MacGyver Thundercats Picard

We'll, Jason and I are officially trying. 

We've gone back and forth since before Harper was born about when we wanted Baby #3 (henceforth known as MacGyver Thundercats Picard Embry).  We had decided to wait until he got his orders so we had some idea of where we would be and when he would be deployed anytime soon.  But since he found out he's going to be staff pick-up, we know he's not going anywhere for the next few years.

Now, I know there are people who think having a third kid right now is just too soon (Hi Mom!).  But trust me on this -- we have looked at every possible pro and con of which we could think.  For instance:

Con:  Changing Two Sets of Diapers a Day
Response:  Most babies are potty-trained between the ages of 2 and 3.  So, even if we waited there would be a good that Harper would still be in diapers.  Plus, toddlers tend to regress a little when a new sibling arrives, so even if she was out of diapers at the time, we would probably have more accidents with which to deal anyways.  Besides, it's not like changing diapers is a significant part of my day or something I dread.  Everybody poops!

Con:  Harper Won't Have Time to be 'The Baby'
Response:  So?  First, it's not like she'll remember the mounds of attention she gets right now.  Plus, we already have another kid so it's not like Harper gets 100% of her parents 100% of the time as it is.  Having a sibling close in age will give her a playmate and a lifelong friend.  One of my regrets with Kaelin was that she doesn't have a sister that's near her developmentally.  Someone with whom to share secrets and clothes.  A new baby doesn't replace Harper; we'll still love the immeasurable amount we already do. 

Con:  Can't Run a Marathon Pregnant
Response:  Of course you can!  Not that I would as a beginning marathoner, but it's not like marathons are a once in a lifetime event.  If I'm too pregnant to run the Kansas Marathon in 2011, I can run a fall marathon.  Or, I can run it in 2012. 

Edit -- Apparently, the 2011 Kansas Marathon has been canceled.  I take it as a sign. 

Con:  The Closer in Age, The Greater the Sibling Rivalry
Response:  Studies actually show the opposite to be true.  Also, the younger the child is when I new sibling arrives, they less they feel like they are being replaced.  Besides, I think that sibling rivalry is more a product of the parent/child relationship than that of the siblings.

This list could go on and on and on and that's without me even putting a dent in the pros.

Unfortunately, creating MacGyver isn't as simple as A + B = C.  At my age, the chances of conception during a normal cycle is 20%.  But my cycles aren't normal.  They've never been normal and breastfeeding doesn't make them any better.  For the past several years, I've had really irregular cycles, anywhere from 30 to 75 days.  Most have been anovulatory.  The few cycles I have released and egg, I've had a short luteal phase (meaning the egg can be fertilized but can't implant).

Because I know you really wanted to see my chart!

It was nothing short of a miracle that we conceived Harper (or really good luck if you don't believe in that sort of thing). 

I have had my first postpartum bleeding and I have gobs of amazing cervical fluid which are both good signs. But neither is any guarantee that I'm ovulating and I won't know what my luteal phase looks like for a few cycles.  We could get pregnant tomorrow or it could take years.  Worst case scenario is that I would have to wean Harper and then wait months for my body to adjust.  Although, that's not a guarantee because my fertility was really low even before I started nursing. 

All we can do in the meantime is try and wait. 

Happy Birthday, Kaelin!

August 2, 2001

I woke up this morning with really bad cramps.  It was 2:00 AM and everyone else was still asleep.  I didn't want to wake anyone up if I wasn't in labor, but after I got up and started walking around, the pain got worse.  I woke Grandma up, and she said that she thought I was having a baby!  The cramps hurt so bad that I laid in bed with Poopie and cried.  At 4:00, we called the hospital and Dr. Duda said to go ahead and come in even though she doubted that I was really in labor. 

On the way to the hospital, Dad and I were stopped by a train.  Then, the main hospital doors were locked!  We walked around the building for half an hour looking for an entrance. 

After I was admitted, things went slow at first.  The nurses kept asking me questions while I was having contractions and got annoyed with me when I couldn't answer.  All I wanted to do was to curl up in a ball, but they wouldn't let me because of all of the straps.  They finally gave me a shot of Demerol and I went back to sleep until I was able to get an epidural. 

Once the epidural was in place, I went from 4 to 10 cm in 45 minutes!  After an hour of pushing, you were born -- a baby girl!  Grandma and Dad were so surprised that you weren't a boy.  You were our daughter, our little Kaelin Blaire.

This is What 50 lbs Looks Like

I may have swallowed a small watermelon.

I was sorting through some pictures and thought these made for a nice comparison. The left is me, 166 lbs and 5 weeks pregnant. The right is the day I went into labor (39 weeks and 6 days) at 215 lbs.


Seven more pounds to go!

X-posted at KUrunner.

Too Cute Tuesday

Wow, wow, wow! What an absolutely amazing morning!

