Code Red

It's been fairly quite week on the Aubrey front the past week. She is smiling, making faces, cooing, eating, fussy and still peeing and pooping. Since it's hard to describe the smiling/cooing/playing, lets talk about what is easy to describe - her poops. Ever since we started supplementing her feedings with formula her poops have reduced to about once every other day or two which is nice because wets are much easier and quicker to change and more importantly they have been happening with Andrea during the day. Last night Aubrey and I were hanging out in the chair and she is just as happy as can be. She is smiling, kicking her feet and sliding down in her boppy. I would but pick her up and put her higher and she would work her way down by kicking her feet. About the third time, I grabbed her and I felt wetness. It was on her side and front. My first fatherly instinct was that she had spit up but that was quickly ruled out and moved down the possibility chart to she had t-ted and the diaper was full or was improperly sealed and had leaked that was also quickly ruled out. Upon closer inspection, we had a major CODE RED situation on our hands. I called mommy and told her - we had a diaper breach of number 2 out the front of the diaper and had a major haz mat situation and all hands were needed to respond. Wow, I am not sure how to describe it or if you even want me to but the first thing that comes to my mind is mud - everywhere. I assessed the situation after taking the diaper off and called for the bath water to be prepared. This was no match for baby wipes. Mommy got a throw away pad. I disposed of the diaper and mommy began the first wave of cleaning with the wipes. We got the water ready and cleaned her from head to toe just to make sure she was completely clean. We were glad this happened at home and not while out somewhere or glad someone else wasn't holding her. Anyway, sorry this is the funniest story of the week...maybe it's just funny to LA and I. We were laughing the whole time. I guess we are going to have to train her not to poop on the weekends - just M-F 8 - 3:30pm while at Andrea's. I am still interested in making a girls diaper that prohibits the mess from coming forward. Any takers?

I am also looking for someone to re-engineer the car seat so that it is easier to carry and isn't constantly hitting your knee. I have the idea but not the design skills...autocad anybody?

Busy week with Thanksgiving and shopping. Too bad Aubrey won't get any turkey this year...Mommy will eat her portion since "she eats like a man" (LA's quote from Saturday night 11/22 w/witnesses). Actually, daddy's going to take her share....wink,wink.

Here's some good news she slept from 9pm until 7am on Sat night to Sun am and last night she slept from 9:30pm to 6:30am with us having to wake her up this morning. She is skipping her last feeding at 10/11pm. We are so blessed. We pray it will continue. The sleeping gene she's got must have come from her mother. We will have to wait to see if she got the lazy gene from me.

CU Weekend and 2 Month Check Up

o, LA and I began packing for our weekend trip on Thursday evening for our first weekend trip with Aubrey to Clemson for Homecoming. Wow, it takes a lot of work to get everything together. The pack and play is an interesting thing. Something that is supposed to be portable isn't the easiest thing to get back into its bag to transport. We attempted to do it without the directions, why would you need them? We found out why - because it is impossible to do it without reading them and dissecting every word. I am glad we kept them. We had all the pieces moving in the right direction but it would not collapse all the way. Evidently the autocad person at Graco took the day off when they completed the drawings in the instruction manual. They have like 12 steps and 2 drawings. Anyway, we finally got it and I will say that now that we have read the directions (very slowly) and done it twice it is easier.

Aubrey is a great baby. She slept the entire way to Alex and Alisha's house. Even with mommy and daddy fussing about all the traffic. We hit Columbia at 5:00pm - they have a rush hour problem on I-26 from our side of Columbia to the Newberry side of Columbia. What a pain in the butt. It was 80mph to stopped back to 60mph then down to 30mph - a big slinky. We pit stopped at Alex's in G'Vegas to feed her and then head to Lieu's for dinner - the spicy chicken is the deal, worth a stop if you are ever in G'Vegas and are hungry! It's a Timmy D favorite. Aubrey slept the entire time at dinner, she has the best table manners. We loaded up after dinner and headed to Townville - just outside Clemson on Lake Hartwell. Lake Hartwell is having a serious water problem. I don't know how far down it is but it has to be down 15-20 feet. There are a lot of docks sitting on dry ground. You could repel the bank down to the water or climb from the water to the bank.

Aubrey had a good night sleep and was ready for a long day on Saturday - tailgating and the game. The day turned out to be a pretty good day based on the forecast - 70% chance of rain in the morning and highs in the upper 50' - low 60's and windy. Your not going to believe this but it didn't rain and it was actually sunny with some clouds moving through and windy. They got the wind and temp right but missed the rain. My opinion is that we now allow the weather to control our lives. We have too much information available about the weather (sometimes it's right and most of the time it is wrong) and we have become obsessed with it. Aubrey slept through the most exciting 25 seconds in college football - Tigers running down the hill, the first quarter and second quarter, third quarter and fourth quarter. I don't think she is going to remember much about the whole Clemson experience but her blood now runneth orange. We applied for early acceptance and are awaiting CU's response. We have pictures to help her remember and many more trips to Clemson in her future. She is going to know that you don't root for chicken, you just eat them. Just for the record Clemson is 1-0 when she is in attendance. I am going to write Dabo and TDP and tell them of Clemson's success when she is at the game and see if they could upgrade my tickets to the 50 yard line about 25 rows up. She is their good luck charm. We took her to Howard's Rock after the game and she committed to giving 110% to CU.

Aubrey had a pretty good evening Saturday but a busy Sunday morning. She was up at 12:30am to feed, 3:30am to feed and 6:30am to feed. She seemed like she was a little congested which made mommy and daddy feel horrible about taking her to the game and having her outside in the wind for most of the day Saturday. Were such good parents - were from the your not going to interfere with our plans/what doesn't kill her will make her stronger school of thought. Anyway, it seems everyone was a little congested on Sunday morning. It was probably from us knocking all the dust around the house. She bounced back and was fine on the ride home and has been good so far this week - see we not such bad parents after all.

I guess we will see if we are invited back next year or if they had all "the traveling Carter's" they could stand. They say she was a good baby and they didn't mind but the truth will be found out next year.

We had her two month check-up today and her first series of shots. The doctor did the old "Heee/She trick" when he walked in the room. I guess the pink isn't enough of a giveaway. The measurement and percentiles first. She weighed 11lbs and 10oz (an increase of 2lbs 7oz from her two week check-up) and is still in the 75th percentile (which is good...she doesn't have a weight problem - no need to put her on a diet yet). She is 23.5 inches (an increase of 2.5 inches from her two week check-up) and is the 90th percentile. Her head circumference is 15" (an increase of .5 inches from her two week check-up) and is in the 25th percentile. I told her and everyone after her two week, we would not be satisfied with her "C"/Average performance and would be consulting with a baby trainer to boost her performance. It is helping and we are seeing results. We will continue to work on the weight - more feedings. We are pleased with her growth. We are going to give her a smiley face sticker for her hard work but not too much praise because we don't want her to be satisfied. We are not real worried about ther head size. If you have an area to be behind in we will choose that one. Don't be discouraged with the "C" on the weight, we can overcome this lack of effort on her part. Although, we could have bumped her weight up a little, if we would have feed her before her appointment or if we would have kept the wet diaper on her.

She got a couple of shots shortly after she was born while in the hospital but none since then. She got shots today to prevent the following diseases: diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, hib, hepatitis b, polio, pneumococcal and rotavirus. She got three combo shots and one orally. The nurse came in and gave her the orally administered one first and then asked LA to put Aubrey on the examining table and to hold her arms. So Aubrey is staring at mommy while the nurse gives her three quick shots - two in one leg (thigh) and one in her other leg (thigh). So now she thinks mommy is the bad person that hurt her. Daddy just hung out and was there to console her after the shots. She has a destinctive cry for pain. There is no build up to it. The nurse stuck her and her eyes got big (looking at mommy and saying "what are you doing?, holy, crap that hurts") and she let out a loud cry and before she knew it she had been stuck two more times. I will give the nurse credit. She was quick but as a job that has to be a bummer making innocent babies cry everyday - not much to look forward to each day but she is helping to prevent diseases. Mommy and Daddy did real good and didn't cry. Aubrey let out a couple of cries and wimpers but starting sucking on her pacificer and was calmed down in a couple of minutes. She is a tough baby, probably more like a very short memory. Anyway, it wasn't near as bad as we thought it would be. We will see how she does over the next couple of days - looking for a temperture or her being fussy. We have some children's Tylanol ready, if she gets a fever or is fussy or if we just want to get some rest (just kidding).

Mommy and Daddy were recommended to get a Flu shot to help prevent Aubrey from hopefully getting the Flu. Aubrey is too young to get one herself. She will get some benefit from mommy getting one. Daddy is real excited about having to get a shot.

Next appointment is at four months - next year. We get more shots and talk about introducing her to rice cereal. So it's the natural stuff and formula for the time being.

PS - We did ask about her being so gassy and the doctor told us it was normal. Her digestive system is having to switch back and forth processing the natural and formula and her being gassy is just part of it. He told us to deal with it. If she's around and something smells, guess what it's her (It's going to be nice having a free pass.)

Survived

I am not sure if 4 days qualifies as "it's going to be ok" but we are surviving the first week of day care. LA is adjusting to being back at school and all the fun that her job entails. I am dropping off Aubrey in the morning and LA is picking her up after school. We are still working getting everyone settled into a schedule but we will get the system figured out just about time for Thanksgiving. It makes it easier to drop Aubrey off each morning because she has been such a good baby. It would be hard for us to leave a fussy, crying baby with someone (that will be a hard morning, when daddy drops her off and she is crying. Hopefully, that won't happen.) Aubrey loves Andrea and her new boyfriend - Kerrick (I am going to check on the spelling). She is enjoying her new toys - bouncy seat. Andrea confirmed what we already knew - Aubrey is gassy and it smells. If we are out somewhere and she drops a bomb, it is going to hard to point the finger at her and someone believe it. One good thing is that she has decided to poop about every 1-2 days and she likes to do it while at the baby sitter. Mommy and Daddy haven't changed a poopy diaper all week. I apologized to Andrea today but it sure is easier to change her when it just a wet diaper.

