I have always liked to think that my brain can multitask but on several occasions I have found that it does not. Like if we had a big vacation coming in a couple of days or some other personal project coming up I found myself thinking about it even at work. Not just thinking but planning and just plain waiting for it and not doing much at work.
I am back to that now. Two days to due date and I find myself idling at work. Thinking about all things relating to baby, labor and delivery and not concentrating much on what needs to be done at work. My brain is not a multi-tasker after all. I just sit here pretending to work while writing away blog entries.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Not enough pictures
During early weeks of pregnancy I was keen on taking pictures but Minal wanted to wait until her belly had grown enough to make her look pregnant. When belly started showing she wanted to wait until her belly was in 'perfect round shape' as she had seen on some of magazine covers. Then we got busy with moving and other projects at work and what not. After her parents arrived her mom wanted to click at all times but Minal will want her to wait until her hair and outfit were worthy of a good picture. Result? We do have some pictures of her pregnancy but not that many.
It was last night that we realized that soon her pregnant belly will be gone and that we won't have enough pictures. She blamed it on me and I agreed. I should have been clicking more not caring about whether her belly or outfit is photogenic or not. Lets see how many can we click until the baby decides to come out. Two days to the due date!!
It was last night that we realized that soon her pregnant belly will be gone and that we won't have enough pictures. She blamed it on me and I agreed. I should have been clicking more not caring about whether her belly or outfit is photogenic or not. Lets see how many can we click until the baby decides to come out. Two days to the due date!!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Counting down to the due date
Countdown that you see here has been on our desktops since past week. A few moments ago I pressed Windows key + D on my keyboard to access some document from my desktop and my eyes just got stuck on this. I noticed that the baby inside that movie has started moving faster, for some reason. My heart is racing right now and I do not know why. May be it is just that paranoid feeling that I get everytime - that may be I am forgetting something. Something that should be done but has not and I don't know about it yet. Or may be it is realization that the day is getting closer and I am scared by the thought that we will be responsible for a life for next 16 years, at least. I used to scare Minal with this but never thought I will get scared too when it is time.
I don't remember when I last felt this scared. My heart is just pounding away.
I don't remember when I last felt this scared. My heart is just pounding away.
An ultrasound; yet another
After 36 weeks into pregnancy prenatal visits switched to being every week. Since then I have been able to accompany her to only one of those and she went to others with her mom. She went alone last Monday. The first time she went with her mom she wanted the doctor to confirm whether the baby was still head down. They did an ultrasound and figured the baby was in fact head down. Mom, not being able to understand the language, didn't realize the purpose and was concerned.
For past week she has been feeling relatively less movements but there are still probably 10 movements every 2 hours which is what is required. On her last visit she did not say the latter part and the doctor recommended an ultrasound. The nurse found the baby head down, further descended and most active of babies she saw that day. Everything fine and on track. But the fact that they did an ultrasound got her mom concerned yet again and she would not relax until I explained that it was the only way for them to look inside and make sure everything was ok. And they were only doing that to investigate Minal's concerns about baby not being head down or not moving enough.
1 cm dialated but no effacement. Huh? Is that possible? I guess it is and I have not gone back to books to find out. But 1cm dialated means the time could be anytime this week. Hospital bag is zipped and sitting in the corner of the room. Depending on how she progresses in next couple of days I may start working from home after Wednesday.
It is happening. It was only 2 and half years ago when we left behind single life and moved on to embrace 'us' and 'we'. It is now time to move on to 'our little one' and 'our family'.
For past week she has been feeling relatively less movements but there are still probably 10 movements every 2 hours which is what is required. On her last visit she did not say the latter part and the doctor recommended an ultrasound. The nurse found the baby head down, further descended and most active of babies she saw that day. Everything fine and on track. But the fact that they did an ultrasound got her mom concerned yet again and she would not relax until I explained that it was the only way for them to look inside and make sure everything was ok. And they were only doing that to investigate Minal's concerns about baby not being head down or not moving enough.
1 cm dialated but no effacement. Huh? Is that possible? I guess it is and I have not gone back to books to find out. But 1cm dialated means the time could be anytime this week. Hospital bag is zipped and sitting in the corner of the room. Depending on how she progresses in next couple of days I may start working from home after Wednesday.
It is happening. It was only 2 and half years ago when we left behind single life and moved on to embrace 'us' and 'we'. It is now time to move on to 'our little one' and 'our family'.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
From 20th to 40th
It is amazing how time flies. I am sure it did not as much for Minal as it did for me. The last update was at 20th week and we are at the door of 40th now. 8 days to go! Lots of things happened during these 20 weeks (jeez 20 weeks sounds less but it has been 5 months!!!)
