuff!  I can't lie, last night was one of the worst nights of my life (Thank you Septa you @#$$%&@$%) so I was in a foul mood and told Ricky that with my luck they'd probably tell me I was shut up tighter than a steel trap and should just be happy to get him out in 6 weeks nevermind in 4 weeks!  On top of being sore, tired, angry, cranky, etc...I had a migraine and had trouble sleeping so waking up this morning, the day really didn't seem all that brighter! : P 

Morning came way too soon...and with less sleep than I needed...Nonna picked us up to bring us to the doctor's, Daddy had to get to work and we couldn't get an earlier appointment unfortunately...but Nonna was excited to hang out with Mommy and baby X :)  Xavier has been making the regular bathroom trips increase times 37 million since he started moving down "the chute" so to speak...only trouble is that you REALLY have to go and BARELY anything comes out...which means no sooner to you go then you have to go AGAIN!  Lovely arrangement...  Anyway, this makes getting a sample for the doctor that much more difficult...not to mention the fact that I haven't seen anything above my knees in months and positioning a tiny plastic cup around a basketball is NOT EASY!  Needless to say, somehow I still accomplished this!  For which the doc was happy to report that my sugar/protein, etc was all good...my blood pressure was a little low...but with all the darn bathroom trips it's hard to keep enough water IN me!  Dr. Lexow measured my belly and announced that baby X is right on schedule, around 5 1/2 pnds and growing well!  His heart beat is a steady 152 and he's still very active...though supposedly that's going to start slowing down in the next weeks as he saves up is energy for the Grand Voyage into this world! 

So then came the real question...are we making ANY progress?!!!  And thankfully the answer is YES!!!  The official word is I'm 1/2 centimeter dialated and 60% effaced!  Now this of course is not huge news because I can stay this way right up until I go into labor...but this is good news by way of evidence that my body is doing what it's supposed to do!  Woohoo!  In other great news, Dr. Lexow confirmed that my pelvic shape is the "optimal shape" for delivering my little boy which means other than an emergency situation, I can have a normal delivery!  Yay!  I may be tiny, but apparently I'm "optimally built" for birthing babies lol ; P  This does not mean I'm signing up for this experience again any time soon, I'd prefer not to have 2 in diapers THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

Now to the fun part...36 week belly pics!!!  Honestly, I never imagined being this big...it's kind of crazy!  If you look closely, you can see where Xavier has his foot shoved in my upper right side! :)

Update on Mommy and Baby X

*SEE LATEST ADDITION AT BOTTOM OF POST*

It's been a long past couple of days, some good stuff, some not so fun stuff...but thankfully, we can breathe a little easier for the time being.  And of course now we know how to pray.  The weekend started off with a call from my doctor on Friday saying that I failed my glucose test, never a great phone call to get.  This meant that I would have to get more blood work done...and as soon as possible.  We already had appointments scheduled for Tuesday and the day off to get everything done, but unfortunately I couldn't get in until today no matter how hard I tried.

The great part about the weekend was Auntie Maria came to visit since Daddy was working.  This helped keep my mind from wandering to all the possibilities of the upcoming appointments.  Keep busy, worry less...(plus I made a habit to say a prayer every time I thought about it since my worrying wasn't going to change anything!)  Maria and I set up the changing table, stocked it, hung the sweet baby saying decal my Aunt Sharon gave us and washed every piece of baby clothes, towels, blankets, etc in preparation for the other baby stuff that's coming in from our awesome friends and relatives!  (Do a little bit at a time is my motto! Plus it's so great to see his little tiny clothes in his new dresser!) The weekend was also a celebration of Maria getting her license Officially, Finally!  It was wonderful to spend sister time:) since we don't get as much these days as we used to...of course this makes us appreciate it that much more lol!  Though sometimes I think we enjoyed fighting just to drive my parents crazy lol!  Yay, kids are awesome! : P