She will be two months on Friday and this is going to be a big weekend for her. It will be her first overnight (with mommy and daddy). We are going up Friday for the Clemson game on Saturday and stay on Lake Hartwell with some friends. it will also be her first Clemson game. Maybe she can become their good luck charm. Look for pictures (I think some funny pictures could come from this weekend) and say a prayer that we still have eight friends when we come home (none of them have babies yet - this could be a call for more birth control for them (and a reminder not to invite "The Carter's" next time) or it might push a couple of them into having a playmate for Aubrey).

Next Tuesday is a big day - Two month check-up and shoots. That should be fun. We are planning to give her a big dose of baby sleep, sleep medicine. Say a prayer that mommy doesn't start crying when they give her the shots. Anybody want to guess her weight? I know she is growing because she has very little NB clothes left to wear. It is getting hard to pull her head through the small opening and just a difficult to take it off (and by the way she hates you pulling thing over her head.) The 3 month clothes are a little big but much easier to take on an off. My guess is 10-11lbs and 24-26 inches.

D-Day

D - Day (An invasion or dropping off your child for the 1st day of day care)

Well today is officially the first day of "day care" for Aubrey and LA is back to school. Here's a summary - Not a good day. Our days now start at 5:00am, which is early. This morning Aubrey must have known something was up because she spit up on two outfits while daddy was changing her. We were running out of clothes to put her in. I will drop Aubrey off in the mornings and LA will pick her up. Anyway, not going to bore you with the details but it was a weird feeling leaving Aubrey with Andrea this morning. It was easy because, we know Andrea will be great with Aubrey and this is a much better option than day care but hard because it's not what I or LA want to do but hey, we aren't the first and won't be the last. Put us down not being the parents of the year for 2008 (maybe in 2009). It will be good for Aubrey to have a playmate in a couple of months when she is becoming more active. Plus as I talked about earlier, she will want to stay there with all the toys. My biggest hope is that LA will survive school. It is not going to easy and those kids are in for a rude awakening. There little 8 weeks vacation has come to an abrupt halt. They better buckle down and walk the line or it isn't going to be pretty. I probably should have gone in last Friday and had a talk with them.

Aubrey went to her first Summerville Green Wave game on last Friday (November 7, 2008). She cheered (slept) the Green Wave to victory on homecoming. Maybe 18 years from now she will be the homecoming queen. Friday was LA's birthday so Aubrey got mommy some pretty flowers and a card. Daddy got mommy a camera to take pictures of Aubrey. Aubrey went to two 1 year old birthday parties this weekend - Sims and CJ. She had a blast (sleeping) and daddy ate her portion of cake and cupcakes. This being a parent is tough work.

Between the last post and this post we started giving Aubrey some formula to supplement and prepare her for daycare. This was at about the six-seven week time frame and she decided to stop pooping for three days after having been pooping two-three times each day. We knew that she was ok because she passing gas and it was terrible (it still is, much worse than mommies). So what do you do when you don't know what to do? Call the doctor? no way. You consult the baby book, internet and friends with small children. The doctor is option four. The baby book said that at six weeks her bowels begin adjusting so pooping might not be as regular. So we had two contributors to the problem - formula and the six week growing/changes. Kayro syrup was found to be a remedy that had worked so daddy went out and bought some. We mixed it into her bottle and after another day passed nothing had happened. So not what do you do? You call the doctor who you should have called in step one. We had the right solution but wrong type of Kayro syrup - you need the dark. I had picked up the light. 50/50 chance and I chose wrong - not surprising. It happens everyday. Looks like we will be doing some baking w/ the light - pecan pies, yummy, yummy. It worked like a champ, messy as all get out. In case anyone was wondering, formula poop is horrible! Hopefully, we will not have to continue to do this.

Aubrey is eight weeks old + one day - 58 days old. So the question is - At eight weeks is she two months old? or Will two months old be on the 14th of November? I say she will be two months old on Nov 14 - two calendar months after her birth date. One other question, When do we tell people how old she is in months instead of weeks?

1st Night in the Crib

Ok, so I often wondered why my friends who have blogs that actually got me started doing this (actually it was LA saying "you ought to do that for us" or "so and so has a blog, we need a blog - always trying to keep up with the Jones) have big gaps in posts or either the blog goes to blog heaven after the baby is born. I now know why...it's busy (4 hours between feedings actually means .5 hours with feeding, diapers and taking a nap), we are down to one computer, you take the small things for granted as they happen and forget to post about it, and the actual reason is the realization of the monster that you have created by ever starting a blog and the hope that it will just fade away if you don't post but it won't - people are demanding.)

So what’s been happening since the last post. I say not a whole lot but that goes back to the taking the small events for granted. Aubrey is still eating, sleeping peeing and pooping. She still sleeps about 4 hours at a time and about 6 or 7 after she feeds around 9, 10 or 11pm. You would think that we are spoiling her but actually she is spoiling us. If they were all as good as she has been we would have a population problem like China in the US. We are spoiling her but I think all parents do. It's just the nature of loving someone so much. Sometimes she will cry when we both leave the room and stops when we walk back in. She will cry to be held and loved on. It's not all the time but it's good when she does do it. Most of the time she is perfectly content to be propped up somewhere to look around or sleep. She is becoming more alert and is starting to focus on items. It is funny to watch her go cross-eyed as she tries to focus. She is starting to find her voice - making cooing sounds. She will now even give you a little smile. She has figured out that daddy's shirt is the burp cloth. You can use a burp cloth but it never seems to hit it. Her favorite game to play is to pee or poop without her diaper on. It goes something like this - remove dirty diaper, clean up mess with wipes, turn head to get a new diaper and turn around to find she has peed or pooped on the changing pad or she pees or poops on the new diaper as soon as you get it underneath her or on her. That is frustrating...Leigh-Ann says I am too slow (but it happens to her also). Aubrey is good at making "upset" faces just before she starts to cry.

We think she is going through a grow spurt because in the past week she is wanting more to eat. The other evening LA gave me a bottle with 6 ounces of milk and asked me to feed her. It looked like she was starving as she sucked down the first couple of ounces. When I took the bottle from her to burp her, you would have thought the world was ending. She was crying and getting upset and didn't stop until I gave her the bottle back. This went on for the rest of the bottle as she ate all six ounces. We were certain that she would give some of it back but it all stayed down. This has happened on a couple of other occasions in the past week. We know she is growing because she is starting to outgrow some of her new born items...great, week 6 and already needing a wardrobe change (this is going to get expensive).

LA is going back to work on November 10th. We have met with the Andrea and Andy who are going to be keeping Aubrey. They are a super nice couple and we know Aubrey will be well cared for from 7:30 to 3:00pm each day. They have a 9 month old son Garrick and two greyhounds that will be keeping Aubrey company each day. It is funny because we were apprehensive about taking her anywhere but now we are worried that she will not want to come home because of all the toys, swings, pack n' play and everything else that she doesn't have at home that she will have access to each day. Andy will be home on most days until around 12:00pm until he goes into work. This will be a good situation for Aubrey and much better than daycare. I would love for LA not to have to work but until a couple of condos disappear from our liabilities it just not feasible. Anybody out there want a condo cheap for Aubrey's sake...

Saturday night was the final night in the bassinet/pack n' play. We moved her to her crib on Sunday night and LA and I slept through all her crying - solid wood doors block the crying pretty good. Actually, she slept fine in her crib. The crib is so big for her right now. She has plenty of room to stretch out.

PS = We purchased a baby monitor yesterday. So we can sleep in peace, knowing she is ok.

PSS - A couple of other real quick things that she has done - She went to the State fair for another hog show (Aubrey 2, Daddy 1). She is real good in Sunday School...mommy and daddy are working on a schedule for church. She visited daddy at work. She has been to Summerville high school a couple of times (she hopes something new will be around buy the time she gets to high school, instead of the old buildings that daddy went to school in).

PSSS - Check back for Halloween pictures....they are going to be great! What's she going to be?

Hog Show/Hospital Bills

It was a pretty big weekend for Aubrey. She attended her first ever Hog Show (I am pretty sure it was my first ever. However, if you’re giving out points, I am a goat show veteran. It's got to count for something) at the Orangeburg County Fair on Friday night (What did you do on Friday night sit around the house? Thought so.) and attended her first ever birthday party (Emmy's) on Saturday night. She didn't get to see much at the hog show because she was doing what she does best - sleep. If she had she would have seen the Ulmer clan rack up the ribbons - Wes, Garrett, Hayes and Emmy all brought home the awards. She didn't see much of the birthday party except for her Uncle Wesley (who will no longer be mentioned in the blog after this post, along with Mike because of a little alligator hunting trip that allegedly took place where they killed a 12 footer. I have seen the photos but still I am not a believer) and Mama. The family rule is that once Mama has the baby no one asks to hold her...funny.

So we got the majority of the insurance claims from our hospital visit with Miss Aubrey. No one told us the $25 office visit co-pay we've been paying didn't cover EVERYTHING. I thought we were prepaying. Hope they have a payment plan. Wow, it's expensive to visit a hospital. We're glad we didn't stay an extra day. After reviewing the claims submitted by the hospital, doctors, nurses, and cleaning staff, if we decide to have another child we are going to look at a destination birth for $850 per night we can stay a couple of nights at a five star resort. When LA goes into labor if we can time it right all we have to do go to the lobby in a panic shouting "my wife is having a baby" and "ask if there's a doctor in the house" and before the ambulance can get there the doctor delivers baby number 2 - saving on two doctors charges, the cost of the epidural and "medical supplies". I am going to the post office tomorrow to tell them to hold our mail or either I am going to change our address and not forward the mail. That way we can tell them "we haven't received a bill from you, baby we didn't have a baby". We probably won't be answering our home phone anymore in case they start calling for payment. We are sure the bills with "Amount Due" will be arriving any day now. Better stick to email and calling us on the cell phone, if you want to get up with us.

