Our own Sunrise Service

I think my son is going to be very religious.  For Easter, he held his own sunrise service in our hotel room in Jackson, Tenn.  Not only did he keep me up all night so that I could see the sun rise, but he also limited my sleep to 1.5 hours.  Truth be told, I did a lot of praying that night.  In case you are wondering, 1.5 hours is his PR (Personal Record) for least amount of sleep.

(For those non-athletes, PR is commonly used in track & field, for when you beat your best times.  For example, my PR in the 400M is 60.06.  Not bad for a short, white girl.

Easter was very special for my family, not only because of our new son, but also because my sister has just returned safely from her military deployment in Iraq.  She was deployed through my entire pregnancy and this is the first time to meet JT.  They have been quickly making up for lost time.  She has her own "baby voice" to talk to JT.  She prefers a British nanny accent.  JT seems to like it. 

Speaking of PRs, JT has been setting many of his own lately.  He had his biggest poop ever about a week ago.  He also vomited about a half of a foot straight down my chest.  While I was gagging from the smell and laughing from the experience, I couldn't help but also beam with pride over his aim.  He has also outgrown his first clothes.  He blasted out of the newborn outfits like a green Hulk Hogan.

We are quickly geeting used to one another. Here is his first Easter pictures.

Big Poppa is Here!

Due to some serious sleep deprivation and extreme joy, it has taken me a while to announce the birth of our son, JT!  He was born February 25, 2010 at 10:43pm at 7 pounds and 13 ounces and 20 3/4 inches.  I know, I know, nearly a month ago!  It has taken a WHILE to adjust to the lack of sleep (seriously).

The delivery and birth was more intense that I expected, although I didn't really have any expectations!  I was induced at 1am and did not have the baby until nearly 11pm.  The petocin took a long time to work and I ended up getting an infection from it which led to a 102 degree temperature.  Luckily, that didn't happen until late in the game and it didn't bother the baby significantly.

In case you are wondering, here are my top revelations so far from entering the halls of motherhood:

1) Sleep deprivation is a form of torture, perhaps of the highest order.  Seriously, the lack of sleep has been the worst part of this whole experience.  I cannot function on two hours of sleep at a time.  I hallucinate consciousness.

2) Although I am breastfeeding, I have not joined the Legion of Brainwashed Mothers of the Boob.  I don't think I'll be gushing to complete strangers about the bonding experience of nursing.  AND - breastfeeding is entirely harder to get a handle on than I expected.

3) I now have a mom body :(.  While I'm not jumping off any cliffs, it is very sad to announce that I plan to hang up my bikini - FOREVER.  Not that I was in line for the cover of SI or anything, but I was able to humbly sun bathe in my skimpy two piece.  My present reality is that my tiny body was stretched to accomodate an 8 pound baby.  And, my DNA isn't quite as elastic as Heidi Klum's, ie, it isn't going to retract back to its original size.  So, now I have the pleasure of losing the rest of my baby weight and begin to dress my new body.  I never realized how fitted many of my shirts are threw the waist.

It's all worth it :)

Dreams Deferred...just a little

Today was supposed to be the Big Day - we were going to the hospital today to get induced and meet our baby boy, Jason Thomas.  But, as with most things in life, nothing goes according to plan.  The baby is doing good in his little coccoon, but my cervix isn't quite ready.  Since everything has looked healthy up to this point, we are going to wait another week.  Am I disappointed?  No.  I want to have a healthy baby and a healthy delivery with minimal risks.  But, I am sad that we'll have to wait another week to meet our son! 

It feels like Christmas

We are scheduled to meet our baby boy next Wednesday!  We are so full of anticipation and excitement that it reminds me of Christmas.  I have been playing nursery rhyme songs on my ipod just like they were Christmas carols.  And, it gets me in the mommy mood. 

Are we ready?  In our hearts, YES.  We have been waiting for this day for nearly two years.  Our last baby was born to heaven on February 18, 2009 and I can't help but think of him, Jason Thomas's older brother.  They will nearly share a birthday.  I wonder what I will tell JT about him.  He is an angel that will look over him throughout his life.  I want to keep him in a special place in my heart...

Are we ready, otherwise?   Uh....the house is a wreck!  We have so many baby gifts to find a place for.  The living room floor is scattered with pastel gift bags, onesies, packaging boxes, assembled and partially assembled baby equipment.  Again, it feels like Christmas morning when the kids have tornadoed their way through their gifts, leaving them proudly on display for the rest of the day (um...week).

This is my last week at work, and I have graciously scheduled myself with lots of meetings to wrap up projects and tasks.  It feels like I am walking away from another child - my career.  But, I know it's just a stage in my life.  I am very excited to spend the rest of the year with my baby and transitioning into our family.

So, that's where I am at.  It's Christmas Eve here in our household and we awaiting the greatest gift of our lives.

Performance Anxiety

I think I've had a mental breakthrough.  You know how you get really nervous and anxious before a big game?  Well, that's how I feel when I have to participate in some type of significantly feminine event, like a baby shower (it also happens when I am socializing with a group of former cheerleaders). 

I've been worried about my baby showers for a couple of months (pathetic, I know).  What do I worry about, you ask? Did I invite everyone that I was spposed to?  Did someone's feelings get hurt?  Am I gracious enough to the hostesses? Do they know I appreciate them?  Basically, I don't know what the hell I am doing - a true duck out of water!  Nevertheless, I am proud to report that I have made it through 3 baby showers!  I think I performed particularly well.  I mingled with the different sub-groups of family - friends, relatives, friends, husband's cousins, etc.  I really was appreciative of all of the gifts - surely, my sincerity came through.  No one shot me dirty looks or said the dreaded Southern passive agressive put-down, "bless your heart."

The nerves never went away before the games, but I learned to trust that they would disappear at game time.  I hope that with more practice at these traditional female roles, I'll become more comfortable in my new "uniform".

Confessional

I have to admit that even though I am a self-proclaimed "jock" mom (to be), I am so very glad that college football is officially over!  If you didn't know, Alabama beat Texas in the national championship last night.  Of course, the commentators made excuses for Texas, with their star quarterback Colt McCoy out in the first quarter.  The SEC never gets the recognition it deserves (see what I've learned in my four years of marriage, lol). 

ESPN is ALWAYS on at my house, and while I love to play sports, I am not as interested in watching them on tv.  Trust me, we watch every sport that is broadcast (with the exception of soccer)- NCAA football, basketball, baseball, NFL, NHL, MLB, NASCAR, professional golf (including women's sometimes), pro tennis - even the little league world series for goodness sake!  I go nuts about 2/3 into a season and pick fights over the remote with my husband, J.  He is too funny...recently, he told me that he hoped the baby liked football.  It made him nervous to think that his son might not have that in common with him.  (If it does turn out that way, J may question his paternity.)  Despite his manly fears being somewhat adorable, I do pray that our son has a broader interest than JUST sports.  J's family has practically already drafted him into several profesional sports.  I don't know what I'll do if it's going to be another 18 years of ESPN - 24/7.  Is your tv stuck on ESPN, too? 

Motivation

My pregger's friend and I have decided that we're going to blast this baby fat off by training for our first triathalon!  I've never wanted to do one before I gained 40 pounds, but, I find myself newly motivated to take my body back.  It's a sprint triathalon - the shortest one we could find, lol - 200 meter swim, 8.5 mile bike and 2 mile run.  It's in Nashville, so that makes it easy.  So, mark your calendars - Memorial Day weekend.  Now I need to find a bike...