Belly at 32 weeks! ->

Sunday I worked on the bathroom shelves, organizing them and child-proofing them!  Since we don't have a door on the linen closet shelves, this was imperative...plus I wanted to get all of his bath stuff organized with ours so Daddy would get used to where Xavier's things should go and where to find them:)  My neighbour Katie stopped by and got the tour of everything we did over the weekend, then we went to visit briefly with our new neighbours who bought the restaurant in our parking lot.  They were very nice and have a bison named "Woofy Goldberg"...which I think is pretty amazing lol!  Anyway by the time Daddy got home, I was wiped out and crashed!  Monday was uneventful other than brief moments of thinking about Tuesday's appointment...honestly, I was okay with everything up until the last ultrasound...I really thought by 32 weeks his kidneys would be just fine, but looks like the one is going to take a little longer.  I thought I would have a hard time sleeping but I think the weekend really wrung me out cause I slept clean through like a rock...didn't even remember the bathroom breaks though I know I took them lol!

Tuesday, I woke fairly early and lay there trying to rest until the alarm went off.  It didn't really work so I ended up just getting up and starting to wake Ricky up (which can be a process since he's not a morning person!)  Once at the doctor's office, I relaxed a little knowing that we were finally going to hear from the doctor exactly what to expect best/worst case scenario...even though we did research on the condition "antenatal hydronephrosis" I wanted to hear everything straight from the specialist's mouth.  As we expected he told us mostly what we already knew, but he gave us a plan of action as well.  Xavier has another ultrasound at 36 weeks, if at this time his kidney has dilated to 9 or 10 mm (it's at 7.9 right now, only just about 1 mm over what it should be), then we will have to have a more invasive test done and most likely start him on antibiotic to prevent a UTI.  If it's still the same, then most likely it will "fix" before birth and we will have another ultrasound 3 days after he's born.  If he has a blockage or some other defect causing this issue, they will do further tests but generally won't do surgery until he's older.  The specialist says even with blockages, they can "fix" themselves over time.  So we're asking everyone to pray that his one enlarged kidney will "fix" like his other one did by my next ultrasound.  All in all, it's relieving to know this is a very common condition, but still nerve-wrecking since it's our baby were talking about here!

After errands, more doctor stuff, etc, both Ricky and I crashed...for me I was emotionally drained...and for him I think he was just drained from getting up early and dealing with me...which is no easy chore when I'm emotional! : P  We both felt so much better after resting...and I made lunch (at this point an early dinner since it was 3:30)  Good news...our friend Barry, who is Grandma the Clown with the Big Apple Circus, had invited us up that night for the new show playing in NJ!  It was just what "the doctor ordered" considering everything that's been going on!  There's nothing better than being transported back to your 5 year old self for 2 hours watching a great circus show!  And as always, they were amazing!  Ricky got to be part of the show...and of course got ripped on by the clowns afterwards lol : P Xavier apparently LOVED the show...I thought he was going to jump out of my stomach a couple of times he was moving SOOOOO much!  I'm looking forward to this time next year when we take him for his 1st circus!  And of course a picture with Grandma!  I know he probably won't really remember it, but we'll just have to take lots of pictures!  We had a lovely visit with Barry (who needs to come visit before he moves to Sweden!; P lol!) and look forward to seeing him again soon, hopefully sooner than later!  It always amazes me the unique friendships that God brings in our lives...we are very blessed to have such a great friend!

