Yesterday, the 7th, Caecilia was baptised. It was a small ceremony here in Marion. We like to have the babies baptised as soon as possible after birth, so quite a bit of the time, people aren’t able to make it. That isn’t a big deal for us, though we would like to have our families with us, we know that baptising the baby is more important.

Back to the baptism. Father Schalk came up from his parish down the road to baptise Caecilia for us. He is a good friend of ours and we were happy and thankful that he was available! Caecilia’s Godparents, Mary and Jeremy Sheiko live in Lafayette so they weren’t able to be there, but the wonderful Logue Couple stood in for them. Father Mike, our Pastor, was there also. So that was it. A small group. It was awesome. I will post pictures soon. I have never gotten weepy during a baptism before but I was yesterday. Caecilia quickly made my weepys go away when she tooted while Father said “I baptise you in the….” with each pour of water, Caecilia tooted.

After the baptism, we came back to our house and had carrot cake and drinks. Father Schalk joined us for a little bit before he had to head back. The Logues stayed for a while then Father Wagner joined us. There is a man who can keep a person laughing all night.

After the kids went to bed, we talked so more with Father then Joshua went to go pick up an easy chair that Father was looking to get rid of. It is nice stuff. Comfy. Comfy. Comfy. Thanks Father!!

Today we went to Mass at Noon for the Holy Day. Karol had to be taken out mid way through the Liturgy of the Word because he was being a not good kid. Then M started acting up. I was trying to keep C from crying. It was fun times. I nursed her in the back when Joshua returned from Karol Duty and she was fine for the rest of Mass. And, the best part, after Mass, people kept coming up to us and telling us how wonderful our family is. Okay….sure.

After Mass, we hit the Post Office then Chinese Buffet. The kids were surprisingly good during lunch. It was a surprisingly good buffet too! Then we headed to Meijer to pick up a few sleepers for C. I don’t think we clothed M when she was a baby as we can’t seem to put our hands on any newborn things for her!

One more thing that J and I have commented on with regard to Caecilia and how things are different with her. When the other kids were newborns, we lived a block from St. Boniface, we never drove to Mass so we never had the carseat. Now we drive to Mass and have the car seat. I don’t feel comfortable leaving the carseat in the car during Mass, as it will get cold, but I don’t want to take it in to a pew so that it will take up so much space. We leave it in the back of the church (where one of us almost always is, with one of our kids.) However, it is just so funny how things have changed!!

Finally, some of you may know or remember that I have nursing issues. I haaave low milk supply and have to supplement breast milk with formula. I was hoping things might be different with this baby and it looked hopeful, but today we supplemented one of her feedings. She was crying for food and I didn’t have anything else to give her. I have to say, as hard as it is to have to supplement, I know when I see her full and looking around the room, exploring with her eyes, that it is okay that I have to supplement.

That is all for now. Joshua is working on getting the pictures from the baptism on the computer, so look out for them!

We have a little girl, Caecilia Rosa! She was born yesterday, December 4th at 3:08 pm. Labor started on Tuesday around 5 or 6 pm. The midwife came over, a “backup” one because my midwife was attending another birth. Andrea came over to watch the kids and things got underway. Uh, for a while. My contractions were strong and six minutes apart for a few hours and I was dialating, but things weren’t progressing quickly. So, needless to say, it was a long night.

The midwives left around six, when I hadn’t contracted for about 45 minutes. Karol and Margaret were picked up by Andrea’s husband Brian. They were so helpful with the kids! So off the kids went and J and I tried to sleep. I started contracting again, but they were 20 minutes apart and while they HURT like nothing else, I didn’t think it was “real”. So we spent the day with me sleeping between contractions and watching MacGyver and Star Trek: Enterprise episodes.

Around 130, we made arrangements for Brian to bring the kids back and to have a cowoker of J’s take the kids for a while, thinking that they would spend the night with her. Brian dropped the kids off at 215 and Mary picked them up around 220. My contractions were getting a bit stronger at that point and probably 15 minutes apart. J came back in the house after he helped Mary with the carseats.

At this point I was so tired, I was thinking hospital. They could give me drugs to take the edge off, right? Well, that little thought was the beginning of transition. However, I was clueless. Long story short, I had another contraction and felt the urge to push. We called the midwife at that point and I got back in the pool.

I had two more contractions and told Joshua I was going to die and yelled at him for daring to tell me how to breathe. I was in pain and doing my best darn it! At about 3 I felt the urge to push. The midwife was on her way but not here yet. Joshua was trying to support me but check to see what was going on with the baby too.

Well, sparing more details, we will just say that Caecilia Rosa made debut at 308, about 3 minutes before the midwife came in. Joshua and I were amazed and awed by her. We sat there for a few seconds trying to figure out what we were supposed to do next. We made sure she was breathing and then covered her up with a towel and I held her against my chest. The midwife arrived to the sound of a crying baby! She helped us with the post delivery incidentals. Joshua went to call Mary and have her bring the kids back. Jaime, sweet wonderful Jaime arrived about a 20 minutes later.

