Failure to launch?

Have you ever heard of a failed induction? I hadn't. If I had my druthers I would write something totally witty and upbeat but the fact of the matter is I am rather irritated. I checked into the hospital and spent all Saturday night on pitocin to have them tell me in the morning that it wasn't doing anything (besides making me horribly uncomfortable all night.) So the lucky thing is, I get to anticipate labor a second time, whenever that may be.
So much for the plan. I liked the plan. The plan was good. This baby shows no regard for planning. That could be a problem.
So I took the walk of shame on Sunday morning; put my stupid maternity pants back on, picked up my pillow and walked back to the car passed all the labor and delivery rooms where other women were doin their thing.
So I guess we'll just wait and see now.

I'm Happy!

**Disclaimer: I love all of my children equally...most days.

I don't normally like to binge on posts but I thought I would get this little one in before the blogging drought that will be upon me in weeks to come. This is a blogger tribute to little Miss Mia, third born, third daughter, child wonder. All strange transitional coping mechanisms of the past 6 months aside, this is one sweet girl. She is funny and silly. She is a good sleeper (again, the last 5 or 6 months don't count, even though that makes up a fifth of her life...) She is easy going and smart. She started talking way earlier than my first two and it's fun that we can actually carry on a coherent conversation with her at 2 and 1/2. I firmly believe that she would be solidly potty trained if I weren't avoiding the commitment of it at this particular point in time. She goes at least once or twice a day in the potty sometimes (I wish her mother weren't so lazy...oh wait, thats me.)

She often likes to announce at random times I'm happy! and flashes a great big "moose grin". She calls it a moose smile because I somehow convinced her that the "scary moose" in our room (its a tiny little figurine on a shelf) had a smile like that. She does it all the time and I haven't been able to capture it on film until this weekend. It makes us laugh every time. (That's her "moose smile" on the right there.)

My favorite Mia word is "prouded". It is her combination of excited and proud. Example, "I so prouded you...you prouded me?" all said with great enthusiasm and raised eyebrows. She will also randomly say things like "oh Abby, that was so nice you" and never misses an opportunity to say "thanks Mom" for pouring her juice or putting her shoes on. Last night my Mom told Mia that she needed to go put me to bed. She said "OK" (again, enthusiastically) and walked over to me but then turned to Mo and said with a seriously confused expression on her face, "Can't pick her up."

She asks 18.4 times a day to watch either Finding Nemo (where she will remind us with her silly giggle that "Nemo go down toe-let to find Daddy") or Fantasia 2000.

She loves to dance and play and read. She sleeps with so many stuffed animals sometimes I take them out after she falls asleep for fear that she is going to suffocate in the night. She loves her polka dot shoes. She notices your jewelry.

We so love having her in our family. She reminds us on a regular basis to be happy and easy going. Her sisters love her and include her in their play because they recognize what a joy she is to be around. Oh yeah, and she gives really good, tight hugs around your neck. And I gotta love her, she's the only "momma's girl" of the bunch.

Root Beer for Breakfast

Who are we kidding? It's 10:30am, not exactly breakfast anymore...I like to include as many meals as possible these days; breakfast, brunch, snack, lunch, anytime, anyplace. Besides, I had an orange cream soda with my bagel this morning at the actual allotted "breakfast" time. Now I have moved onto a nice light brunch consisting of an IBC root beer and left over potato salad. I don't normally drink so much soda. I'm trying to get the baby to move because I have slipped into my final week of paranoia before the baby arrives.

Clark comes on Friday, we'll have one final "family of five" fling on Saturday and the baby is being forced into the world on Sunday.

The weekend was full of sponge curlers, tulip dresses, plastic eggs and the afore mentioned potato salad. I love Easter. It doesn't matter how cold it is, I like to force Spring out by dressing the part on Easter Sunday. It's too bad it fell so early and especially here in Utah where there is still residual snow in my parents' yard...we refused to believe it was chilly and did an outdoor egg hunt anyway. The kids didn't seem to mind. At least the sun was shining. And I would like to announce that for the final week of this swollen foot pregnancy I have gotten out my flip flops and will wear them over everything else every single time I have to put shoes on...even though it is supposed to snow on Wednesday. These piggies need air.

On a lighter note I have moved on with my plan to slowly make all of my kids as Type A as I am. Mind you, I am selectively Type A (some people I know can't escape being Type A all the time, and I admire them for it!!...perhaps sluggish pregnancy has something to do with the "selective" part.) We all participated in making a list on Saturday (making lists, as you may recall, is one of my favorite things to do, ever. It gives me a sense of purpose, direction and accomplishment.) The kids thoroughly enjoyed checking things off of the list, as did my Mother and I. And look at us go, we did everything on there!

An update, of the less exciting or entertaining kind...