Today arrived with me feeling a lot better after a great night:)  I wasn't looking forward to getting a 3 hour glucola screening, but I was in much better spirits...at that time...  Once at the lab, there were problems with my paperwork which delayed things...then I had to drink that stuff that tastes like 2 year old orange Fanta and twice the amount of last time YAY!!!...this was after fasting and having my blood drawn once already...so I felt like a combo of puking/passing out within the first 30 mins of being there!  Of course this was the part where the phlebotemist (who I have come to know well from all of my lab work over the last 2 years of Gluten testing and baby) told me if I did puke or pass out and not wake up on my own that I would have to do this all over again another day...gee thanks... Ricky was a godsend and stayed by me every minute even though I was far from pleasant company...I spent most of the time trying not to fall off the chair on to the floor or not puke the stuff up and ruin the test...it was the longest 3 hours of my life...  In the finally hour I almost didn't make it, everyone saw all the color draining from me and I could feel myself slipping...I had Ricky grab some cold compresses and started swabbing down my neck and forehead...thankfully, I made it to the last blood draw without ruining the test!  (sheer willpower...my body was rocked after 3 hours of torture!)  Ricky got me a protein bar and drove me home where I passed out for hours...I woke up with a splitting headache and the appetite of a lumberjack!  Nothing some hot Chinese take-out won't fix;)  Still don't feel completely all there, but I made it through... Now we just need to pray that this test comes back normal and that I do not have gestational diabetes!  So that is the update my friends, some fun and some not so fun...but having a baby is a learning process...everyday is a new experience...I wouldn't trade it for the world!  Just can't wait for him to be here!!!

*Thursday Update*  Got the call from my doctor today, the glucola screening came back negative...translation: I DO NOT have gestational diabetes! Thank you to all of you who have been praying! I'm very happy to finally have an answer!

A feeling of accomplishment!

For those of you who have not heard me talk about the baby's dresser incessantly...we bought an adorable dresser that we found on craig's list that fits perfectly in the little space we had for it...only problem, even though in great shape "woodwise", the paint had been loved to death by someone's children...think sticks, marker and chipping paint but I envisioned something just perfect for our nursery!  Of course undertaking such a task was probably a better idea in my 2nd trimester when I had a ton of energy and X wasn't "reshaping" my spine...but alas, I was not to be daunted!  Ricky has learned quickly when it comes to something for the baby, stand back until the dust settles...never has nesting met a more willing victim...

Leave it to me to choose the HOTTEST weekend since August! I tried to get up early so I could get started early, but X kept me up in the night...which meant I slept til 10am.  Not the best time to go shopping in a home repair store since everyone and their mother has decided to do a project at 10am on a Saturday morning!  No lie...I think Hatboro, Willow Grove AND Horsham was there...!  I quickly picked out sandpaper to match the electric sander Nonno loaned me and than headed to the paint counter to grab the paint.  When it was finally my turn, my request went something like this..."Hi, I'm pregnant (as if you can't tell at this point lol) I hate painting because it's smelly, I hate sanding because it's time consuming...what's the easiest way to get this job done?!!"  I had the presence of mind to bring one of the little drawers with me as a visual so it made it easier for the person behind the counter to assist the crazy desparate pregnant woman.  Good news: I didn't have to sand, they had some smelly stuff (ugh) that would "strip" the paint so I could paint overtop of it.  Bad news: I would have to do at least 2 coats no matter what paint I got: P  The lady took off the drawer hardware and showed me how to use the smelly stuff and sent me on my way.

Back at the ranch, I had Ricky move everything out to the porch so I could work in the open air...it was hot as hell!  And the sun was now on that side of the house...there was no getting away, but I would not be detered.  Ricky put water bottles in the fridge and kept checking on me, he also helped "strip" the drawers so they were all prepped.  The painting is something I like to do alone besides the fact that my perfectionist self will not allow for his assistance!  Rather quickly I discovered that not only did I think it was wicked hot, but the paint thought so too!  This led to me being rather annoyed...Ricky ever the practical "fix it" man decided that I should paint in the house...this would solve his anguious over me dehydrating myself and would solve the paint getting clumpy... Thankfully the lady at the paint counter was right and the paint had virtually no smell, which is saying something considering my superpower prego nose!  With 3 fans running and the hall door opened for circulation, you would never know I was painting!  After a coat on everything, I was frustrated with myself for not getting a paint roller since the brush was leaving brush strokes rather than a clean paint look...no worries, we were headed for Nonno's house and would just borrow one to do the second coat!

