Check it out!!!

We took Harper's newborn photos (at 7 weeks) and a few are posted on the blog of our photographer. They are so cute!!! Check out:

www.deshazophotography.blogspot.com

Megan was awesome and sooo patient. Harper needed to nurse, nap and fuss a little during the process. Megan spent 2 hours with us and was just wonderful. Thank you Megan!

Update on Super Baby Harper

HARPER JUST ROLLED OVER!!! I had Harper down on her Baby Einstein activity mat doing "tummy time." She loves this and holds her head up and looks all around at the colorful noise makers on the mat. Tonight she rolled over from her tummy to her back! She did it twice without any help from me at all! I was amazed. Surely that is genius super baby early, right?

We'll be working on mini-push-ups next.

Better late than never.

I can't believe how long its been since I posted! Well, we've been busy. When I say busy, I really mean doing nothing. That is my favorite thing to do these days. I just wake up to Harper stirring in her bassinet, ready to eat. We eat, then snuggle, change a diaper, then repeat, all day every day. We've thrown in a few activities, but mainly I spend my days just enjoying Harper.

She is getting so big. She can stand on her legs and push up and down. She holds her head up already and looks all around the room. She smiles all the time and looks you right in the eyes. She will hold her gaze on books while I read to her and she seems to love music. She is my little super baby!

Brad and I love being her mommy and daddy and if you think she has us wrapped around her cute little finger you don't know the half of it!

Here are some highlights from the last month. I messed up when uploading the photos so they are in reverse order of date. So the most recent are first.

Here is the first time Grammy met Harper! This is Harper's Great-Grandmother on Brad's side.
We decided at the last minute to take a trip home to Springfield. It turned out to be a great weekend for it because the entire family was home!

A cute snapshot that Brad took of me and my sweet baby girl!

Grandpa "Pa-pa" napping with Harper. They look exactly alike in this photo!

Mara and Reaghan meeting Harper for the first time. Aren't they cute! They kept calling her their baby.

Here is Harper after a car ride. We had a minor wardrobe malfunction.

I L-O-V-E this photo I took of Brad and Harper. How do you like Brad's facial fuzz? That was a temporary thing while he was home on paternity leave.

Harper at one month!!! She is getting big.

Easter photos. The adorable tutu was a gift from our friends Kay and Neil. Too cute. Here is Mimi and Papa coming by for a visit.

Look what the Easter bunny dropped off!

A family photo.

This one just makes me laugh.

Another cute outfit for when Aunt Rachel and Uncle Rob were coming to visit.

Harper's first bath!

And that's it for now!

More photos!

More fun pictures from the past week or so!

Brad calls this photo "Milk Coma #1"

Milk coma #2.

We had all just woken up and Brad is having Harper time while Mommy takes a few minutes to shower.

Harper has the funniest sleeping positions. This is a common one when she is on my lap.

Brad just hates her head gear, but I love the headbands and bows! Here we are waiting for Uncle Alex and Aunt Lindsay to come for a visit. We're all dressed up!

I don't think this person even looks like me - but here we are on our first walk! I can happily report that half the baby weight is gone, but there is still an additional 20 lbs to go! Hopefully our walks will help.

I have previously reported that Harper was born with Daddy's feet. Here is the picture to prove it. Sorry pumpkin!

Another sleeping position. She will not let me swaddle her arms. She likes to have them out so she can conduct music in her sleep. Brad thinks this outfit makes her look like an Easter egg.

Here we are with Uncle Alex!

Here is Daddy holding Harper after her first bath at home.

And Daddy again...this is my favorite photo of Brad.

How Harper was born...

March 20 we had scheduled a "Version" which is a procedure to attempt to turn a breech baby. Harper was a complete breech - meaning her butt was down and her head was up by my ribs. Obviously, you want a baby head down for birth! I had tried every homeopathic method possible to get Harper to turn on her own. (See previous post regarding acupuncture and flashlights, etc.) This little munchkin would not turn.

We had packed for the hospital weeks prior and I am glad we did. We got up and left the house at 6:45 a.m. Friday morning on the 20th. We took our bags just in case. Dr. Larson had said there was a very low risk this procedure would lead to a birth. It was eery as we left the house that morning. Brad and I both had a sinking feeling that something big was going to happen that day. I think we both knew we would not be coming home empty handed. Secretly, I hoped we weren't coming home empty handed.