First up, a local magazine wants to publish my rant about formula. I have absolutely no clue how they came across my blog, but it amazes me that someone wants to actually put my words into print. Actually, nix that. It amazes me that people even read my blog. I don’t consider myself a writer, but it’s absolutely the best feeling to be able to express yourself in words that others want to read. The funny thing is, I really dislike my writing style (maybe because I’m married to a “real” writer) yet I’ve only received glowing feedback. Anyways, the details are still being hashed out and I’m not going to hold my breath, but how cool would it be if this thing actually happened? One article could lead to two, then to three, and who knows… maybe another magazine, then another. Maybe even an actual column. (FYI, magazine writing pay completely sucks. But, as of now, I’m writing for free and anything is more than nothing. Plus, I could spew my very important opinions at thousands of people.)

Next is Harper’s Birth Video. I originally uploaded it to youtube, and it had more than 5,000 hits in the first day it was up. Okay, so 5,000 views doesn’t seem like much when you consider that Evolution of Dance has like 150 million hits, but it’s about 4,950 more views than I expected. In fact, several birthing websites have contacted me to get permission to repost the video on their sites. If even one person watches Harper’s birth and contemplates going natural instead of automatically opting for the standard drugged up hospital delivery, I’ve done what I intended to do.

I have to admit, I was really nervous about sharing that video with the general public. I mean, nobody (except maybe Heidi Klum) looks good during childbirth. Hell, I’m afraid to post my very unflattering P90X pictures over at KUrunner. Also, I’m having a baby… on a toilet. How many of you have watched some show on TLC and thought the woman who said, “Well, I didn’t know I was having a baby!” was an idiot? (Trust me, had I realized Harps was coming, I would have gone someplace slightly less embarrassing.) So, I was a bit scared when I logged onto youtube and had an inbox full of HUNDREDS of messages. Thankfully, most of them were good — thanking me for posting it and telling me how inspiring it was. I even got a few questions about natural birth. Of course, I did get a couple that were along the lines of, “You idiot, you had your baby in a toilet.” I even had one admonish me for “glamorizing unassisted home births.”

A. Yes, I had an unassisted home birth, but it wasn’t planned and I would never willingly do it again.  (I mean, unassisted.  If I have a home birth, there will be a midwife there.)

B. Glamorizing? Um, what part of that video was glamorous in any sense of the world?  Maybe I just look that awesome during labor that everyone wants to copy me?

Overall though, I’m pretty happy with the reactions I’ve gotten from both my friends and strangers about Harper’s video and my writing.

And now, just because she’s so darned cute, I leave you with this.

Harper’s Birth Video

After much consideration, I’ve decided to post Harper’s birth video online for all the world to see.  I absolutely hate watching the “educational” birth shows on television, but everything is blurred out so you can’t actually see anything.  So, I figured, if I’m not willing to post my vagina on youtube, I can’t complain about Discovery Health.


If you remember Harper’s birth story, she arrived by surprise at home after a quick labor.  We were planning a natural birth using the Bradley method, but we really didn’t get to use many of the techniques because of the short labor.  We did get our natural birth, though!


Ok, before you actually watch the video, realize that it does involve a tiny person coming out of my body; therefore, there is nudity and lots of gross-looking fluid stuff.  If you are squeamish or don’t want to see the vagina of a 9 month pregnant woman, you probably shouldn’t click play.  Also, the video was recorded by Kaelin and I’m sideways for the first half.


Without further ado…

Harper’s Birth Story

I woke up from a nap having contractions. They were irregular, but fairly intense so Jason and I figured that tonight would be the night. We had planned to spend most of the labor at home watching movies and relaxing with the techniques we learned in our Bradley class.

Introducing Harper Grace

Unfortunately, I wound up chained to my toilet. I started having really bad diarrhea, and every time I would get up, I felt like I needed to go again. Half an hour after my contractions started, my water broke. Even though I had been in labor for less than an hour, we decided to go ahead and call the doctor. He told us to head to the hospital and he’d meet us there.

Jason and Kaelin started taking our bags out to the car, but shortly after my water broke, the contractions really picked up. They were still irregular, but coming between every 1 and 5 minutes. Jason was trying to get me to relax, but I just couldn’t stand to be touched. I was leaning over the bathtub thinking that there was no way I’d be able to have a natural birth because the pain was just way too much. There may have been some screaming involved.

How can someone so little be loved so much?

I finally make it downstairs when I get the urge to go to the bathroom again. I figured the hospital was half an hour away so I better go before we leave. I sat down on the toilet and realized that it wasn’t a bowel movement coming out. I yelled for Jason who walked into the bathroom to find me crowning on the toilet. He asked Kaelin to get some towels and the video camera then made me squat on the floor holding onto his shoulders for support. I kept trying to sit back down, but he wouldn’t let me. While I was squatting, the baby’s head came out without any pushing. One push for the shoulders and less than two hours after labor started, she was here!

Thankfully, she didn’t have any emergency issues when she was born. She came out screaming, was pink, and tried to nurse right away. Jason called the paramedics because our hospital was more than 30 minutes away and it was rush hour in Charleston. They came, cut her cord, and put us in the ambulance. Of course, it was raining, and they didn’t give me time to put a robe on, but we made it to the hospital in one piece.

Harps and her proud Mama

Looking back, I realize that we got the birth we wanted. There was no medical intervention, at least not until after she was born. Jason got to catch the baby (something our OB refused on our birth plan) and it was just our family to welcome her into the world.