Flash forward, yummy dinner with Nonno and Nonna...no paint roller...oh well, another run to the home improvement store!  Ok, this is the part where I advise all of you who decide to do projects such as these to go to the Home Depot/Lowe's type stores at 5pm on a Sunday...NOBODY'S THERE!!!  It was like a ghost town, I walked in and walked out!  Now to say this project was taking a toll on my body is an understatement...my back was literally angry with me, my shin had a bruise the size of a peach from one of the drawers and my feet felt like they'd been hit with a hammer... Thankfully I have an awesome husband who has very strong hands to rub my feet and back...and the presence of mind to run for ice when I holler while tripping over yet another sharp thing that I mistakenly forgot was in front of me and couldn't be seen because of my belly blockage... Yet again, 2nd trimester would've been a better time to do this...

But I was almost done, the end was in sight:)  And soon all the coats were finished and I was only partially bespeckled with sage green paint droplets, not bad for someone as uncoordinated as me!  The feeling of satisfaction grew with each tiny drawer handle that I re-affixed to the drawer...until I got to the last one and found that I was missing the handle!  All the hardware was there right in the little baggy that the lady at the paint counter has taped to the inside of the drawer, but NO HANDLE!  This is the part of the story where all of the aches and pains and hours of tedious labor caught up with me and I spazzed...royally...tearing everything in the house up trying to find the damn thing only to finally decide that it must still be at the paint counter...at 11pm on a Sunday night the paint counter is long closed...ugh...so it was not to be, I would not finish the little dresser in one weekend...

Monday came too early...all the work I put in caught up with me, not to mention we had to get up even earlier than usual for an ultrasound before work.  X's kidneys had to get another check...and unfortunately one of them didn't pass inspection.  In goods news, he's 4 pounds, 3 ounces and healthy overall (and still hates ultrasounds lol!)...the bad news, we have to go see a pediatric urologist for a consultation to see what to do if the kidney doesn't "fix itself".  So looks like we have to pray a little more that God will step in and help Xavier's kidneys to develop healthy and correctly!  My prayer is that his kidney will fix by the time he's born so we won't have to go through any of the stress of monitoring his kidneys or possibly surgery to fix it...  Needless to say, my tired body couldn't take the news and I was a mess of "what did I do wrong"...(which is ridiculous because they have not been able to link anything the mother/father have done to this very common abnormality which happens in babies while in utero)...and we're talking years of studies, but of course my first reaction is "I'm a terrible mother"...

A long day of work was the perfect distraction and also my cousin's baby was in surgery today so I spent time praying for him throughout the day...that helped me to focus on more important things and not my irrational thoughts... a train ride home with my train buddy Katie and a hot shower had me perked right up to make dinner and prepare for Ricky to get home:)  And with him came the handle to my final drawer in the dresser!  He was a sweetheart and stopped by the paint counter to pick it up on his way home...thankfully they saved it and didn't throw it out...or this story may have ended with me blowing up a certain home improvement store on 611 in Willow Grove!  It was like putting the final piece in a 5,000 piece puzzle that you've been working on for months...it was such a great feeling to have the dresser all done and set up in his nursery!  And it looked just as adorable as I imagined! :)

65 Days until Eviction Day...I mean my due date!!! ; P

It's hard to believe so much time has past already...feels like there's still so much to do before my little caramel latte arrives... Of course regardless of this fact, I'm so ready to have him here with us!  I've taken to calling November 22nd, the day he gets evicted...to which Ricky said I'm a terrible mother, but hey after 215 days of this I've started having talks with him about the fact that "arriving late" is NOT an option in Mommy's book! : P  With 9 weeks left, the end is now in sight and looking oh so good!  This does not mean that I haven't enjoyed our journey together or the adventure of watching my baby grow...it just means that I'm ready to move on to the next stage!  The later it gets, the harder it gets to remember how I got into my pants by myself or how I managed to tie my shoes MYSELF...not to mention how once upon a time my belly button was a lovely little slit...but is now stretched out flat in a disc-like shape the size of a walnut!  It's a shame the Victoria Secret looking ladies on my chest couldn't come when I had the abs to match lol!  *sighes*  It's all worth it though...every second... Even the nightly karate tournaments in my tummy at 3 am...