At the appointment our amazing Dr. Larson attempted to turn Harper three times. This process involves an IV and being admitted to the hospital. So there I was in a hospital bed and gown, hooked up to fetal monitors and Dr. Larson was literally pushing and moving on my uterus, trying to get Harper to turn. It was quite uncomfortable so I kept talking to distract myself. I gave Dr. Larson a play by play of the Celine Dion concert we had attended back in February. I had played through the first two episodes of Dancing with the Stars when Dr. Larson interrupted to say: "Well, this isn't working, you are having contractions 6 minutes apart, you are dilated to 2 and totally effaced and frankly, I can feel toes. We need to go ahead and get her out otherwise you will go into labor and you are going to have a foot poking out instead of her head."

Okay.

"So, how about noon?" she asks.

Brad and I were in shock. We couldn't believe that in few short hours we were going to hold our sweet girl. I was finally going to see her face. I still tear up thinking about the moment that our eyes met and Brad and I realized our dream was finally coming true. We were going to meet Harper.

So we were given a three hour window, then Dr. Larson was getting our little Harper out via C-section.

I was not excited about a C-section. I was very nervous and sad I wouldn't have the badge of a natural (with drugs) child birth, but this surgery far exceeded my expectations. I had an epidural block and was paralyzed from the waist down, but I was awake and could "feel" them working on me like you can when you are having dental work done with Novocaine - "you will feel some pressure..."

I could feel them take Harper out of me. It was incredible. I wish I were eloquent enough to describe it for you, but it is beyond words how amazing it was. When they took her out and I heard her cry for the first time, it was the greatest moment of my life. I have never felt such joy, relief, excitement and love all in a single moment. I'll never forget it.

Brad took pictures of the entire C-section. He has frame by frame images of the entire thing! You can flip the pictures and you would think you were watching a video. You can see first a little foot, then a leg, etc. The photos are graphic (I mean there I am cut open on a table), but if you can stomach a little blood and guts (I wonder if Dr. Larson had to put the belly flab back in or if she did me a favor and scrapped a little out while she was in there.), the photos are absolutely beautiful. I don't know how Brad was able to stand and take them without passing out. He was amazing. He got to help cut the cord and he was there for every second of her birth. He let me be the first one to hold Harper.

Now for fun, here are some of our favorite pics from the first few days.

Here is Harper on her changing table at home. She loves the mirror that is eye level. She will stare into it and even though her eyes are still maturing, I swear she can see herself!

Look at that cute little mouth!

Daddy bringing Harper home from the hospital.

This pic is of the very first moment I laid eyes on Harper. The happiest moment of my life.

Here is the pic of me holding her just a few hours after the surgery.

The first week home was a little tough - Harper had jaundice and we had to do some in-home light therapy, then the poor thing was too tired to eat, we had to wake her to feed her every two hours and we were all exhausted! We are on a more regular schedule now, she is gaining weight and we kicked that jaundice in the booty overnight. She is thriving and she really is fun. She is so alert and strong! She can already pick her head up and move it around - still a bit wobbly but advanced for a baby if you ask me. She will stick her legs up straight in the air when we are changing her - makes it difficult to get her in a diaper, but it is so cute. She has her Daddy's eyes and toes (sorry about the toes little one), and Mommy's nose and ears. We just love her and can't wait for everyone to meet her!

These photos are all from the first couple days of Harper's life. She is two weeks now. She is now 6 lbs 15 oz and has grown an inch! I have lots more photos and now that I am in the swing of things I will post more often. We are tired, but we are having so much fun. Thanks everyone for not harassing me when I fail to return phone calls and emails. We are still adjusting. :)

What's new? Me? Oh, thanks for asking...well had a baby, no sleep, lots of diapers and feedings, that sort of thing.

hi! Well I am attempting to rejoin the living. I am so sorry I haven't posted this yet, but HARPER HAS ARRIVED! Here is a quick pic. I promise to post more details later, but I spent the only break time I had this morning trying to sort out 600+ junk emails from 50 legit emails. I'll write more later.

We are all doing well and we can't wait for the rest of the world to meet Harper! This pic is of Harper just after she was born. Look at those cheeks!