So there you go. She is wonderful and beautiful and darling. She looks just like a little Karol!

Happy Birthday, Daddy! 56 years ago today, you were born! Yea!
So here I sit, with a 22 pound turkey in the oven, baking for 5 people to eat. Oh, 2 of those 5 are toddlers. The plan is to have leftovers. And at 29 cents a pound, how could I pass up such a deal and not get the biggest bird out there.

I still have a baby in the belly. I would like to have him/her, soon, but if I go in to labor today, it will have to be after 6, so we can eat dinner and visit with Father.

Happy Thanksgiving!

http://721brown.blogspot.com/

As I type, there is a guy working on putting a gutter up. Yea! The front porch is a slick of ice right by the door. This should help. The landlord also apologized to J for he behavior on the phone the other night. What a nice guy. I am still counting the days til we can get our own place.

No baby news today. I can tell you the baptism gown is done, with much help from my mother in law. I just have to sew on some buttons, which I am doing by hand (loops and buttons). It makes the gown look very old fashioned and almost like it is an antique!

The baby has shifted some what, so my leg is killing me. I tried to do the exercises recommended to me by my first midwife, but they don’t help! Oh well.

According to NPR, the Auto Company Bailout is probably not going to happen. I may get lots of comments for this, but I say “Good”. And I grew up in the Detroit area.

w65

Have you ever wished you picked a different place to live? I do right now. Our landlord is a totally and complete lying idiot.

We were refrerred to him by a person at the parish. We thought we would give him a chance as he was just starting out in the rental business. (We were told he was a good kid though.) That was a dumb mistake.

He told us, as we were looking at the house, that he was working on waterproofing the basement, putting a gutter up over the door (so we don’t get rained on), having the carpets cleaned, and cleaning the garbage left on the deck by the previous occupants. Also, he said that he was going to put a washer and dryer in the basement. This was all in early August. We said we needed to talk about it and we would get back to him.

We called him the next day and told him we would take it. He offered it to us for $100 less per month then he had it listed for and we thanked him. J offered to take care of the lawn in exchange for the lower rent and we also said, don’t worry about the washer and dryer, we were planning on buying a set anyway.

A week later we got a call from him. “Are you still interested in the apartment?” Uh, yes, we told you that a week ago. Agreed to terms and told you our move in date. (Bells going off in my head but I just chalked it up to him being busy with work or something.)

Fast forward to move in date. We call him and to let him know when we will be arriving. He meets us at the house and we sign the lease. I wrote him a check for the first months rent and the deposit (and he seemed surprised that we had it!!). However, we were told that that carpet cleaner person canceled on him. Uh, you knew we were moving in for two weeks and you scheduled the cleaner to come the day we moved in? We told him we needed to return the van and not to worry, not the smartest move, but we couldn’t afford a hotel or to keep the van for an extra day.

The garbage was still on the deck and stunk to high heaven (he did take care of that though, as we were moving things in). The basement hadn’t been touched since the day we looked at the place. He didn’t want us to put a washer/dryer down there until he finished the basement. Oh and no gutter.

We got things moved in. Dealt with the lousy plummer that he uses for some bathroom issues and just tried to deal with it all. Oh, did I mention that he decided to paint the porch the day we moved in? Yep!

J met the girls upstairs and found out that the landlord PROMISED them a washer and dryer in the basement when they moved in six months ago. Of course, J called the him and said that we weren’t going to put a washer/dryer in if he has already promised to do so. Landlord gives a song and dance story about something. J put his foot down and said it needed to be in by the end of the week. They were installed a few days later.

About the lawn mowing. J asked landlord where the lawnmower was. Landlord showed him and said that he would bring a gas can over that week so J could mow the lawn. Two months later, that can finally showed up. AFTER the landlord accused J of not looking for it, or saying that someone stole it out of the garage. Right.

So that pretty much left the gutter issue. Every time it rains and we leave the house, we get soaked. Leaving isn’t as bad as coming back in when we have to stand there and unlock the door. J was told by landlord that the gutter would be up by last week. It wasn’t.

Well, it snowed yesterday, melted and snowed again. The spot in front of our door is sure to become an ice rink in just a matter of time. J called landlord and said, we need the gutter. Landlord said “I am looking to have a new roof put on, so the gutter will have to wait”. At that point J starts (nicely) telling him that we are tired of the lies and the broken promises. Landlord LAUGHED at J. J goes on to say that I am pregnant and I can’t afford to take a spill on the deck. Also, that said baby is due in just a few days and we will have to carry him/her through the icy deck or the drippings off the roof. Landlord laughed.

I would really like to move out, but that isn’t an option right now.

Is it normal to be cranky as can be at the end of your pregnacy? I ask because today, I felt like ripping the head off of a lady behind me at Kroger. Twice.