PS - Since I had to actively participate in the delivery and not just be the support person, I am sending a bill to the hospital and doctor for my services and my counseling.

Two Week (Actually 18 Days) Doctor's Appointment

Aubrey had her two week doctors appointment today. The tell of the tape and scales were as follows - she weighed in at 9lbs 3oz and was 21 inches long. This puts her in the 75th percentile of all girls her age.


We weren't real happy with her performance. It's only a solid "C" performance - "C" equals comfortable. Were not going to let her be satisfied with "C's". Were not going to let mediocrity creep into her lifestyle this early. She's not going to be just average. We are expecting much more and I am sure you feel the same way (her dad was just average and we are expecting a whole lot more form her). All the effort (love, support, gifts,..etc) you are giving her and she's not excelling is disappointing. LA and I are taking this seriously and are addressing the current issues so she is a top performer at her two month check-up. Please don't give up on her, it's just going to take a more focused effort on everyone's part. We will be addressing the weight gain with more frequent feedings by waking her up to eat during the day and night. Tomorrow she will be meeting with a baby trainer to stretch her legs and arms to help them grow more.

Her head circumference is 14.5 inches which is only in the 25th percentile - little head, big body. All I can think about is the Carmax commercial where the guy brings a head shrink doctor to negotiate buying a car and a mechanic asks the boss to go home from work because his tiny head hurts (the head shrink doctor had evidently shrunk his head). Look it up on youtube. This is actually a blessing that she doesn't have a big head (there are those in both our families that have big heads and LA insists my head is big but I am pretty sure it is average). We not worried and the doctor is not concerned. We’re going to let her underachieve in this area. All it really means is that she is going to have to pack a lot of knowledge in a smaller area.

Don't worry about anything, LA and I have everything under control and are going to stick to the plan of action to remedy this case of "I'm going to be average blahs", Miss Aubrey is mired in. We will keep you posted and our next doctor’s appointment is November 18th - 4 weeks. This is going to take time so be patient but I am hoping for a strong "B" for the next visit.

PS - The redness around Aubrey's eye has nothing to do with LA poking her or us trying to make her eat (might be the cause next month) or Melissa F giving her a black eye. It simply is a place where she has a lot of capillaries and they burst during birth. They will eventually heal and it will no longer be noticeable. It might be six months or a year. However, the doctor did tell us that it will be her truth indicator. If she lying to us, it will turn red. This should be interesting. How long before we tell her about it - probably after college.

Nothing To Post

So for the past couple of days its been pretty low key with Aubrey, nothing much to post. So I wasn't going to post anything until tomorrow after her second visit to the doctor - two week checkup. However, something funny did happen last night during Aubrey's bath. LA got her bath water ready and asked me to undress her which as you know with a baby it is a dangerous time when she is without a diaper. You expect a number 1 or 2 is going to happen so you plan for it - if you must pick her up it is done at an arms length distance - no cuddling without a diaper. If you do it is at your own risk. So I picked her up and took her to the bathroom just knowing that she was going to something to show us who's in control. However, I successfully got her to her bathtub without incident which I thought was pretty good. She is beginning to like taking a bath which translates that she isn't screaming (some people call it crying) her head off but isn't cooing and laughing about it. So as LA is washing her, Aubrey explodes a number 2 into her bathtub. Now you might not be laughing about it but it was funny. I don't know why it's funny, it just is. So, here we are trying to clean her and she contaminates her bath water. We both looked at each other and laughed. So while we are cleaning up and changing out the bath water, LA gives Aubrey to me to hold which means I get to be in line for the follow-up shot (which didn't happen thank goodness - cause that might not have been funny) The best part is that we saved a diaper (which help save the environment, so were doing our part).

Nothing much else is happening. She does seem to get whinny from her late afternoon feeding until her nighttime feeding (4 - 9pm). We don't know why but other mothers have told us it is just a bad time for all kids.

Stay tuned for some more of our adventures.

PS - I know were not the first that any of these tales/experiences have happened to but those that have kids can relate/remember and those that don't can be prepared.

1st Church Service

We decided that we would go to church today. I would say we were the last two to arrive. However, we did beat the offering plates (not by much). I will no longer wonder why or have that "you’re kidding me - your actually going to come to church this late. You might want to think about waking up 20 minutes earlier." look on my face when ushering. I understand now. I got us two fold out chairs and we sat in the very back. It didn't take long for her to get going. She was sleeping but was grunting a little but you couldn't hear her over the organ which was fine. However, it got real quite and she announced her presence to the row in front of her with a nice loud delivery of a number 2. I am glad the people in front didn't turn around because that would have been embarrassing (more than it was). Hey there's nothing you can do about it. They always say it's better to let it go than hold it in and she's a believer. Anyway, after Bob got going good in his sermon, she decided to let him know that she was there for her first visit and wasn't too impressed. So, I took her downstairs and removed her from the car seat and we hung out in the stairwell - listening. We finally got to the top of the stairs and Aubrey was knocked out when all of a sudden she let out another cry without out any warning. I guess she had gotten startled by something she was dreaming about (which is a whole different subject - what is she dreaming about?). The good thing is that was it for the rest of the morning and until after lunch. She was completely knocked out. So church wasn't a compete bust but she's going to need to work on her behavior.

Aubrey spent most of the afternoon knocked out on my chest - it's our Sunday afternoon bonding/nap time. Her great aunt and uncle came to visit her from Hemingway (Deborah and Archie). I told Deborah not to wake a sleeping baby but she wanted to see her eyes. Aubrey didn't like that too much but her mommy got her calmed down so Deborah could hold her again. It was good to see them and super nice of them to come and visit.

What does week 3 have in store for us?
*We do have a doctors appointment on Thursday - two week check -up.
*Who knows - everyday is an adventure in flexibility

Shopping Day

LA and Nana Von decided to go shopping today. However, before they could leave, I got a phone call at work asking me how the stroller folded down. Since I only had done it once about a month ago it wasn't real fresh in my mind. I knew it had something to do with the handle but LA was struggling to get it to fold down. The most surprising development was that Nana Von actually figured it out - actually it was a miracle. So while I was working to make money, LA was spending it. It's kind of like my father and second father (Clyde) always would tell me - Your spending money out the back door quicker than we can bring in the front door with shovels. They bought some cute outfits and to be honest it wasn't excessive, especially since we had not bought any gender specific clothing before she was born. Aubrey was a trooper and didn't cry the whole time and that is impressive because when I go with LA I feel like crying as soon as we get in the store (just kidding, I love shopping with you LA. It's important that we spend time together.)

We need to revist a standard rule for those that are visiting Aubrey. If Aubrey poops or pees while your holding her then you get to change her. We have relaxed the rule the last two times - Meghan and Tommy. However, it will be enforced going forward. Trust me we already have enough training in 10 days. We will provide the diapers and wipes.

PS - Stay tuned for the Halloween pictures. She is going to be adorable!

It's pretty amazing to watch Aubrey already start to change. Each day is something new.

Weigh-In

LA had a doctors appointment today so we went with her. Aubrey was pretty good. She wanted me to feed her shortly after arriving at the doctor's office. You know the rule - no crying babies in the lobby. Anyway, after LA's appointment we decided to stop by Summerville Medical Center for the breast feeding support group that meets on Tuesday's. We only wanted to go to get her weighed for free so we could see how the breast feeding is going.

I told LA I wasn't going in until she confirmed it was ok. I didn't think any males would be there so LA opened the door, stuck her head in and turned around and told me "you don't want to come in here" like it was some kind of war zone of breast feeding moms. I think I might take her next week just for a laugh and to if anybody would say anything. There are such things as stay at home dads which I would be excellent. Anyway, LA wasn't interested in the "support" function of the group but just the free weighing.

It is confirmed. We have a little chunker on our hands. She is eating well and gaining weight. I told ya'll a long time ago she was going to be a superstar at everything - so far she got sleeping and eating down pat. The official weight was 8lbs 12.5oz. She has already surpassed her birthweight after 9 days. The goal was back to birth weight in two weeks. Wonder if that broke any records. Wonder who you check with about that - might be her first trophy. Guess we better put her on a diet now - just kidding. That's good news and tells us the she is getting enough to eat and that it's full of good nutrients to help her grow up strong and healthy.

So today's summary: Aubrey is a superstar and overachiever (which translates into chunker).

1 Week Old

We had our 7 day old birthday party today. It was a pretty low key affair - breakfast at Sweetwater and a pizza/pool party without the swimming at Swoop-a-loop's house in Knightsville and the most important thing a nap on daddy's chest after breakfast. That's what were going to do every Sunday afternoon - it's a family tradition.

We had a surprise visitor today. LA wanted to get some Perkins for breakfast so we attempted to make the trip and we were too late. The line was out the door. It's hard to beat the heathens (including us) and rednecks to breakfast on Sunday morning. I guess we should have went after the 5am feeding but we weren't motivated enough for that. So on the way our second choice Sweetwater, we ran into Morgan W driving down main street. She was coming to see us but we weren't going to be home. The timing was perfect and you think things happen randomly. There is a greater purpose to our lives. To make a long story short - it was important for us to see Morgan because she and her husband Michael are getting ready to go live in St. John's for awhile. Yeah, that's right, there going to do the island life thing which doesn't sound too bad to me. I think we skipped that option. We will have to live vicariously through them. We might have to go visit them. A free place to stay in a tropical paradise and a baby sitter while we go explore. It kind of far to drop Aubrey off at the babysitter but we might have to do it. Anyway it was great to see MoMo.