- We did move to a new apartment in Royal Crest. Thanks to all friends how helped out otherwise third floor and no movers would have been a recipe for suicide. Although we did not like the apartment and I managed to fight with the management a couple of times, we did eventually forget about the apartment and started concentrating on more important things ahead in life.
- Minal had to give blood twice for her gestational diabetes test. The first came out to be positive which we could not believe and scared the hell out of us. Next round of blood sucking tests showed everything normal.
- Minal also stopped flying at about 28 weeks which was a relief; for her. With no more luggage to drag around and no more flights to wait for and ride she was able to save some physical energy. But she did not rest enough even at home since she would be working non-stop from home. She is a real workaholic but then she enjoys her work a lot.
- My in-laws arrived on 18th of June (can't believe it has been two months since they arrived). They were completely syched at how much Minal works even being at home but soon they realized it is part of her life. They brought a lot of baby clothes and other baby items. Obviously they are excited at the thought of being grand parents. With our completely different life styles we have had interesting anecdotes, conversations and arguments. We have had several trips to grocery stores, nearby lakes and gardens as well as to nearby farm for berry picking. My mother in law has managed to scare her teeth of any berries now. That is how many unripe berries she has had. Sad thing is we have not had a chance to take them out on any decent trip and chances are we are not going to be able to until a month after the baby is born. So hang in there mom and dad!
- During these 20 weeks we also attended a classes on breastfeeding, child CPR and childbirth. Last week we finished our last in series of 5 classes on childbirth and got ourselves a certificate!! We are ready it seems.
- The baby has been growing at a steady rate and we have gone from hardly feeling any baby movements to baby elbow poking her ribs and making arcs from inside her belly. Baby's bones have been getting stronger and her hiccups have not stopped. Mom has gone from gaining a 3 pounds every two weeks to gaining a pound every week. She is now at around 163. I have not be able to go for last 2 prenatal visits and mom-to-be and her mom have had a chance to get out spend time together.
- We also managed to surprise our mom-to-be with a successful baby shower. You can see the pictures. It was a lot of fun and I managed to completely sych people with my answers to questions in one of the games. It was to find out how much dad-to-be knows mom-to-be. And I aced it! Ok getting off of the soap box. But thanks to Aps and Raji without whose support we would not have been able to pull the surprise. Mom and dad were happy to see that we *do* socialize a bit.
- A week before the baby shower we had the traditional 'God Bharai' at home. This is a tradition where mom-to-be is showered with gifts and blessings. Usually performed by her mom. You should be able find pictures here.
- After baby shower there also has been a lot of shopping, lot of returns and lot of shuffling through gift cards and coupons. It has just been crazy with the shopping and mom-to-be :). Returns is what really drives me crazy but hey I should complain only if I can grow a baby inside me. So she deserves it!! As a result of so much shopping and hopping around we think we have all the essentials at home. We did moved things around in our bedroom and also put a few things up to make it look like a baby is also going to be dwelling in the same room. We got the car brakes repaired and also have the car seat installed. We are good to go!
Phew! lots of updates. But above paragraphs cannot even come close to summarizing how many emotions have flown through during past twenty weeks. Minal has been an amazing mom-to-be not only taking care of herself and the baby but also keeping an eye on and making sure everybody else at home is comfortable. I am glad that she now has some breathing time since she quit work last Friday. Two weeks is the least she deserves after 38 weeks of office and house work during pregnancy. She can at least take afternoon naps. I wish her all the luck and strength to cope with labor. Of course I am gonna be at your side honey!
Finally managed to talk to the nurse at the pediatrician's office. We have now decided who is going to be our baby's doctor. One battle still continues and I think it is going to go on until the baby arrives. And that is baby's name. Not just first or last but also about the middle name. I don't suppose we have a final verdict on any of the names yet (first, middle or last). It is ultimately going to be whatever mom wants. She deserves to name our baby whatever she wants.
- We did move to a new apartment in Royal Crest. Thanks to all friends how helped out otherwise third floor and no movers would have been a recipe for suicide. Although we did not like the apartment and I managed to fight with the management a couple of times, we did eventually forget about the apartment and started concentrating on more important things ahead in life.
- Minal had to give blood twice for her gestational diabetes test. The first came out to be positive which we could not believe and scared the hell out of us. Next round of blood sucking tests showed everything normal.