If you read all of this, give youself a cookie.

I have our Version appointment tomorrow and I was trying to avoid it. Not because of the pain involved (okay maybe a little) but mostly because I am afraid it isn’t going to work. Since Monday I have been trying anything to get this baby to turn. I read about a bunch “natural” methods of turning a breech baby. So here is my list and my experiences with those methods.

1) Playing music – I read that if you play music really low on your tummy, the baby will adjust to hear the music. Okay, that sounds easy enough. I hooked up some portable computer speakers to my iPod, got comfy on the couch and started playing music “down there.” I started with Latin beats. We went to see Dancing with the Stars the touring show and also Celine Dion recently. At both events whenever they played upbeat Latin style music, Harper would go nuts dancing around in my belly. I assume it is because she loves this kind of stuff. So I started with Selena and then Shakira – My Hips Don’t Lie seemed awfully appropriate. Harper seemed to move around and enjoy this, but she didn’t turn. Betsy suggested classical music because the volume and rhythm would be lower and Harper would be forced to turn to hear it. So I switch to Debussy. Again, some movement but no turning. Last ditch effort (because I had been at this for over an hour) I tried Billie Holiday (“I love him.” Can anyone name that movie quote?). Again, Harper liked the music, but no turning.

2) Shining a light on your tummy – I also read somewhere that if you shine a flashlight on your abdomen, the baby can actually see the light. So I tried shining a light as low on my abdomen as possible, to where I thought she could see it and would be tempted to turn towards it. “Go into the light, Harper” I kept thinking of the movie Poltergeist. Harper seemed to be unimpressed by the flashlight. She didn’t move at all.

3) Yoga – Throughout the past 5 months or so I have occasionally attended a prenatal yoga class. If you haven’t seen an 8 month pregnant woman doing the downward dog, you really need to strap on a prosthetic belly and go to one of these classes. It is hard to keep a straight face. However, I am glad I have been going because there are certain yoga poses that can help the uterus relax which could help the baby move around. I’ve been doing these every night and all it manages to do is make my muscles sore. In addition to being way too pregnant for this kind of stuff, I weigh a ton and my belly weighs a ton. It is like trying to lift your body from the floor with a 20 lbs dumbbell attached to your gut.

4) Inversion – I checked out http://www.spinningbabies.com/ for other ideas on how to turn the baby and tried “inverting” my body. I needed Brad’s assistance with this one. I had him hold my legs while I inverted off the side of the bed. If you have any kinky ideas about this one let me just lay those ideas to rest (was going to say “put those ideas to bed,” but was avoiding the obvious pun). This was perhaps the most ungraceful moment in my life, ever. That includes the time I got my crown stuck in the bottom of a hanging plant while walking down a hallway when I was making an appearance as Miss Missouri (I grow very tall when wearing 4 inches heels and a 3 inch crown). The inversion technique is very difficult to do and I could only hold the position as long as my arms would not give out. So this lasted maybe 10 seconds. Then I had to ask Brad if he could please slowly let me slide on the floor which I had to do without landing on my belly. It wasn’t pretty and it also did not work.

5) Acupuncture – this is the latest technique that didn’t seem to work. I went to a place today called “Peace of Mind.” It is an herb shop and book store and is very new age. It is not the sort of place I frequent but I consider myself to be rather open minded and I didn’t mind at all that when I walked in I could swear someone somewhere in the shop was taking a reefer break. I have never done acupuncture before and I admit I was a little nervous about someone jabbing needles into my body. But at this point, I am really desperate to get this baby to move so I will try almost anything. I go upstairs with the gal who has been doing this for 30+ years, telling myself that I am sure it is just incense and not marijuana that I smell.

We go in the room and get started. Everything is going to be centered on my feet because that is where all the pressure points are that help my uterus relax. There is a technique also called moxibustion – where you burn a Chinese herb near your pinky toe. (I spent a lot of time on google yesterday). So she rolls up my pants and jabs in the first needle. Ow. That did not feel good. Ow, ow, ow! She pushed it in even further. In. My. Foot. Each foot got three needles jammed in them. I had to ask her to turn the fan on because I started to get really warm and clammy. Needle part was soon over and I thought I was in the clear. But….no. Now comes the part where she attaches the herb to the needle. She twists a little cork sized amount of incense to the end of each needle. Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow. All six. Phew, finally done, surely that is the all the pain I will feel.