I was standing in line at the Uscan picking up some things for J (who was “enjoying” himself at the “Holiday Bazzar” at Church). I had M with me as K was with J. Alas, at our local Kroger there are 4 Uscans and since I had two items, I got in to that line. We were 2nd in line, behind a guy using his EBT to buy Pepsi (cause food stamps were meant to buy soda).

I looked at the machine without a customer and saw that it said “lane closed”. Fine. Pepsi guy went to the next machine that opened up. Lady pulls up behind me with a CART full of things and said “Is that lane closed”. But in a tone of voice like I was an idiot for just standing there. Okay, so typing it out, I realize ripping off her head would have been a bad thing and not justified.

Pepsi boy got done, so I stepped up to the machine. Just wanting to get out, I said “forget Kroger Plus Card” and scanned my two purchases while making sure M wasn’t running away. I think it took me less then 60 seconds to scan and run my CC through. The lady behind me was practically in my bubble with her cart the entire time. I bagged my purchases and let M know that it was time to go. She started walking the other way. Right into the cart of the lady behind us. And let’s just say, the cart wasn’t stationary. Oh and I wasn’t actually done at the Uscan yet. My bags were still on the turnstile thing and my receipt still needed to be picked up.

So, J is at this bazzar thing at the church selling things for Impressus Art. Okay, wasting Impressus Art money, but how was he to know? I take the items up to him and collect K. As we were walking out, K slipped on some water on the floor. He is normally pretty tough, so when he stood up holding his side, I stopped to check it out. As I knelt there, in the entry way, but off to the side, so I wasn’t in anyones way. Two guys come through with a table just as I kneel down to check out K. I moved over to the side more and there should have been plenty of room. These two guys (older btw, not kids) looked down at me, had to have seen my crying son and said “beep beep” and “coming through”. I felt like such an idiot, but really, my kid was hurt, what was I going to do? Losers. I should go rip thier heads off.

I am 37 weeks and 1 day right now. I am cranky as can be too. EVERYTHING makes me cranky right now. Joshua and Karol had the left over pizza for lunch on Sunday, I was mad. Joshua has scouts last night, I was not thrilled about it. Joshua had to mow the lawn today (long story), ticked me off. Our landlord being a total idiot, I almost started crying.

I feel totally stressed out and not prepared for this birth. Adding to this stress is the fact that I don’t know where most of the newborn clothes are. No idea. I didn’t think we had anything back in storage still, but we just might. If we do, that is in Indiana and we are in O-H-I-O, 5 hours away. I did organize the bedroom a little bit today and put the cradle, the rest of the way that is, sheet, blanket, bumper. I am so certain that I am having a boy that I set out a blue blanket. I even put two little outfits for him/her to sleep in. Karol picked out the “boy” one. It isn’t new or anything, but it is an little onesie that K wore when he was little. M had a fun time playing with the lamb I bought for the baby while we were in Paris this summer.

Margaret also found the stethoscope in the toy box and instructed me to life up my shirt and show her the baby so she could listen to him/her.

Another thing I am worried about is the question of how long will this labor take? With K it was about 12 hours. With Margaret, it was just over an hour. It was 20 minutes from water breaking to holding her in my arms. Will my midwife make it here on time? I pretty much know what to do and Joshua knows how to “catch” so I am not too worried, but still, all the what ifs are driving me nuts.

In other boring news, i have been cooking up a storm for the past few days. Kelly from MH came to visit and spend the night on Friday. I made enchiladas for dinner on Friday and yummy breakfast on Saturday. Saturday night we had the Logues over and we made pizza. We have perfected our pizza crust and our topping layout. Now just to open a pizza joint. The key we have discovered is thin crust. Not thin like Donato’s but thinner then what you usually get from a pizza place. I was so cooked out by Sunday that we had left over pie and odds and ends on Sunday. Sunday night I did make brats and baked potatoes. Those were pretty good.

Do I remember last night? Oh, leftover. Tonight I knew we were pretty short on left overs so I made this: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Creamy-Swiss-Chicken-Casserole/Detail.aspx …it needs some work, but it was still pretty good.

Tonight Joshua has a meeting to talk about the youth group with someone in the parish. I am hoping that he brings me back a sweet drink of some sort. If he doesn’t, it won’t be a big deal, I have a sheet of “fake fudge” and some key lime pie.

but I need help in understanding why people who call themselves Pro-Life or Christians would vote for a man who supports the killing of innocent lives.

I cannot believe how many people I know who I thought were Pro-Life or Christians voted for Obama. This includes a girl I know who used to pray outside of a Planned Parenthood Clinic and speak of the evils of abortion. I haven’t been able to get past the figurative lump in my throat to ask her, via email.

“If they [my daughters] make a mistake, I don’t want them punished with a baby.”

Barack Obama

“It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish.”

Mother Teresa

Think about it.