The fact that I'm still working full time helps the time pass as well and for the most part helps with the sanity levels...though this last week had me in more than one prego meltdown to which my poor boss was subjected!  I must say, he's a champ and has taken to finding them hilarious rather than pathetic or annoying like some might have :)  In fairness to me, I would've had a hard time dealing with some of the nonsense NOT being pregnant...being prego just made them "entire bottle of wine" worthy issues!  (though I did not allow myself to go there so don't worry people!!!) 

My boss has also decided that I would be a great extra on the Blue Collar Comedy tour since he regularly finds me at my desk with a can of peanuts propped on my belly...add a beer and I could give Larry the Cableguy a run for his money apparently lol!  All and all God has been good to me in the fact that entering this 3rd trimester hasn't added anything extremely severe symptom-wise!  I've honestly had a rather enjoyable pregnancy...and as long as the delivery portion is past with flying colors, I may not mind doing this again in 3 years lol!

The fun part of this past week has been the baby consignment sales!  My loving husband likes to call my spendthriftyness "cheap", but I think my "frugal" side is a great contribution to our marriage lol!  Yes, there are sometimes where I can take it to the "cheap" range and he has to talk me back from the edge but honestly with things the way they are frugal is a necessary attribute!  So back in May, I signed up for a huge baby consignment held at the Philly Expo Center...as first-time parents we were able to go to the "Pre-Sale" event which meant we got first dibs on most things there!  Fast forward to Sept. and Ricky got called in for night work and couldn't go :(  Which meant I didn't have a ride either!  Having signed up for this months ahead, I really didn't want to miss out!  But Nonna came through!  And she turned out to be a much better shopping companion than Daddy lol!  Not that Daddy couldn't do it, but I'm sure he would've parked his behind on one of the gliders they had for sale and told me to call him when it was time to put stuff in the car! : P  Ricky is NOT a shopping fan!  Nonna and I left there with multiple bags of maternity and baby clothes and some great baby gear for $112!  If you added up what we should have paid for everything brand new, we saved over 50% probably closer to 65-75% on everything!  That my friends is a GREAT feeling!  My advice to all my friends becoming moms, go to http://www.playgroundbuzz.com/ and mark your calendars with ALL of the baby consignment sales in this area for the next year!  I'm planning on consigning X's stuff even if he doesn't need anything the next go-arounds!  If he grows at the rate Daddy did, we're gonna have barely worn stuff lol!

Saturday, we went to see my sister-in-law and little niece! :)  She's so tiny and adorable!  Ricky is absolutely in love with her...and it's so cute to watch him hold her like she's made of glass!  She loves him already too and fell sound asleep laying on his chest!  Everytime I hold her, X kicks around as if to say "I wanta play too, wait for me" lol!  I can just see them now, running around with my niece bossing him cause she's "older" and him wanting to do everything she does "better than she does"! :) 

Oh I remember those days with my cousins well lol!  We, the oldest 3, were 6 months apart and like the 3 musketeers! - In the picture, is me the oldest, Evelyn the youngest, and Joey the middle musketeer :)  What great memories we have!  Pretty soon it'll be my niece, his other cousin Liam and my little Xavier!

This post has taken slightly longer than the usually...and it is now 64 days and counting : P  Spent the rest of the time Saturday with Daddy before he went to work, then met him for his break and finally we took a nap until we had to go back to pick Daddy up from work.  This morning, Sunday, my neighbor Katie and I went to a 1/2 price consignment sale at Doylestown hospital to look for more clothes for my niece who is a little peanut and needs more newborn stuff!  And even though my sister gave me a lecture about NOT buying stuff for X since his shower is coming up...I couldn't resist a few things!  My favorite is his new bathtime pal Quincy Quackman and his friend Dirty Duck (as named by Daddy after being introduced to the new members of our little family lol!)