No. Then she lights the incense on FIRE. This heats up the needles which are jammed into my swollen feet (I swear they are feet that belong on a 600 lbs man). It looked like I had 3 mini tiki torches stuck in each foot. I tried to tell myself that this was relaxing and felt good. I admit, once the sting from the needle jabbing wore off it did feel good. I started to relax until I noticed a very distinct smell. Now, I don’t wish to give anyone the wrong impression, but I was pretty sure what I smelled was pot. The acupuncturist assured me that it was not pot burning on my feet, but the mugwort which smells similar to pot. Apparently most of her clients make the same mistake. She said “Oh yeah, I get the fire marshall called on me all the time. But if I’m going to smoke pot I would go do it in the car, not in here.” Um, did I mention I am a lawyer?

To make a long story short (too late) I didn’t really notice much from Harper. She moved a little but did not turn. The nice acupuncturist plucked the needles out of my feet (only then did I wonder if she had sterilized them before the procedure began. I asked later -- the needles are disposable and only used once - phew!). She asked me if I wanted to try more on my back. Noooooo thank you. Since I had paid for a half hour and we had time left she offered a foot massage instead. Oh yeah, now THAT sounded good. She rubbed my huge puffy feet for a good ten minutes and I swear it was worth every penny I spent on the failed acupuncture experiment.

I left from there to go get my legs waxed and I personally feel that leg waxing is less painful than acupuncture. Just my opinion.

Oh and P.S. I had to come back to the office following that appointment and my co-worker tells me I do indeed smell like pot. Hope none of the partners ask for a meeting today...

Baby is upside down, darn it!

Okay, this little one is becoming high maintenance! We had our ultrasound on Monday and she is a little over 6lbs right now. She looked so cute. Brad and I could see her little mouth moving, her cute little chin, her little round cheeks. I can't wait to kiss that face. But she is breech! Our doctor thought for the past five weeks she was head down.

We've scheduled an External Version procedure for Friday morning. From those who have done this I am told it is less than pleasant. Actually one woman said "It hurts like blankety blank." I may have paraphrased that. Basically they will give me a drug to relax the uterus, then the doctor will try to manipulate my belly to get the baby to turn. If she turns...great! We go back to waiting for labor to begin. If she doesn't turn, we'll schedule a c-section for late next week probably.

So if you don't mind, we'd appreciate good thoughts and prayers that this baby wants to turn on Friday! I have tried all other methods - playing music low on my tummy, shining a light low on my tummy, yoga. I am looking around for a good acupuncturist. I read that acupuncture can make a baby turn. Anyone know one in Tulsa?

Top Ten you know you're pregnant when...

1) The thought of getting up and moving is more exhausting than physically doing it.
2) You drop something on the floor and hope and pray that someone, anyone, will pass by to pick it up for you. If not then it just stays put, even if it is your wallet.
3) Everyone tells you to enjoy your sleep now - but you haven't slept in months.
4) You seriously wonder if wearing depends to bed at night so that you don't have to get up 8 times to pee is a bad idea.
5) You've developed the skills to pee in a cup without being able to see the cup, and you don't splash. This makes you proud.
6) You only wear shoes that do not require you to bend over, i.e. forget about laces.
7) You cannot sit down, stand up, lay down, roll over or bend over without grunting, groaning, huffing and puffing.
8) You sound like you are running a marathon if you walk and talk at the same time.
9) You google things like "inducing labor early" and "ways to make the baby get out."
10) You would rather take a five minute foot rub than a $1000 giftcard to Saks.

37 Weeks! and counting....

We are now officially full term! This little girl can definitely make it on her own in the outside world and at this point, she can come anytime as far as I am concerned. Brad says he needs a little more time to get organized at work. Sorry buddy. I am eating spicy foods and doing jumping jacks from here on out. This pic is me at 36 weeks. I took it a little late in the week, and I'm not kidding I get bigger every day. We have an ultrasound tomorrow to see how big she really is. My doctor thus far has been very impressed with my uterus (jealous?) and thinks she will be at least 7 lbs. I can't wait to see if she is right! Considering I haven't had any trouble gaining the required (and then some) pregnancy weight, I hope she is big...but not too big.

