Bed Rest(less)

I am currently writing to you "off the hip". I mean that most literally, as I am on bed rest where I am ordered to lay on my side and only my side. (Minus those glorious minutes I get to shuffle to the bathroom or sit up to eat.)
You would be amazed at how little there is to do while laying on ones side. When I first heard the news bed rest I had hopes of finishing our wedding album, working on some branding for my new up and coming business venture with Meg, sketching, listing...etc. But alas I have found that all of these are for those lucky stiffs who can lounge on the couch on their back.
As is, I am growing intensely uncomfortable writing over my shoulder and will make this post short.
We had another Dr.s visit yesterday and they recommended I stay on my Terbutaline (muscle relaxer) and bed rest for another 11 days. Blech. It is doing a good job so far and I have had half the contractions I started the week out with. So that is good for the Barley, and if they keep on working she will have a chance to get a little bigger and avoid some complications.
For that reason, I am happy to do it.... but let us be honest with one another...this sucks.
I am getting stir crazy, and what I wouldn't do for some exercise!
So if anyone has any fun sideways activities they know of...let me know! I am open to mixing up my routine of movie watching and contraction counting.
Well, my faithful nurse "mom" is bringing out lunch so I had better goooo! But really, I'm not going anywhere...I will be just here for 11 more days.

Crazy Little Thing Called Labor

Hi folks. Kent here, guest posting for Kirsten, since she's just *this much* indisposed at the moment. I'm in the rocking chair by the window up at the Overlake Hospital Labor and Delivery Unit, and Kirsten's in the bed next to me. Don't panic, though! Every visit we have now, if it's not a scheduled appointment, happens over here at L&D. They just have better monitoring equipment and whatnot, and it's right next door to the place we usually go.
Here's the news: yesterday morning, very early, Kirsten started having pretty bad cramps, so she called the consulting nurse, and they had us come on in. After a lot of checking things out and monitoring stuff, they told us that she was actually in the first stages of labor! Wow! That explains the cramps, I guess. They eventually gave Kirsten medication to stop the contractions, and once they got that to work, we went on home with several doses of the same medication in pill form. It's been sort of working, but today brought some more weirdness, and contractions a little closer together than they should be in times of non-labor, so we called and they had us come on back in. Pretty much the same story today, and we're headed home in a little bit unless anything changes. The idea is to keep labor at bay for at least another week or so (until 36 weeks), and then if Greta wants to come on out, they'll let her, and we'll care for her appropriately. Should be in good shape at that point.
If things pick up or anything else changes, we'll be sure to let you know.

Thanks for tuning in! :)

Kent (for both of us)

Big day for the Barley!

So yesterday was a big day for the Barley!
Firstly, she is now enjoying a new corner office with a view of my pelvic floor. Yesterday she by all signs "engaged" or "lightened" as they say in the books, or as I would say "dropped like a ton of bricks."
Which is super exciting considering this means she is doing her thing to get ready to go-go-go, and I have more room to breathe, eat, and otherwise enjoy a little more of life's upper abdominal comforts. However it does come at the price of lost lower ones. Her little head is nicely nestled on what sometimes feels like knives, an anvil, and my bladder in between.
Goooo Barley!
Also yesterday I had a monster headache and nausea which was my cue to visit the hospital which was the hospitals cue to check my blood pressure, whose impressive new highs cued the Dr to label my pregnancy "hypertension", which was the cue to steal my blood and pee, and give me drugs I don't want to take.
So, now I am officially an old man and am on blood pressure medicine and monitor my bp 4 times a day with my new handy and so dandy at home cuff. (batteries not included).
The new medicine makes me feel all floopy and light-headed, and I distrust it. (I think any mom would distrust a medicine that clearly states not to take it if you are pregnant or going to be pregnant...and boy if I'm not anything but pregnant.)
However they say it is better for the Barley than the alternative. Lets just hope the poor Barley does not feel as silly as I do. So far I haven't heard any drunken songs echoing from my uterus...but I feel one coming on so I had better sign off.
....They caaaall her the irish roooooover!

33 week checkup!