- Minal also stopped flying at about 28 weeks which was a relief; for her. With no more luggage to drag around and no more flights to wait for and ride she was able to save some physical energy. But she did not rest enough even at home since she would be working non-stop from home. She is a real workaholic but then she enjoys her work a lot.
- My in-laws arrived on 18th of June (can't believe it has been two months since they arrived). They were completely syched at how much Minal works even being at home but soon they realized it is part of her life. They brought a lot of baby clothes and other baby items. Obviously they are excited at the thought of being grand parents. With our completely different life styles we have had interesting anecdotes, conversations and arguments. We have had several trips to grocery stores, nearby lakes and gardens as well as to nearby farm for berry picking. My mother in law has managed to scare her teeth of any berries now. That is how many unripe berries she has had. Sad thing is we have not had a chance to take them out on any decent trip and chances are we are not going to be able to until a month after the baby is born. So hang in there mom and dad!
- During these 20 weeks we also attended a classes on breastfeeding, child CPR and childbirth. Last week we finished our last in series of 5 classes on childbirth and got ourselves a certificate!! We are ready it seems.
- The baby has been growing at a steady rate and we have gone from hardly feeling any baby movements to baby elbow poking her ribs and making arcs from inside her belly. Baby's bones have been getting stronger and her hiccups have not stopped. Mom has gone from gaining a 3 pounds every two weeks to gaining a pound every week. She is now at around 163. I have not be able to go for last 2 prenatal visits and mom-to-be and her mom have had a chance to get out spend time together.
- We also managed to surprise our mom-to-be with a successful baby shower. You can see the pictures. It was a lot of fun and I managed to completely sych people with my answers to questions in one of the games. It was to find out how much dad-to-be knows mom-to-be. And I aced it! Ok getting off of the soap box. But thanks to Aps and Raji without whose support we would not have been able to pull the surprise. Mom and dad were happy to see that we *do* socialize a bit.
- A week before the baby shower we had the traditional 'God Bharai' at home. This is a tradition where mom-to-be is showered with gifts and blessings. Usually performed by her mom. You should be able find pictures here.
- After baby shower there also has been a lot of shopping, lot of returns and lot of shuffling through gift cards and coupons. It has just been crazy with the shopping and mom-to-be :). Returns is what really drives me crazy but hey I should complain only if I can grow a baby inside me. So she deserves it!! As a result of so much shopping and hopping around we think we have all the essentials at home. We did moved things around in our bedroom and also put a few things up to make it look like a baby is also going to be dwelling in the same room. We got the car brakes repaired and also have the car seat installed. We are good to go!
Phew! lots of updates. But above paragraphs cannot even come close to summarizing how many emotions have flown through during past twenty weeks. Minal has been an amazing mom-to-be not only taking care of herself and the baby but also keeping an eye on and making sure everybody else at home is comfortable. I am glad that she now has some breathing time since she quit work last Friday. Two weeks is the least she deserves after 38 weeks of office and house work during pregnancy. She can at least take afternoon naps. I wish her all the luck and strength to cope with labor. Of course I am gonna be at your side honey!
Finally managed to talk to the nurse at the pediatrician's office. We have now decided who is going to be our baby's doctor. One battle still continues and I think it is going to go on until the baby arrives. And that is baby's name. Not just first or last but also about the middle name. I don't suppose we have a final verdict on any of the names yet (first, middle or last). It is ultimately going to be whatever mom wants. She deserves to name our baby whatever she wants.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Mommy got a promotion!
Minal's two years of hard work at IBM has paid off. She has been promoted to band 8, which puts her in same band as most of project managers she has worked with. There is at least some reward for those early morning flights, long working hours and being away from home.
Congratulations Mommy!
I know how much Minal loves her consulting job and she would love to continue consulting; only if it did not require traveling. It remains to be seen how things will shape up when, and if, she decides to go back to work. Right now she should be looking forward to a long long vacation and months and months of bonding times with our girl that she so badly wanted.
PS: Daddy got one too!
Congratulations Mommy!
I know how much Minal loves her consulting job and she would love to continue consulting; only if it did not require traveling. It remains to be seen how things will shape up when, and if, she decides to go back to work. Right now she should be looking forward to a long long vacation and months and months of bonding times with our girl that she so badly wanted.
PS: Daddy got one too!
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
20th week update
Prenatal visit at 19 weeks and 3 days
As Minal is cruising around (relatively speaking) in her second trimester there was not much dialog expected during this visit. This was supposed to be a formality (again, relatively speaking) than anything else. Her weight gain is in normal range; something that she does not believe since people keep telling her that she is not showing. Urine test showed everything normal. And we are done!