Full Moon didn't work, perhaps Friday the 13th?

Harper was violent again last night. I swear she is trying to escape. I think she wants out and I wish she would either calm down, or let labor take it's natural (with drugs) course. Brad was awake for the episode last night. This morning while we were getting ready for work he said "Do you think we could avoid another night like last night? I'm tired." Yeah. Let me just have a little chat with your unborn child and ask her nicely to please not keep Daddy up by clawing around inside Mommy's tummy. I'm thinking of doing some jumping jacks tonight and eating spicy food all weekend. We are 37 weeks now and I am ready for her to get here whenever!

Have you seen the movie Alien?

Because that is the only way I can describe what happened to me last night. No, I did not give birth or go into labor, but I swear, my baby was trying to claw her way out of me last night. I was still up reading, Brad was out like a light. All of a sudden Harper was VIOLENTLY moving inside of me. She was all over the place and I swear on my epidural she was trying to get out. It was a full moon last night and I am full term as of tomorrow so as far as I was concerned I was hoping the gravitational pull of the full moon would move things along. Maybe it did have an effect on her, I don't know. All I know is I was begging my unborn to please stop hurting mommy. I was yelping in pain and Brad slept through the whole thing. Guess I will need to invest in a gong so he'll wake up when I go into labor.

The Nursery is ready!

It's been a while since I posted photos of the nursery. We added all the cute little details that really make the room fun! We hung the chandelier my KC family gave us, we've added lamps and little decorative pieces. Note the real sheep skin rug on the floor. I have already planned a black and white photo shoot of bare baby butt on that rug. Too cute!
Her changing table is all set.
Her closet is full of clothes, ready for her arrival! Is it too early to have her Halloween costume picked out? I found the cutest little costume that should fit her and it was 75% off! Even if she doesn't wear it I could not pass up that "shopportunity. "
Check out the huge selection of children's books! Harper's library and music corner is all set for her to explore.
I had custom crib bedding made. I picked gender neutral colors so I could use it again if we have a boy next. It looks great with pink!

I even have her Easter basket ready to go.
So everything is washed and ready for her arrival. We have diapers and wipes and a ton of stuff. We just need the baby. Today my doctor made the prediction that Harper could be arriving early - famous last words. I told Brad that means she will probably wait an extra month to arrive. That would be so mommy of her. Next week we have an ultrasound to check and see how big she is! I think she feels huge. She has totally run out of room in my belly and her movements are so weird sometimes! I know I'll miss it when she is out, but I am ready to meet her!

not that I need it but...

There is a small shop in our building that sells lunch, snacks n' stuff. I have been down twice this week to get my weekly chocolate long john (I have limited myself to one a week as a treat because I would eat them every day if I could. also have the same limitation on chocolate milkshakes - my Sunday treat). Anyway, twice this week I was there too late to get a long john. This morning I was late again and they were all gone...or so I thought! The cute gal at the register had saved one for me! She had it hidden for me because she knew I would be back. This big baby belly will take you places people. It will take you far...

"Nesting" will ruin your manicure...

I'm not sure if everyone has heard about the "nesting" stage of a pregnancy. This is the time when the mommy-to-be gets a little nuts about cleaning and preparing to welcome the baby. Brad swears I have been nesting since the stick showed a double line...that may be. The nursery was essentially finished before we knew whether this baby was a girl or a boy. I have also gone through every drawer and closet getting rid of things (I still feel the need to do this periodically). I've already washed all her newborn sized clothes, sheets, etc. I've packed for the hospital, we've taken classes. We are ready.

But I have recently become even more obsessed with getting things around the house clean. A few nights ago I decided that all my water glasses looked dirty. They had spots or stuff stuck to them. They were gross. I pulled every single water glass out of the cabinet and got some white vinegar and began scrubbing them with the vinegar, I then washed them with hot soapy water, then ran them through the dishwasher...twice. (The first cycle I forgot to add Jet Dry)

Last night I decided that a certain baking pan we often use looked terrible and needed to be properly scrubbed. I took out some steel wool and began scrubbing off old caked-on crap - you know the kind. The stuff that makes your baking sheets look like they are a 100 years old. When I had finished my fingers were gray and it looked like I had tried to file my nails on asphalt. Note to others: wear gloves when using steel wool. Other note: my baking pan no longer has that handy "non-stick" coating.