We finished our first load in the Diaper Genie II. I didn't count the diapers but there was a pretty good load. I took them downstairs and left them by the back door to take to the trash can. As you can guess - I forgot about them and the next morning I remembered them because they were stinking up the house. I guess the DGII works but you have to remember to remove the hazardous waste outside. I want to take a minute to post an open apology to our garbage man. For the next two years our trash is going to stink to the high heavens. Sorry.

LA and were wondering that since we had a girl, if Heather could bring the wardrobe full of clothes we gave Emmy back for Aubrey to wear. Hope it's not too late.

Got the update from Wes and Garrett this morning... Everyone must be doing well. They said Aunt Leigh Ann was getting skinnier and her feet were getting smaller though they are still bigger than Uncle Scott's feet.

After seeing LA on Sunday afternoon, here's what Garrett and Wes said to Mindy Ulmer about LA:
"Aunt Leigh Ann was getting skinnier and her feet were getting smaller though they are still bigger than Uncle Scott's feet."
That is funny!

Craft Shopping and Family Visits

Evidently, I haven't passed the "flying solo"/"stay at home" with Aubrey test yet. It has multiple parts - written and observation. I might not pass it until she's eleveen. So LA and Nana Von took Aubrey shopping today for crafts at their favorite store - Michael's.

Hopefully, I can pass it soon so I can keep Aubrey from being sucked into making wreaths...that's pretty girly. She needs to hang out with me doing man things and and I can teach her play sports or even just take her for a ride in the car.

I am getting closer to finishing her bookcase. We are to the staining stage and finding a color to match the existing crib and dresser. Hopefully, it won't be much longer.

My sister (Julie), her husband (Chris) and two of their three children (Katie and Meghan) made the trip up from Savannah. They stole Aubrey from the car while I was showing LA, Aubrey's bookcase. When I opened the car door there was no Aubrey, we didn't have long to panic as we looked down the driveway as my sister was walking away with Aubrey. I guess they drove down to see her and not LA and I. It was great to see them and they got to hang out with Aubrey for a little while. They even came by our house to check out the nursery. Aubrey was a little fussy but she's got them wrapped around her little finger. Meghan wouldn't change her diaper when she did a number two...breaking the rule of if your holding her you change her. I'll give her one pass but next time she's changing the diaper.

We can already see her growing up before our eyes. It going to happen fast.
We are almost 7 days old...last week mommy was having contractions and preparing for a trip to the hospital. It seems like its been a lot longer...but in a good way. If week one is any indication of the what's to come, I think we are going to make it. But keep checking back because we might be pulling our hair by the time you are reading this.

Going Out On The Town

We started the day off getting ready for our big night out on the town. It's Friday night everybody get dressed up and goes out on Friday's to celebrate the end of another week. Nana Von and LA gave Aubrey a bath and it wasn't much different that the first - she isn't real thrilled about it at this point. I am sure that will change.

Aubrey and LA directed me in hanging curtains in our bedroom. Yep that's what I will be doing for a long, long time - taking directions from my two ladies. I am not a handyman either so scratch that off my list of skills. Ulmer's boys better get ready for phone calls from their sister to take care of all her requests that I am incapable of doing to my high standards (or is it her high standards?)

We got Aubrey all dressed up in her going out clothes to impress all the boys and went to Chili's to meet a large group from our Sunday school class. This was our first attempt to take Aubrey out for any extended length of time. Because we had such a large group we had to sit outside. Aubrey was fussy (don't know why - chilly, wet diaper...etc) most of the time but we survived. We learned a few things to make our next trips out into the big world a little more successful - don't go, stay in the bubble. She didn't pick up any boys this trip...no boys attended but she put everyone on notice that she's going to be a heartbreaker.

Great Grandparent Day

Just want to clarify a few things - I (KC) am the creative mind behind this blog. All the typed words, I will take responsibility for. However, all baby pictures that will be posted have to go through an approval process (LA). So if you have an issue with the posts (content, appearance, length, frequency) please submit them to me. If you had your picture taken with the baby and it is not appearing on the blog or Facebook, you will need to address that with LA. However, it would probably be safe to assume that "she just overlooked it because there are so many pictures" or "it was blurry". I am sure it didn't have anything to do with you or your outfit and it was a bad picture of Aubrey - (not much chance of that because trust me it's kind of hard for her to mess up a picture). This blog does have a complaint department but they really aren't very nice and probably don't want to hear your babbling but if you must submit your complaint/request to them via email and we will get back to you as quickly as possible (I am pretty sure your definition of quickly and there's are not the same) However, there is a simple way to remedy this issue - come back over and visit Aubrey and make up some excuse that you want to have your picture taken with her. You might even want to ask to preview the picture and ask LA for her opinion.

All that is to say - we love all of ya'll and we are sorry if we don't mention you in the blog or your picture doesn't show up on the internet. We are glad you are interested. However, it is probably my fault because my memory is not too good or I didn't tell LA something so just remind me and I will make any additions and corrections that you ask. We want everyone to feel apart of raising Aubrey - it going to take a lot of family and friends to do it.

LA and I had an interesting conversation today about how old Aubrey was - She is four days old but LA is trying to say she is 5 because we had her early in the morning on Sunday. Nice try but that's not how we count. Guess I am going to be the math wizard and LA can teach her spelling (ask anyone in Sunday school about why I am not touching that subject), english, and science. I'll take history also since I am so old and actually lived through most of the stuff in the book.

So today was another great day. In the back of our minds, we are wondering if everything is ok. However, we realize that this train could derail any minute. We hope not. We have been blessed by 4 great days of a perfectly content baby - knock on wood. We know this is subject to change and will change any minute but so far it has been much better than we imagined or thought possible. Keep the prayers coming for nights with sleep. We are pretty sure Aubrey would have slept through the night last night but LA had to wake her up to feed her. She is such a good sleeper that it is quite an ordeal to get her to wake up.

Aubrey got to meet some of our friends from Providence (the girls). They are such good people. They brought us lunch and Aubrey had her favorite - The Big Nasty (open faced roast beef sandwitch) wonder how that's going to digest (we asked them to leave off the green onions just in case her stomach wasn't ready to digest it - she didn't seem to like it as much as her daddy). Two of Aubrey's future playmates were there also - Jenn and Shara are both pregnant with due dates falling on consecutive days in February. We can't figure out what was going in May but we evidently missed the excitement and romance in the air.

The big excitement of the day was Aubrey meeting her only set of Great Grandparents - Mama and Pop (Corey's parents). Aubrey is the thirteenth great grandchild for them. Aunt Karissa drove them from Lodge which was super nice of her. I think she really wanted an excuse to come see Aubrey again. Mama is a pro. As I mentioned earlier, this isn't her first rodeo. We wish she was closer to teach us a few things but we can still call when we have any questions.

Grandma and Aubie came over and spent some time with us which was super nice. Grandma has been a trooper this week by working so daddy can be off as much as he has been.
No telling what's in store for today, every day is an adventure but it's the best adventure that we have ever been on.

New Parents / Waiting

Night life is about the same – 3 to 4 hours of sleep; not complaining. It could be a lot worse.

Here’s what our life has come to – counting poops and wets. By this afternoon Aubrey was way behind on the wets and poops. She hadn’t had a wet diaper yet today. What do new parents do when you are concerned – you call the doctor. The nurse told us a something to do to check for the wets just in case the diaper was just absorbing it and we couldn’t tell – cotton balls in the diaper. When we went to do that Aubrey had a wet diaper and what always happens when the diaper is off? She decided to wet the changing table. You haven’t seen three happier people (Nana Von and us). So we are no waiting for the poop and if the preliminary indications and the book are correct the mother load is coming – translation she has a little gas and it is absolutely terrible.

Waiting on poop.

PS – Aubrey is a sleeper – she knocks out hard must take after her mother.

9:00pm

We were right the motherload was coming and when it came - WOW. How can something so small make that much mess? It was up her front and back. I turned the duty over to her mother. It was a mess but we are happy at least she doesn't have problem in the rear.

11:00pm

Everything is working just fine now because she just repeated filling up the diaper. Hopefully the quantity will not continue.

Time to go to sleep.

Seven Deadly Sins

Unless you been living under a rock, I am sure you have watched the movie "Seven". If you are not familiar then click on it or better yet go to Blockbuster, sign up for Netflix, or go rent it from a vending machine in the grocery store. It will be worth however much it costs.

So tonight I got to experience one of the seven deadly sins - Gluttony. At about eight pm, Aubrey was fussy and seemed to be hungry but it wasn't time for a feeding (normal feeding time was about an hour away based on the last time she had ate) so we had about an ounce in a bottle and I feed it to her. She seemed happy but was still rooting around, sucking on her hands and anything else she could find. So at her normal feeding time she took her sweet time to drink four ounces. I had a feeling that she wasn't really interested in the final ounce but she went ahead and topped off the tank. So that was five ounces in about 1.5 hours. If I would have looked closely I probably would have seen it coming out of her ears - just kidding. So, if your familiar with babies you know that it is important they burp and sometimes Aubrey just doesn't want to give them up. At about 1.5 (total of 2.5) ounces she gave me a little burp. After she had sucked everything down, I tried to burp her for about 5 or more minutes and got nothing. I tried all the tricks. We decided to give up and and realize she might spit up a little later on. While Aubrey was sleeping from eating so much, LA and I decided to relax and take a break and catch our breath. We then heard a warning shot from Aubrey. I went over to make sure she wasn't choking on anything and picked her up. Everything seemed fine. She then gave me a surprise - a poop out of the bottom that was immediately followed by projectile spit up - the last two ounces or more came shooting out of her mouth right at me. She got me the sofa and the floor. I am not real sure what happens to what LA is feeding her in Aubrey's stomach but it would make some really good paper mache. I'll make a mental note of that for a Saturday project with daddy.