So we had our last ultrasound yesterday! The next time we get to look at The Barley she will be a little more 3D...with surround sound! It is getting more and more difficult to see what's what in the ultrasound as she gets bigger, so unfortunately there will be no picture for this post. The one we got was barely recognizable seeing as the poor girl is stuffed so tight, like a ham in a pickle jar.
However we did see what amounted to blinking and mouth moving. Also, she was sucking on her foot, which I think shows remarkable skill.
The reason for an ultrasound this late in the game was to check up on her kidneys which were growing at 2 different rates last visit. This time they noticed that they were the same size, just one was holding more fluid than the other. Thankfully, this is not a dangerous or worrisome complication, as her fluid levels and everything else look normal. So praise God for that!
Greta is right on track to be a Christmas Eve baby, they bumped her due date back to the 24th!
She currently weighs 4lbs and 7 oz and that puts her smack dab in the 64th percentile for weight. The midwife predicts she will be around 7lbs when D-Day arrives. A nice little bundle if I do say so myself.

Happy Halloween!

I hope everyone had a happy Halloween last night?
We had a fantastic time hanging out with friends and shoving our faces with sweets and pizza rolls.
Kent and I had a tough time this year trying to figure out what we should be. I have rigorous guidelines when it comes to costumes. They should be semi-homemade, I don't want to be a man, or an inanimate object, and would like the costume to be somewhat uncommon. (ex: no witches/or pumpkins). This year had the added challenge of incorporating the Barley. But I think we pulled it off.
We we were a 50's housewife and the milkman. (tee-hee)
I thought Kent looked particularly fine in his little white shorts and bow tie. (meow)

'Here we go a pumpkining'...

...'Among the leaves so orange!'
So, this weekend we gathered our fall spirit up and went a-pumpkining! What could be better than a fun afternoon in the park gutting and carving large vegetables, drinking cider, and of eating Halloween candy?
I submit that there is nothing.


The boys had a HOOGE pumpkin so they teamed up on one together. They were very proud of their handy work. Even now Kent's is propped up by our front door with a rock under it to give it a better showing. It is a scene of wolves howling at the moon.
When I discovered his initial design plans, I had imaginings of us all left howling at the moon as Kent meticulously carved his pumpkin with a knife the size of a hair pin. He is known in our parts for his astounding attention detail, and consequently for being the slowest ever.
However, it was I who was the last to finish carving.
Mostly because I spent my time eating candy, but also I was deliberating over all the design possibilities. Would I try and make a political statement? Or something that would make all the little trick or treaters stop and consider the preciousness and brevity of life? Or maybe I would just settle for something so funny they must puke up their Whoppers.
In the end I decided on a harmless little heart with leaves, giving an overall impression of a tramp stamp. As typical Skirst, I decided it was too much work to think through and eating would be more fun.
The day ended with us all lined up like proud parents holding our orange young.

And then fake smashing them.

Happy October everyone!

Party...with a y.

Soooo, cats out of the bag. Happy Shower to me!
This last weekend the incomparable Meg threw me a surprise baby shower. It was gorgeous, and personal, and sans the games we have all grown to loathe.
So thank you SO much for those of you who came, it made the Barley and I smile.
Now I have been busying myself with finding places for all the lovely gifts and loans everyone has been so generous with.
Today's highlighted gift: The nubby blanket Meg made with her own paws. I think my favorite part is the sweet little G that is sewn into the corner.
The nubby part of the fabric has a real name, but I'm new to the 'mom club' and just call it the nubby part.
Also...what's with all the y's ladies and gentlemen of the marketing sector? We've got the Boppy, the Onesy, footies, Robeez...o.k. that's not a y but it sounds like one. Yipes! Confusing!
Granted, y sounds are catchy, and take years off of your tongue when you say them. (I myself find the word "Lambie" particularly charming and use it to refer to one of our dining room rugs. You might even find that it makes up for all the adult words that are so popular right now that are aging you fast and giving you gas, words like: fiscal, bailout, and earmark. Not a y in the bunch) But really, the more I am exploring "baby land" (mostly I'm lost) I am finding that all the product names basically boil down to one simple equation. Cute non-real word+element of product function but mostly confusion+y or ie=expensive baby product crucial for your child's comfort, safety, or development.
Well, I am starting to get to the bottom of things at least. I hope all is going well with all of you!
Stay tuned for nursery details! The mural starts this week!