When me and my siblings were little, my mom and dad used to have "Mr. Washcloth" who would "eat our faces" to clean us up and always found us "very delicious" to which we would giggle uproariously and ask for our faces to be cleaned again!  Things have progressed a bit since then where they actually make the washclothes into handpuppets lol, but we're looking forward to seeing X giggle over his bathtime cleaning buddies just as much as I did when I was tiny!  (Not to mention, they match his robe...this part tickles mommy lol!)  Little moments like these make me want to hit the fast forward so he's here in my arms, but I know the time will pass just as fast without the fast forward...and heaven knows we need to the rest of the time to get the nursery ready!!!  Hoping to get the changing table and dresser moved in by next week the latest...though I'm going to have to do a sand/re-paint on the dresser if we get the one we're planning on.  Oh yeah, hey Nonno, you still got that electric sander thingy? Lol! :)

Well that was an eventful month!

What a couple of crazy weeks! First of all, August is birthday central with my mom on the 16th, Ricky on the 22nd and his sister on the 25th! But this year, my niece decided to join them! And throw a monkey wrench into the birthday celebrations:) But boy is she worth it and what a great present for Uncle Rich and her mommy! Of course it would’ve been nice if the process wasn’t so long and drawn out on mommy! Listen up, Xavier, don’t go getting any ideas! When it’s your turn to come, you need to get out fast lol…please!!!! My sister-in-law was in the hospital from Tuesday night until Saturday afternoon when my niece finally graced us with her presence…talk about an ordeal…plenty of fodder for the “Do you know what I went through to bring you into this world…” mom story!

To back up a little before all hell broke loose…my aunties came to visit the weekend of Ricky’s birthday the 22nd, unfortunately he had to work all weekend, but they helped me make plans for the nursery and took me shopping for fun stuff for little X’s room! Auntie Sha Sha also brought down the most adorable car walker that she happened to find…Daddy and Mommy both think this will end up as one of his favorite toys cause it’s just too cool with it’s like faux leather seat and gleaming red paint job! :) Maria and Marissa drove me home later that night so we could set up the baby stuff and I could be there when Ricky got home since it was his birthday! I hate not being able to cuddle up with him to sleep, but there was no way I was gonna miss being with him on his birthday!

The Monday night after his birthday, Mommy and X worked on a birthday dinner for Daddy and wrapped up his present! We were very excited to give Daddy his first birthday present from X! (And yes, I got X’s full input on this present…namely describing it to him and then asking what he thought…to which he kicked around happily…so it was settled!) It was a nice relaxing time with just the 3 of us celebrating another great year of Ricky being on this earth…and then he opened his present…you’ll have to get his side of the story on this, but from where I was sitting it looked like Mommy and X hit one out of the park:)  So now according to Daddy, he and X have something to wear for their very 1st bboy event together! I cannot wait to get pictures of the two of them together in these!

Tuesday rolled around and we got the call that they were going to induce my sister-in-law so we were all excitedly waiting for the call that my niece was here, (even thought we would have to cancel Ricky’s small group birthday party) but alas…Wednesday…Thursday…Friday…still nothing… this was getting crazy… Me looking down the way to 11 weeks from now, was in a panic… Holy cow…I don’t think I can do this! Holy Toledo…he’s just gotta stay in there or something!!! I was nearly beside myself by the time Saturday rolled around… then she was here… and so beautiful… and perfect… and as I held her I just wanted X to be here so badly that the nerves didn’t matter as much… I’m still not looking forward to labor and delivery but I know when I’m done they’re going to place the most beautiful thing in the world in my arms…my little Xavier… yes, this is the part of the story where I cry thinking about it…

Things have slowly calmed down and now we’re going to try to celebrate the August birthdays this weekend lol! Better late than never! It’s hard to top the joy that’s already filled this past month, but it also makes me even more anxious for November to come! Still have a lot more fun to go through first, our baby shower…my birthday…Halloween (and seeing my little niece all dressed up lol)…and then finally sometime in November…little X is going to make his appearance! Of course Mommy’s hoping for earlier rather than later, but he’ll arrive when he’s supposed to…hopefully in a quick and relatively painless fashion… Hey I can wish can’t I?!! : P  Also as per requests...Here's a new belly pic:) 30 weeks and counting!