So the lesson we learned tonight is gluttony and that 5 ounces is too much. She is a three to four ounce girl right now.

PS - Evidently, LA has been gifted with germ vision. After one of Aubrey's pacifiers was dropped on the floor, LA picked it up and scanned every inch of it and handed it back to me pronouncing it to be fine. I looked at her, laughed and asked her about how she got the germ vision.

First Visit To The Doctor

We woke up today from about the same kind of night as the previous. I told LA we needed a plan of action so we could make sure we left on time and were not late. It’s a little different now – can’t just sit back and load up the car 30 minutes prior to the appointment.

Aubrey loved her first car ride of more that 10 minutes. We made a mental note in case she ever starts crying uncontrollably.

When we got to the doctor’s office, I noticed that it was overflowing with kids which is a good thing. While we were waiting a 2 year old approached Aubrey and wanted to see her and LA showed Aubrey to her. Then out of the corner of my eye I see her touching Aubrey’s hand. You would be proud of me because I didn’t say anything to her mother. I was wondering how long LA was going to let it go on. Come to find out later she was thinking the same thing – “Hello, she is two days old and when’s the last time you washed your hands”. Next time Aubrey will wait in the car until she is called.

Aubrey has lost 9 ounces – she was down to 8lbs. It is within the acceptable range and we are shooting for 8lbs 9oz by her next appointment in two weeks. Dr T checked her out and said everything looks good. He reassured us that were both (Aubrey and Us) figuring this thing out – Aubrey had the good life where everything was done for her and now she has to learn how to do it on her own. I know we don’t know what we are doing. He told us what we already knew – We are in survival mode for two weeks. We’re happy with our choice of pediatrician. It is worth the drive.

Aubrey loved the car ride home! She was knocked out.

We're Going Home

Aubrey found her lungs last night. She decided to make sure we didn’t forget about her and started crying. So we knew how to fix that and show her who was in control – press the button and say the magic words – will you have someone please come get our baby and take her to the nursery. Wonder how that program works once we get home.

LA is a great mother and wife. Last night after about 40 hours of being awake, I crashed in my recliner (notice I didn’t say bed). When Aubrey started crying LA got up and took care of her. I could hear something but I could not respond. When I woke up at about 5:00am, I saw LA had resorted to the pacifier to calm/quite Aubrey down. That might be a world record or at least an American record – 20 hours. Well, the good thing is I don’t think I have ever seen a middle school age person with a pacifier. We will cross that bridge down the road. It’s better than a thumb that’s for sure. We actually think it is helping with the feeding.

So to summarize – LA is great, I am terrible dad (but a rested terrible dad), Aubrey loves the pacifier.

LA’s doctors released her this morning. We’re debating if we are going to stay another night just for the nursery service. They still haven’t explained how it works from the house. I guess you just call a number and they come pick Aubrey up and bring her back in the morning. We will have to confirm that before we leave and get the customer service number. Aubrey has to see the pediatrician to get cleared to leave the hospital. I guess we will decide if we stay or go after that visit.

Aubrey is a great baby. Not a lot of random crying just to cry which is nice. She’s not sleeping through the night but she’s not exactly staying awake all night either.

Construction started while I was gone home to pick up the car seat and her coming home outfit. It is the most annoying jack hammering noise ever. It sounds like someone is going to fall through the ceiling any minute now. Guess what? Were going home, if Aubrey gets her walking papers.

Aubrey was cleared by the doctors so we prepared to come home. We got her dressed up in her coming home outfit. We had heard horror stories about the car seat so before we asked for the wheelchair we had a trial run putting Aubrey into the car seat.

We put Aubrey in the car seat and waved goodbye to the hospital. Hope we don’t see that place or another hospital for a long time. Aubrey loved the car ride home. However, I had to blow the horn just about all the way home as car were getting too closer to our car. Guess, I am going to have to get the “Baby On Board” sign.

We showed Aubrey around the house and all the hard work that daddy, his friends and our bank account had done to remodel the house and all the work mommy did to make her room extra special.

We had special treat from our friends Danny and Jennifer – dinner from McAlister’s (courtesy of Taylor Hare – Thanks Taylor) and a great welcome home basket for Aubrey. That was super nice of them. Hopefully, they will get busy so Aubrey will have a playmate…ha!ha!

Aubrey doesn’t like to sleep right after her late night feeding and is a little fussy but not terrible. Daddy took her to her gilder and got her to go right to sleep and then fell asleep in the chair with her.
Tomorrow is a big day – we are going to the pediatrician’s office tomorrow at 11:00am.

14 Hours

What an exciting day. It’s just LA, Aubrey and me now. We’ve had Aubrey in the room pretty much all day except for her hearing test which she passed with flying colors. We told you she was going to be a genius. We have had a bunch of visitors – a collection of family and friends. Aubrey met all her grandparents today. Aubrey got to meet all her nieces and nephews on the Ulmer side and one of her nieces on the Carter side. Their responsibility will be to get her in trouble…I mean keep her out of trouble. She met all her aunts and uncles except my sister’s husband who was out of town. It has been great to have everyone visit even though LA and I are working on about 38 hours of no sleep. With each knock at the door we anticipated who would be coming in next and were disappointed when it was just a nurse. It really wouldn’t matter if we didn’t have visitors because it isn’t like we were going to sleep in the middle of the day. We probably should feel tired but too much adrenaline. The sleep depravation will probably hit us just about the time Aubrey is in full gear later on tonight.

It’s nice being at the hospital because whenever we notice that Aubrey has a dirty diaper we just put Aubrey in her “bed” and roll her to the nursery and let her stay for about an hour and then pick her up and the nurses have changed her. They have to change the diaper because they took an oath. You didn’t think that after hearing all the horror stories about the first couple of poops we were going to do it. This experience is costing a fortune. You might as well get some value for what you are spending. It doesn’t have to be 5-star but we do expect to be pampered. We did just have a baby.

Actually, I changed the first two poopy diapers. Wow! It was everywhere. Thank goodness there was no odor or I might have thrown up. I was successfully able to get the green mess on the changing pad, her heals, legs, my hands (even the one that was holding her feet, I don’t know how. It kind of reminded me of painting and getting paint all over you and wonder how that happened) and fingers. I’ve decided that I am going to invent a “wall” in the diaper to keep number 1’s in the front and number 2’s in the back. This will keep it(number 2) from getting everywhere. Having a baby might not be such a bad financial decision after all.

I’ve realized something real quick – Who cares about the daddy? So far today LA has had three meal and ordered three meals for tomorrow and she’s been relaxing in the bed all day – She’s getting 3 squares and a cot and I am getting no squares and a chair.

Aubrey has been a great baby today. She hasn’t fused too much even with all the excitement and rough start. We hope this continues.
Life has changed in a good way. It’s all Aubrey. She’s definitely a keeper.

09/14/08 T+4Days (But Not Much Longer)

09.14.08
T +4 days (but not much longer)
2:00am

LA is progressing 5 cm dilated. She’s had to have some narcotics to ease the pain of the contractions. The “back” labor is what is bothering her worse that the contractions in the front. She can’t feel the ones in the front because of the pain in her back. The narcotics knocked her out. Almost forgot to tell you about how I am doing – my back is starting to hurt. LA gets a kraftmatic adjustable bed and I get a crappy chair to sit in and a wooden chair to prop my feet on. It’s going to be a long night. Good thing we’ve got the latest in tv technology to watch – a 7 inch screen. Actually it is about a 1987 Magnavox color 13in tv – you have got to be kidding me. The players look like midgets from across the room. Every computer monitor sold today is bigger. At least it does have cable. I have watched Sportcenter and College Gameday Final for the past 2 hours. How many times can a male watch this and not be bored? Sportscenter is mesmerizing. I guess we continue to watch it just in case they change a final score.

The nurse requested the doctor to give LA her epidural.

The epidural doctor came in and as he was preparing he actually asked me if I would like to watch – is he crazy. My theory is for you to go ahead and do your job and be careful. I don’t want to be a distraction and really don’t need you trying to impress me with some kind of blindfolded epidural trick and I am pretty sure LA not looking for some kind of man challenge at this point in labor. I will just stay on the front side looking at my wife. LA was real happy with the epidural doctor. He was good. She only felt one prick and that was it. Guess what time it is? Nap time number two for LA and more uncomfortable chair time and Sportscenter for me.

4:00am

LA is fully dilated and effaced except for a small ridge on her cervix. The doctor wants to see if this will go away and put LA on her right side. Still no help or attention being paid to me.

5:20am

Dr. K checks LA out and makes the call to the mission control and tells them to prepare for a launch. She asks LA to make two pushes with her next two contractions to determine if the baby is going to come out and if LA is going to be a good pusher with the epidural. It is at this point that I was called into the game. In birthing class the husband was up around the head and holding the wife’s hand and encouraging her. That is what I learned to do – remember the post about breathing techniques, relaxation techniques, stress removal…etc. Dr. K instructs me to grab a leg and hold on. After the two pushes, Dr. K is scrambling to get on her scrubs and the nurse is trying to break down the bed before we have a baby on the bed. I am going to save all the rest of my delivery experience for my upcoming book with Greg Horres – A Husband’s Guide to Childbirth – What They Don’t Tell You. If you have already had a child, let’s get together and talk because I am going to need some therapy.

5:42am

After about 10 pushes and about 20 minutes, LA and I are blessed with the most incredible baby in the whole wide world, a baby girl. See I told Heather that she and I were the only ones that knew. I don’t think she believed me but she was the first to know. She won’t be able to say “Are you serious” anymore to me – the proof is in the blog. The babies heart rate had slowed down during the last couple of pushes and the doctor told us that baby Carter was coming out on the next push – one way or another. However, she had to do it. When baby Carter came out she was in a little bit of shock from the quick decent and possibly her umbilical cord was being pinched between the baby’s shoulder and LA pelvis. When she came out she definitely wasn’t the color I had expected – sort of gray. LA only saw the baby for a few seconds before they took her to the other side of the room to start clearing her lungs, getting her checked out. I took a picture of her to show LA. She didn’t stay in the delivery room because of her condition. They immediately took her to the nursery to hook her up to some machines to see what was going on.