Now I have big plans for the weekend. I want to get some major spring cleaning out of the way before she gets here. Brad is thrilled with "our plans" for the weekend including: power washing off the lawn furniture and back/front porches, yard work and leaf removal, cleaning light fixtures, mopping the tile underneath the washer and dryer....things like that. He can't wait.

People love pregnant women...

People do stuff for you when you are pregnant. I have to admit, this has been easy to get used to. I swear everyone loves the sight of a pregnant woman! When I walk in to a store, if someone is coming out at the same time I am going in, they will literally back up, hold the door and let me pass! I've had people walk back inside of stores to hold the door open. I always pat my belly, smile and say thank you. I think they deserve at least that much from me.
Yesterday I had to fly somewhere and people let me cut in line, one man insisted on carrying my briefcase down the ramp for me to the gate check area. The briefcase is on rollers....he would not let me even roll it down the ramp.
I was at Target a couple weeks ago and had just unloaded my cart into my car when I turned and saw a lady taking off with my cart. "I'll put this back for you!" she said in a sing-song voice.
Have I mentioned the free stuff? Whenever I go in to order lunch or take out, they almost always offer a free cookie. It could just be that the places I go regularly are being nice because I am a good customer, but I have been going to the same place for lunch over ten years and the free cookie thing is NEW.
I am afraid I am in for a rude awakening after Harper gets here!

More Baby Showers!

I got really behind on this, so here is one long post to update you on other baby showers. We have been sooooooo spoiled! I think we now have almost everything we need to welcome little Harper. Our friends and family are so wonderful and we could not be more excited. Aside from having all the cute stuff, the bottles and diapers, etc, we have been deeply touched that so many of our friends want to celebrate with us the birth of our first child! It is 2am right now and I just can't sleep. I can't stop thinking about how cool it will be to see Harper for the first time. I can't wait. I am over 34 weeks now and the weeks have now slowed down to a crawl. The second trimester was a blur. Enjoy the pics!

First up:

My Tri Delta sisters threw me a shower! (go ahead and say it...Delta Delta Delta may I help ya help ya help ya. feel better?)

Me with my gracious hostess Anne Lisko!


And my dear friend Erin Collins threw me a baby shower in her stunning new home! I was amazed by this girl. She just had her first baby at the end of November and I can't believe: A) how skinny she already is (hate her) and B) how "with it" she is that she could throw such a beautiful shower with a new baby!

Here I am with my super model friend Erin.

A group shot - it was a great turn out! watch out, there are a lot of lawyers in this group...

And last but not least, my Fab Five Shower! Ann (Brad's mom) and some of her girlfriends threw a gorgeous shower this weekend! Every detail was beautiful and the food was amazing. I loved all the little monogrammed things we received. Seeing Harper's name on things makes me even more excited for her to get here!

Here is a quick pic of Brad and me this weekend. My mom hasn't seen me in about 6 weeks and she was amazed by my belly!

Here is Brad and our dear friend Jan. I love this pic because she had just rushed in saying she thought the shower was at 2pm! (It was at 11am). I was so glad she made it.

Me with my tiny Mom. Isn't she glamorous?!

Me (yes again) with my hostesses minus Beverly who had to sneak out a few minutes early. This is the Fab Five! Cathy, Peggy, Ann, Me, Debby and Becky.

My adorable niece Emily who will turn 5 this summer! Harper will be her first cousin. :)

One of the many outfits that just about makes me cry! It has a little H on it with rhinestones. So cute!
A preggo pic! Okay, the gal standing next to me (Lindsay) is due only 4 days after me and she looks tiny! I guess it helps if you run marathons like she does. My yoga class probably doesn't burn nearly the same amount of calories. The chocolate milkshakes probably dont help either. Here is Liz (June), Christy (May) and Lindsay.
The table was so gorgeous!!! The peach bellinis were a big hit. Everyone said they were delicious. They had champagne in them, so I did not partake. But don't think for a second I didn't consider it!Here is me and one of my best friends Liz. She is due in late May or early June!
I better quit. Brad just came out and asked me what in the world I am doing on the computer at 3:00am.