-I just got off of Skype/webcam with my little bro and now I feel paranoid...like I am being watched...yes I am still in my pajamas and no, I don't know what that stain on my shirt is but the wet spot on my sweats is most likely from a daughter that was recently sitting on my lap.
-We are set to close on the house next week. It won't feel real until I actually don't have to write a mortgage check next month.
-We do not have a place to live in Connecticut yet.
-Clark left yesterday to go back to Connecticut. There have already been two tantrums, three crying for Dad and one night terror. He will be back for the birth in a couple of weeks.
-I am being induced for a couple of reasons: I have big babies. I am going for another VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean--I have had, in this order: one vaginal, one emergency c-section, once perfect VBAC, and hoping for another.) The other reason is so that my husband can actually be here for it.
-I have been lucky to not gain a ton of weight this pregnancy...and have somehow managed to keep it all where it should be. I keep saying that a little stress has done my figure well. Don't be too jealous though. I gained almost 60 pounds with my first and have never been the same. I have gained half that with this pregnancy, go figure.
-Utah's weather is a tease. We haven't worn coats for two days and right now it is snowing. In fact, Haley went to school without a coat this morning.
-This baby doesn't have a name. We barely even have a "maybe" list.
-When I woke up to my cell phone alarm this morning both of my hands were dead asleep. They felt like blocks of wood on the end of my wrists and I couldn't grab my phone to turn it off because I couldn't feel it.
-Clark will come for the baby, go back to CT, then come back again at the end of April to get us and take us all back with him.
-My kids had corndogs for dinner last night...at least they were all beef.
-Mia's tinckle smells like coffee because she had Golden Crisp for breakfast (Dad did the cereal shopping last week.)
-Speaking of Mia, her face and wrist are pretty much healed up. She'll probably have faint scars on her wrist and maybe her face but we are combatting that with Mederma for Kids. Her hair on the other hand, will always be crazy no matter what we do.
-I have to finish paying bills now. Thanks for playing.

The Bulbous Bow

Clark shared a new Navy term with us all this week when he affectionately called my belly my "bulbous bow".

"A bulbous bow, a feature of many modern ship hulls, is a protruding bulb at the bow (or front) below the waterline. Usually visible only when a ship is in drydock, the bulb modifies how water flows around the hull, reducing drag and increasing speed, range, and fuel efficiency. Ships with bulbous bows generally have 12 to 15 percent better fuel efficiency than similar vessels without them."

The conversation about my bulbous bow actually started because Clark wondered if my belly made me more aerodynamic. I said that once I have achieved those kinds of speeds I would let him know. And I happen to know that my fuel efficiency is at an all-time low.

With just a couple more weeks to go, I have officially reached the stage where doing normal things have become a challenge. For example: shaving my legs, loss of transition from the calf to the foot (aka: cankles), the bath towel doesn't fit my circumference upon exiting the shower, regular heavy breathing, getting in and out of cars, getting in and out of bed (multiple times a night to use the bathroom), bending over to pick up anything, and giving a urine sample at the doctor's office (visibility just ain't what it used to be). Hugging my husband has to be done at an angle to achieve any sense of closeness, though the girls have never felt more accommodated as when they are perched comfortably on top of the belly. (Case in point: Clark had to pry one "barnacle" aka Mia, from the bulbous bow of this ship so I could go to the bathroom this morning without the extra company.) And on a side note, I think I am doing irreparable damage to the lining of my stomach by the amount of Zantac I consume on a daily basis.
A visit to the doc today confirmed that indeed the baby is still measuring 4 weeks large. Terrific. So if I plan on a 13 pound baby perhaps I'll be pleasantly surprised. On a good note, he gave the go ahead on our induction date...19 days to go, more or less.

the Good, the Sad and the Adorably Maimed.

Let me start by telling you all a very sad story with an ironically happy ending. Our home in Texas has been on the market for one year (this month). That is a long time and unfortunately a lot of money. We have had two deals fall through due to: one totally random circumstance (and rather hard to believe, if you ask me-a woman and her fiance, the fiance was shot and killed two days before closing and the woman found out he was a drug dealer...so typical.) and one due to a buyer's own house selling falling through (got it? no one wants to buy houses...don't tell me if yours sold fast, it will only make me feel bad.) This has been especially hard because I loved our home and it was just perfect for us. ANYWAY! back to the ironically funny ending. One of the reasons for living with my parents (besides the necessity of help to maintain my sanity during this no husband/no father/big belly time period) was to save money, and avoid paying two mortgages/rent (which we did all last summer...bummer.) We didn't save a ton of money because our house continued to sit and wait out the long winter when no one was buying houses (again, don't tell me how fast yours sold...I like to believe that our house wasn't some kind of reject.) THE DAY AFTER MY HUSBAND, now nicknamed "the good luck charm", ARRIVED HOME, (the caps were for dramatic emphasis...had I been speaking directly to you, I would have raised my voice and used some kind of over dramatized arm motions) we received another offer on the house....the first in 6 months. All is set to close later this month, on the condition that their own house closes the week before. So not to jinx it or anything...little 'hooray' for now.
That was the Good.
The Sad: one more trip to the ER.
Kids listen up! Treadmills are not toys (for the millionth time). Lesson learned? Good!
We had two guilt stricken sisters trying, tearfully, to take the blame for their little sister's poor fortune. It's good to know that when it comes down to the wire, my children won't run and hide and lie that they didn't do it. They took full blame. It was pathetic "No, I did it, it was my fault, I told her to do it!" They were so worried about her.
She is fine. We thought she had broken her wrist but it turned out to be some yucky friction burns that will heal and hopefully leave no permanent scarring.
We sat in a horribly dirty children's hospital emergency room and sanitized every 30 minutes. We then sat back in the treatment room separated by curtains and listened to the little girl next to us scream bloody murder as they tried to remove some foreign object from her ear.
Good news: University Hospital will give your kids a free slushy with each visit...at least I think it was free...I'll let you know when the bill arrives.
We had doctors and nurses not even working on her coming in to see her..word was spreading that there was an adorable little girl in polka dot shoes being treated for something that didn't make her thrash or scream...and she had no vomit crusting her front....it made her very popular. (this is her trying to look pathetic today even though she is feeling much better.)
So that's it for now. We have been having fun being with Clark. The girls each planned a special one on one Daddy Daughter date with him this week. He plays, he teases, he tickles, he folds laundry, he lets me have naps, he rubs backs and feet, he feeds children, he gives love and attention...we are in heaven. I am fully expecting all hell to break lose when he leaves us next week but for now we'll bask in his presence.

oh happy day