I stayed behind to be with LA as she was getting rebuilt. Fortunately for her she didn’t have any major complications with delivering the over 8.5 pounder.

The details:
5:42am
Aubrey Elizabeth Carter
8 pounds 9 ounces
20.5 inches long

God is not just good all the time. HE is GREAT all the time!

LA and my worlds have been rocked in the most awesome way.

The baby names were real easy for us to decide on see the earlier posts. No individual lists and each person getting 5 strikes off the other persons list. Aubrey is my father’s name and Elizabeth is from LA’s family – her mother’s side. It is handed down to the 1st girl in each family.

6:20am

I started not feeling too good for some reason and felt like I was about to drop out so I sat down. The nurse commented that I didn’t look to good and asked if I was ok. I told her I would be fine now but she went ahead and got me some water that was a close call. I didn’t need any more stitches.

6:30am

They let me go to the nursery and check out our new baby. The nurses were monitoring her heart rate, breathing and oxygen levels. She was doing fine and starting to get some color – baby color and was looking better which was reassuring.

9:30am
They finally brought Aubrey to our room for LA to see her and hold her.

The Baby Blog

Nana (Mrs Eileen) was the winner in the due date guessing game. Everybody missed the due date but Nana only missed by a few hours and was just about right on the weight and length. I was off on the date but nailed the birth weight exactly.

This is the end of the blog about Baby Carter. It’s been awesome to share this experience with everyone. I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I have enjoyed writing it.

I am pretty sure we are going to continue with the posts on this site but posted in individual posts – like these were supposed to be done. So keep checking back on Aubrey’s progress.

God is Great
All The Time
And
All The Time
God is Great

It’s no longer about KC and LA. It’s all about Aubrey Elizabeth and all our GREAT family and friends raising and supporting her to learn the importance of family, God and loving others each day as she grows up.

Hope to see you soon! KC, LA, and Aubrey

09/13/08 T+3Days

09.13.08
T +3 Days
6:00am

Got up early today to go into work to finish up all the stuff that I have to normally do on a Monday and prepare for the rest of the week since it looks like Monday is a real good possibility for us to start the delivery process. I am going to come home when I am finished and help LA clean. Everyone tells me to watch out for the LA nesting because when she starts nesting you are going to have a baby. I don’t think it applies to planned cleaning because you have a scheduled induction, so this won’t count. I am going to come home and help out – because I am nice like that. I will vacuum and mop the floors because I am anal about them anyway and whatever else LA wants me to do. LA is going shopping with Heather and Emmy today to buy Emmy pants. I am sure LA is going to bring something home. I am expecting she will come home with hands full but not knowing what we are having is playing on my side. I am calling it a spending limiter.
I haven't been able to post anything because the hospital did not have internet. I was shocked. I thought it was a given that a hospital would have internet access especially, if they could charge 10 times more that it cost. Here what happened:
8:15pm

Just got home from dinner with Tim, Arlette, and Jack at Yokoso’s Japanese steakhouse. LA says her stomach is not feeling well like she might have eaten too much. Read the earlier post about McCrady’s with Tim and Arlette. What is it about eating dinner with them that make’s LA not feel good? Anyway, I got a lesson on parenting while at dinner. The family sharing the table with us was interesting to say the least. Evidently, four letter words spoken in sentences directly to his son or used in normal conversations with the wife is acceptable. It is also evidently acceptable to drink multiple mixed drinks and be loud and to not buy the birthday cupcake and drums for the wife’s birthday because $6 could be used for another drink. I’ve got a lot to learn about this parenting thing.

8:45pm

We have changed into our comfy clothes and are just getting settled in for the rest of the evening watching the USC/ Ohio St game. LA thinks her water has broken but it didn’t come gushing out like some friends had told her. She asked me what I thought it was…I don’t know but I do know it’s not normal. Her stomach is really hard – must be contractions. It’s time to start counting and timing them. We decide there’s no need to be in a hurry, so LA got a shower. We will monitor the situation and call the doctor after the shower. I knew Dr. K would be on call but I wasn’t sure if LA did. Dr. K called and recommended that we head to the hospital. LA is having contractions every 3-4 minutes and they are lasting about 45 – 60 seconds.

I was in the middle of doing a Sunday school lesson. I called Jenn Williams and asked her to cover for me. She is awesome. Told her not to spread the word because this could be a water haul and us be back at the house in a few hours.

10:30pm

We’ve made it to the hospital – Summerville Med. I was nervous when I saw all the cars and people in the ER (which is where you check in after hours and on weekends). I didn’t want to get caught up in all that mess. We bypassed all that and were taken directly to the delivery floor and LA was connected to a machine to monitor contractions and the baby’s heartbeat. LA first exam had her at 3.5cm which is good…we’re making progress.

11:55pm

The nurse told us that we were not going home. It looks like we are going to be having a baby in the next 12 to 24 hours. It was time to call the support staff – Wesley(because he always finds out last, according to him) and the Grandparents. It looks like Wesley is going to be able to see the new baby after all – He is leaving to go out of town on Tuesday.

9/12/08 T+2Days

9.12.08
T +2 Days

Just another day…Today is LA’s last day of school. She starts her 8 week vacation at 2:30pm. We are continuing to enjoy our eight hours of sleep each night and hope we will get one last Saturday to sleep-in and Saturday would be a bad day anyway with all the football games – Clemson, Carolina vs UGA…etc.

Glad we got the bags packed up 3 weeks ago…still waiting

3:15pm

LA finished her last day of school – she’s on vacation.

9/11/08 1:00pm

09.11.08
1:00pm

Here's a picture from yesterday that might help you figure out what your looking at - Aunt Karrissa was having a hard time and thought LA might be carrying an alien. I know it's hard to see it was for me also - never thought it was an alien but...

All the pictures from Monday and the last time are taken from the same viewpoint so might be able to go back to the other pictures and figure our what your looking at better.

9/11/08 +8:20:00

09.11.08
+ 8:20:00

Those are officially the last pictures of Baby Carter to be posted until Baby Carter enters the world.

You probably figured out that we are now part of the 95% that delivers past their due date. Life didn't end and everything is good. We looking at it as extra time to get everything at the house ready - Anybody want to help clean on Saturday? :)

Wesley (LA's brother) picked the delivery date about 6 months ago - Tuesday - 9/16. How did he know? He leaves to go out of town on Tuesday early in the morning. Wesley don't give up on LA and Baby Carter. There is still hope.

My brother-in-law, Chris is hoping for a Monday delivery - his birthday.

40 Weeks - Happy Anniversary

09.10.08
40 Weeks
7:00am
Happy Anniversary


We had a long night at the h_________ (fill in the blank - hospital / house). Baby Carter ________ (will or will not) be making an appearance in a few hours.

Hope that was fun. Here are the answers - house and will not.

LA and I are celebrating 3 years of marriage today. I think you're supposed to say "it feels like a lot longer than that." I'm not sure what the gift for year three is supposed to be but I hope it has something to do with a baby. It has been a great three years and is only going to get better.

What's on schedule for today - We have an afternoon appointment with launch control. They will perform some pre-checks (ultrasound, non-stress test on baby and normal checks for dilation and effacement) and determine if the delivery window for today is go or no-go. We will only have about 9 hours at that point to have a successful due date delivery. If delivery is a no-go today, we will schedule a date for next week but still being prepared that we might have an unscheduled delivery up to that point.

Stay tuned to Mission Control for the latest updates.

9:00pm

We had a good dinner at Mustard Seed - can't go wrong there. Always have good bread and good main course choices - menu and special. We made our mandatory trip to Target while we were out. We got milkshakes at Chick-fil-a for dessert. Oh, you probably don't care about the anniversary celebration. You're reading this for the updates on the baby progress. I guess I should create a blog just for LA and I - probably not going to happen.

We visited Mission Control this afternoon. We had our ultrasound at 40 weeks. I will try to post more pictures tomorrow am. The ultrasound was to check how much fluid was surrounding the baby. There is enough fluid to wait a few more days without endangering the baby or LA. The ultrasound tech is super nice and showed us the babies head. The PA checked LA out and we haven't had any progress since last week (see last Thursday's post if you want the details). They then gave the baby a non-stress test. The wanted to make sure the baby was not under any stress. They basically monitored the baby's heart rate and LA for contractions. The baby is fine and LA's contractions are minor (might or might not feel them) so we are in the wait mode. Hopefully, the birthing process will start naturally between now and late Monday afternoon. It looks like Baby Carter definitely has the Carter and Ulmer blood - just a little stubborn. If nothing has happened by late Monday afternoon then we get to visit the hospital to start the inducing process. The short and skinny is that Baby Carter will have made his/her appearance no later that next week this time (Wednesday) - naturally until Monday or with some help Mon - Wed. The doctor and PA don't want LA to go past 41 weeks which would be next Wednesday. Anytime after 41 weeks just adds to the potential for stress on the baby and complications. So we know when this process will be over at the latest. We are now hoping for anytime after Friday afternoon so LA can finish out this week at school. Thanks for continuing to think about us during this time...keep the prayers coming.

39 Weeks +6 Days

09.09.08
39 Weeks 6 days
9:00am

No baby...We are15 hours away from our 24 hour delivery window. The question is will LA be part of the 5% that have their baby on the due date or will she be part of the 95%that either come early or late (looks like early is quickly fading out as being a possibility). If you've been reading along, you might remember how they chose her due date with that "wheel of fortune" which seemed kind of hokey at the time and I didn't put much faith in it. As a friend recently told me "it looks like we are in a holding pattern - were circling the airport but can't get clearance to land".

Stay tuned things could change...

8:26pm

No baby...Down to 3:34 from our 24 hour delivery window. Just realized that for those reading this that might be thinking about having a baby, if you plan it right you could have a baby on 09.09.09. Just count 40 weeks back - good luck. I guess we should have shot for 06.07.08. LA had a volleyball game today that she was pretty sure if she was close to going into labor it would have started. It was a frustrating win which isn't uncommon with JV. The light switch hasn't turned on yet - might not. We are entering baby time - every knows that you don't start labor during the daylight hours. It only starts after 11:27 pm because then you get to try to stay up about 36 hours.

Stay tuned things could change...

39 Weeks +5 Days

09.08.10
39 Weeks 5 days

No baby...all hope of having a Labor Day baby are now gone. LA filled up her container and will be taking it to the lab this afternoon and to give them some blood. She hasn't had any contractions yet or at least she isn't telling me. I checked the pop out timer and Baby Carter isn't ready yet. I am still betting we are going into extra time. This is LA's schedule for this week -school, volleyball, home - preparing lesson plans for the sub, sleep and repeat.

39 Weeks +2Days

09.05.08
39 Weeks + 2 days

I almost forgot to tell you what been going on in my world. I know who cares but it does have to do with Baby Carter. My lovely wife and I decided we needed a bookcase/shelves to store some of the babies items - toys, books, etc. In an effort to get exactly what we wanted, we decided that I should make it. It sounds so easy - five straight boards, nail them together, yeah right. It's got to have a back, bottom shelf not on the floor, not plywood, something we can stain...etc. We measured out the space, where we wanted it and I began the project on Saturday (just picked up the materials). I am not a carpenter, not a furniture maker...etc, would like to be one but now realize I shouldn't try to be one and I am officially quitting (I would have said retire but that would actually mean I was successful over a period of time) with the completion of this project. This will be the most expensive 44"x15"x30" shelves ever made and will look like a unskilled carpenter made them. Between miscuts, mismeasures and three trips to Lowes, I might be getting close to finishing this project. From this point forward, if LA or I decide we want anything we will proceed with these two options - 1) purchase it from a store - it's the American way 2) call a member of the Ulmer family.

Forgot to post this in yesterday's doctor's report. The PA asked LA if she was feeling any contractions and I had already answered the question in my mind because LA hasn't said anything to me about it. But instead of saying "No", LA proceeds to say "yeah, I think so". I was like "excuse me and my wife for a moment". What's up with that? I knew she was having contractions on Labor Day and just wouldn't admit it. Wonder if she's going to tell me the next time? :)

PS - LA went to the lab today to get her jug and blood work done. They won't do her blood work until Monday. So she will start collecting the liquid on Sunday(24 hours prior) and will have to keep it in the refrigerator. If you're visiting this weekend and need something to drink, don't drink out of the orange container. You might think it's orange juice because of its orange color but you will be in for a surprise if you try it. Hope, I can remember that Sunday and Monday morning.

39 Weeks +1 Day

09.04.08
39 weeks + 1 days

We went to the doctor today. I was pretty sure they were closed when I pulled up in the parking lot. I was shocked when I walked in the door and there is no one waiting. It was like entering a new world. It was just the aligning of the planets, actually one doctor had a hospital emergency and her appointments had to be canceled and the other doctor was off which only left the PA and her patients. It's the same routine every time, weight - which I have put on some pounds but I can deduct some for the wallet, clothing and shoes, LA has lost some weight; blood pressure - LA had a new person (young girl) ask her all the questions (baby moving...etc) and take her blood pressure and it was high which was shocking to LA since it hasn't been a problem so far. The girl took it again and it was 145/100 but LA didn't have a good feeling for her knowing exactly what she was doing - the cuff was low. Anyway, being pregnant and having high blood pressure is not good. When the PA comes in she tells us that she is going to check her bp again to see what's going on after she checks everything out. She did a few tests on LA's feet to make sure they were not twitching which would be a result of high blood pressure and the swelling in her feet. The PA wasn't too concerned but since it was the first reading that was abnormal she wanted cover all the bases. She told LA that if her bp was high when she checked it that she could put her on bed rest (which initially sounds good but translates into 23 hours and 40 minutes in the bed - 20 minutes for a shower) or possibly a visit for 24 hours to the hospital to monitor her bp; back to the bp in a minute. The GOOD news from the examination - baby is dropping (not very fast, I told LA to keep pressure on the baby's butt to help speed this process up). She measured 38cm which is down from 39-40cm. The baby is -2 (LA was a -3 last week) - this is the scale for where the baby's in the pelvis, it's a scale from -4 to +4 at 0 the baby in the pelvis - "engaged". I think you can start pushing at +2, maybe (if I am wrong does it really matter or would you even know?). LA is 2cm dilated and 40% effaced (see links to terms in early August post). While she was checking LA out I am pretty sure that she was trying to make LA have a baby. She said it would be uncomfortable and it looked uncomfortable. No commitment on a date but I am thinking Baby Carter will be here sometime after next Wednesday and before the 17th. Which takes us to our next minor concern, Dr K is on call the next two weekends. So we want to have a Monday - Thursday baby. We are sure she is capable but we would be more comfortable with Dr. Mc. So after the PA checked LA out, she had LA lay on her left side for 10 minutes and relax and think happy thoughts (her great husband...etc). During this time, I remembered our birthing class and how I could help LA relax with the techniques we learned. I sprang into action and started telling her comforting thoughts and found where all her stress was - not in the neck, shoulders or back but once again it was in her backside. For some reason all her stress goes there. Actually, it worked just like it did in the birthing class. She told me to stop bothering her and to get away, as we were both laughing. So the PA walked in at about that point and was like how nice, he's giving you a back rub. We started laughing again. Anyway, she took LA's bp and it was down (or never was high) to 120/78 which is fine/normal. But just because it was fine they want to make sure nothing is going on so LA gets to go for blood work and take a jug to urinate into for the weekend - just precautionary measures.

So what is up for the next 6 days?

*LA is on light duty (which isn't anything new, just kidding)
*If no baby before next Wednesday
*Ultrasound Appointment on Wednesday to check the baby's fluids; pretty sure the baby will be waving back at that point
*Non Stress check (make sure baby is not under any stress, how about the parents?)
*Doctor's Appointment afterwards
*Schedule induction (were not going to 42 weeks for anyone that was thinking it was a possibility)

39 Weeks

09.03.08
39 Weeks

Looks like the track of Hurricane Hannah is moving more Northward which is fine with me. The further the better. Keep your fingers crossed. We have our weekly doctor's appointment tomorrow for an update on Baby Carter's progress...6 days tomorrow. I will just go ahead and tell you that I am going to be disappointed if Baby Carter doesn't arrive by next Wednesday. There is so much build-up (10 months - 300+ day of anticipation growing each day) and we are planners/people that want to be in control. We tell ourselves we are ready but I have a feeling that we are getting ready for a lesson in patience and being reminded who is actually in control. I guess the best thing for us to do is to continue living each day to it's fullest and enjoy our last moments of being just two. The lesson for the day is to enjoy where you are today because it will all change tomorrow.

No Labor Day Baby

09.02.08

So we didn't have a baby on Labor Day. I do think LA had some labor pains but she wouldn't admit it. If anything would have happened yesterday that resembled having a baby, I am sure she would have left and gone to a friend/family's house to wait it out and if the baby did decide to come she would have had the baby without me and told me on Tuesday. However, my hope is not officially over. How you ask? Well, Labor Day could fall on any day between the 1st and the 7th. So, we could still have a Labor Day baby. My dream is still alive.

PS - This could be a crazy week - work, maybe a baby, hurricane, evacuation...Say a prayer that Hannah makes a turn and heads out to sea (or further north, hate to wish it someone else but the timing is not real good right now for me) Today's forecast is landfall in Chucktown. Everyone keeps telling us that if the hurricane comes, the baby is coming also - has something to do with the baby not wanting to miss a major event like a hurricane. Actually, it has to do with the low pressure...whatever, sounds like another old wives tale.

PPS - Two more storms right behind Hannah - Ike (I Like Ike) and Josephine (bad things happen in threes - hopefully not)

Labor Day

09.01.08
Labor Day

Let's Have A Baby Today

12:00am

Hoping for a baby!

11:59pm
No Baby!

Tommy Bowden....arrrrrggggghhhh!!!

08.31.08

What I witnessed last night was a good Alabama team and an unprepared Clemson team which isn't surprising at this point from TB. My analysis of TB will remained unchanged until he actually changes something - He is a college president's dream - Christian, clean program, players graduate, recruiter BUT a fan's nightmare - terrible motivator and game day coach, doesn't win the big games except when his back is against the wall - somewhat of a magician.

Sorry, you're not hear to read about Clemson football and their struggles.

Should Have Gone To ATL

08.30.08
7:45pm

Ok, put me down for husband of the year - I stayed at home with my wife even though I could make it back in plenty of time for her to have our baby...especially since she's not having it until LABOR day. To all my friends that are in Atlanta right now - I wish I was with you! Thanks for staying behind and supporting me but as long as you are there give the 'bama fans a little 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4-C-L-E-M-S-O-N-T-I-G-E-R-S.

Week 38

08.27.08
38 Weeks

Before I start with the doctor's appointment yesterday, I looked back over the blog and noticed that I had mentioned that LA and I were getting together with her brothers for a party/family get together but had not mentioned anything else about it in the blog. We had a great night at Waylon and Amy's in St. George. It was good to get together and laugh. Mike you can fry me anything you want - If it's got grease, flour and a surprise inside you can't go wrong and you're talking my language. Anyway, LA's brothers and their families gave us a pack-n-play that has a changing table/bassinet that Baby Carter will be sleeping in when he/she comes home from the hospital. It should fit perfectly on LA's side of the bed. We have assembled it and I am not sure how quickly it will disassemble but if assembly was any indication...unassembling the crib might be faster. When you read the words pack-n play to me it just implies push a button and your ready to pack it in the car. I will let you know exactly how long it takes and if it will ever fit back into the carry case (I might have to call Marty and Danielle to figure it out. I know they are experts with them.) That was super nice of them to do something for us.

Fast forward...

We had our weekly Doctor's visit today. We started off the visit with an ultrasound to determine the sex of the baby...I mean to make sure the baby was not breech. The ultrasound tech was super nice and after making sure the baby was not breech - the head is down. She let us look at the monitor and see the baby's face. I have attached the pictures below. If you have trouble determining what you are looking at don't feel bad it took me awhile also. I felt pretty silly. It was almost like looking at one of those hidden pictures where you have to un-focus your eyes to see the hidden picture. I'll give you some help the first three pictures are of the babies face looking at you. The last picture is a profile picture of the baby looking up....good luck. She checked out the baby's heartbeat and we looked at it - 125 bpm. She told us to turn away while she checked out the rest of the baby. I covered LA's eyes but I sneaked a peak...just kidding or did I - I told Heather last night what we were having. Heather, if I am right won't you wonder, if I really did find out. Just think Heather and I know what were having but do you believe/trust it. So for everyone else, we still don't know...

We had a good visit with the PA today. She repeated the good news about the baby not being breech and told us that we weren't going to be having a baby in the next seven days. The baby is still pretty high and all the baby signs of impending birth were not present. We went over a couple of "what ifs" - How long will they let LA go past the due date? - A. At 40 weeks they will do another ultrasound (to confirm what Heather and I know were having) to make sure the baby has enough fluid, if no they will start the delivery process (natural or c section, depending on her Bishop score - she has to meet with the Bishop to see what he thinks, see below) - if yes (fluid and baby is not in danger) they will let her go to 41 weeks. That is the maximum they will require her to go but if the baby is still healthy and has enough fluid then we could decided to go 42 weeks. At 42 weeks the baby is coming out one way or the other. The PA is not concerned at this point. We still have two weeks. If we were at 40 weeks and LA was where she is today, she would be more concerned. She assured us that LA's body and the baby will know when it is time. For me it seems like we are so close, let's just get it over with (I don't know how much longer I can stand my back hurting from doing all the work around the house.) When the PA measured LA she thought she noticed the baby was lower than the previous week, maybe it is starting to move down. She talked to us about the Bishop scale that is used to score whether you will deliver naturally or c-section. If LA's water was to break today, she would be looking at a c-section.

LA's feet are still not swelling as a result of blood pressure or proteins and her and the baby are not in any danger. It is still a direct result of being pregnant. The PA gave LA an option that would help- she could assign her to bed rest. LA determined she wasn't to that point. It's all about the number of hours on her feet vs number of hours with her feet above her head and sleeping doesn't count - that's only neutral.

So a few take aways from today's office visit:

*Patience
*Doctor K is cautious (that's good...that's what I'm telling myself)
*Clemson game is still a possibility
*LA need to relax and stay off her feet
*The blog will continue for one more week (ya'll are so lucky)
*Heather and I know what were having





Sorry about the posting being one long continuous post and having to scroll...I didn't really think I would have done much more than a few weeks before quiting with it. If I have time, I might try to reorganize the posts. That sounds like a lot of work so don't expect it but maybe.

I just wanted everyone to know that Greg H and I will begin working on a guide book shortly after baby carter is born that will be focused on the pregnancy and delivery for the male. It is going to be good - NY Times bestseller.

PS - I am still hoping for a delivery on Monday, September 1, 2008 - LABOR DAY. If that isn't a day for having a baby, I can't think of one. I made a joke about having a baby on Labor Day at a counselor party for Mike and Deann and for all these years I have been ridiculed and picked on for it but everyone knows it was funny! I still laugh at it today as I am typing. I was even semi-redeemed when LA read the same joke on a Laffy Taffy and it was MY Labor Day joke. So if there is such a thing as victory, LA is going to have the baby on Monday. It is meant to be. I know the doctors said "not this week" but I believe that it's going to happen so I can have the last laugh.

City vs Country

08.24.08

Sunday morning was interesting for LA and I . I don't know why or how it got started but we had some good and funny conversations about LA being a rockstar which you've got to ask her about to get the rest of the story...which was followed by my decision to not raise our child in "the city". The country would be much better place for the baby and for our schedules. It's looking like this baby is going to be a little demanding from everything we here, so we decided that we are taking the baby to Lodge and let our family down there keep the baby during the week. We're going to look at buying a pop-out, pull behind, 5th wheel or RV and we would visit on the weekends (when it didn't interfere with our "city schedules"). We were hoping one of the boys would take the baby since they have done so good so far. We figure it's easier to be successful when you have more than one child. You know the experience and learning from your mistakes - everything we do is going to be a mistake. There is no need to put the baby through all that stress. The baby would be the youngest in all of their families and everyone knows the youngest gets everything and is spoiled rotten (look at LA and I, ooh, maybe that's our problem). It seems like a win, win for everyone...We had other conversations but that was the one we felt we should share with everyone.

Just so everyone's up to date and you won't have to keep on asking - LA's feet are swollen and unfortunately are going to be swollen until baby Carter arrives (if there's going to be number 2 child, were planning for months 5-9 to be between Oct and April). Some days are better than others but you can assume that until baby Carter arrives - she's miserable. We've talked about poking a hole in one of them and seeing if that would help. LA is not so sure but I am pretty sure if that we stick the needle deep enough that something will give.

Voting Results - Preliminary

08.22.08

A couple of bits of information:
*The boy/girl poll is just about 50/50 - imagine that
*The poll to guess the gender, birth day, time, weight, length, etc is going to shut down on August 31st or sooner if LA goes into labor. At least humor us and take a guess. Click here to guess.
*Does anybody read this except - Parents (all of them), Luke and Karissa. Karissa walled me on facebook today about the update not being posted? (I told you it would be on Thursday or Friday going forward - impatience is not a quality Baby Carter needs to get)

Calm Before The Storm

08.21.08

What’s been going the past few days? Not a whole lot on the baby front. Seems to be “the calm before the storm”. We went to Babies R Us over the weekend and picked up all the essentials (or what we think were the essentials) we had not got yet. Baby Carter should be just fine when he/she comes home and after all, I am pretty sure he/she is not going to care too much about the crib, dresser, stroller, pack-n-play…etc. One thing we did need for LA to feed and rock the baby – a glider is on its way to the house. It looks like it will be here before Baby Carter, we didn’t think it was going to make it.

LA is being a trooper. Her feet are still so swollen – can’t describe them, words can’t do them justice. (I did think of something - elephantiasis) The good news is that I don’t think they can get any bigger. It hasn’t helped that she has been busy the past 3 days busting her butt to get ready for school (yes, I have been helping her). I was pretty sure Monday evening that I was the worst husband in the world for not letting my wife take a “part-time” position with Minde or letting her not work. Fortunately for me, I was able to get that thought out of my mind pretty quick. That was going to be a tough one to live with long term. Anyway, I am over it and the school year is under way today – march on soldier, look forward not back, whatever doesn't kill you - makes you stronger. I was pretty sure that I was going to get a phone call today that it was time with all the long hours leading up to the first day, not getting enough sleep and stress,…etc but it didn’t happen.

We did have a doctor’s appointment today. We had a first. I have closed down a number of establishments in my years (most of them in the early hours of the morning) but I have never closed down a doctor’s office. Our appointment was at 3:15 and we had to unlock the door to leave at 5:05pm – that’s right almost 2 hours. We probably should have just asked for a key or just moved in - at least we wouldn't have to wait to see the doctor. I would love to be able to say something positive but I can’t. The only thing different was that LA was dying this time. She had volleyball practice at 4:00pm – she was just a little late. I’ve already commented on this subject and I am still waiting on a solution – anybody. We had Dr. K today, the newer doctor to the practice. It was better but we just don’t know. LA measured 38cm and the baby’s heartbeat per minute was in the 140s. The doctor checked LA out – “still closed for business”, “the baby is way up there” and “where’s the head?” were her comments. The last two times we have seen her she has wondered where the head was. However, Dr. McC had said last week the head was down and everything was fine but since Dr. K wasn’t sure where the head was we’re going to find out. We are going next Wednesday for an ultrasound to find out where the head is and for our weekly visit. Were not too concerned, it seems to us that she is being overly cautious. Dr. McC and the PA haven’t been concerned during any of our visits with them the prior two weeks. Since we’re having an ultrasound this late in the pregnancy, we are just going to go ahead and find out what were having. It wouldn’t be much different than finding out who won an event in the Olympics on the internet or Sports Center before it airs on NBC. It will only be 14 days next week anyway…almost forgot to tell you that we decided to keep it a secret and not to tell anyone until baby Carter arrives…this is going to be so much fun, actually knowing but not telling anyone!! Probably will be more exciting than not finding out the past 7 months. We're excited- only 6 days until WE know what we are having.

Looks like it will be at least another week...We are hoping for 3 and I am hoping for at least 2. My road trip to ATL for the Clemson game is looking up. Next Wednesday will be decision time. The big M has scheduled a meeting next weekend in ATL and I am going to have to attend. You can’t explain the corporate world and why they do things to keep the little man down. But I will try to make the best of it. Maybe, I can find a ticket and make it to the game…anybody going? Talk about divine intervention…prayers do come true. I knew the man upstairs was a CLEMSON Tiger fan. C-L-E-M-S-O-N.
By the way we are looking for some babysitters for September,October and November. Clemson has four home games in a row in Sept and we would hate to miss them. We will worry about October and November after babysitter tryouts in September. We would prefer someone with newborn/infant experience but probably would consider anybody that has a pulse. You don’t think were going to miss the games just because we had a baby. What kind of fans would that make us?