But wait, there was one that was to be highlight of this visit and one that we were looking forward to. That was results from Sequential Screening Test. We were to know results from Ultrasound and blood work at around 13 weeks combined with results from blood work around 15th week. This was to make sure the baby does not have any genetic disorder or Spina Bifida - abnormalities in baby's spine. The doctor discussed the results in detail and everything, according to the doctor, was normal and there was no reason for any concern whatsoever. We would have loved if she had stopped there. But she was "obligated" to discuss even more. So she started explaining numbers.
Before any tests actually take place pre-test numbers are arrived at based on ethinicity, genetic history etc. And then those numbers are compared with numbers from actual tests. For Spina Bifida, our pre-test numbers were 1 in 900. So far so good. But our post-test numbers indicated our baby had 1 in a 450 chance of developing abnormalities in spine. There goes "everything is normal" out the door. Minal starts gulping air and I start asking questions and trying to prove how those numbers could be wrong. The doctor did say that everything was normal. So what was that based on? Sure enough pre and post test numbers showed that chances of our baby having spine abnormalities had increased but 'everything is ok' was based on Ultrasound that she had 18th week. Ultrasound (visually and based on other measurements) showed that the spine was developing fine and was perfectly normal. Phew!
But that definitely does not do it for the first time expectant parents. The doctor could see the stress and concern on our faces and suggested that we could go for another ultrasound a few weeks later to re-confirm that everything was ok. Sure enough we opted for a second ultrasound.
About the rash
The rash has started to subside and is actually almost gone. Eucerine did it. Although it may take a long while for the pigmentation to give way to normal skin color. No more cream to prevent stretch marks (ouch!). Although she will continue to use Aveeno which help in stretching and hopefully she won't get any marks on her belly. Better than some scary looking rash that we don't know how it will affect the baby.
Boy or Girl
Yes we know! This is actually old news because we found out during Ultrasound at the 18th week. Remember how I had completely brainwashed Minal and led her into believing that we are having a boy no matter how much she wants a girl? Well, she won. We are having a baby girl!!
I do not know how God has been picking up signs but his system seems to be picking up wrong signs. During our long drives I used to pretend to have conversations with our imaginary child. And during those conversations I used to try to turn our child against the mom. And guess what name I gave to our imaginary child. Pinky. So there. Pinky is on her way. This is just like when we said ok, we are ready to have a baby and boom! Sure He is picking up wrong signs. I know what you are thinking. That this guys does not seem to be happy to have a girl. Well, that is not true friends. I am as much thrilled to have a girl as I would have been to have a boy. Just that I was wrong!
Other updates
We are almost packed and move is scheduled for next week. With having lost my right hand (Minal that is) I was thinking of calling movers. But a bunch of friends have offered to help and this week is our last week in Framingham. I am sure we will miss the convenience of all stores, malls and restaurants within a couple of miles from our apartment. But then Royal Crest Estates is a nicer place where Minal will get enough ground for her walks and it will also be a pleasant location for our folks. That reminds me Minal's parents are scheduled to arrive next month. But we are thinking of moving their arrival out by another month since Minal won't stop traveling may be until middle of June.
As Minal is cruising around (relatively speaking) in her second trimester there was not much dialog expected during this visit. This was supposed to be a formality (again, relatively speaking) than anything else. Her weight gain is in normal range; something that she does not believe since people keep telling her that she is not showing. Urine test showed everything normal. And we are done!
But wait, there was one that was to be highlight of this visit and one that we were looking forward to. That was results from Sequential Screening Test. We were to know results from Ultrasound and blood work at around 13 weeks combined with results from blood work around 15th week. This was to make sure the baby does not have any genetic disorder or Spina Bifida - abnormalities in baby's spine. The doctor discussed the results in detail and everything, according to the doctor, was normal and there was no reason for any concern whatsoever. We would have loved if she had stopped there. But she was "obligated" to discuss even more. So she started explaining numbers.
Before any tests actually take place pre-test numbers are arrived at based on ethinicity, genetic history etc. And then those numbers are compared with numbers from actual tests. For Spina Bifida, our pre-test numbers were 1 in 900. So far so good. But our post-test numbers indicated our baby had 1 in a 450 chance of developing abnormalities in spine. There goes "everything is normal" out the door. Minal starts gulping air and I start asking questions and trying to prove how those numbers could be wrong. The doctor did say that everything was normal. So what was that based on? Sure enough pre and post test numbers showed that chances of our baby having spine abnormalities had increased but 'everything is ok' was based on Ultrasound that she had 18th week. Ultrasound (visually and based on other measurements) showed that the spine was developing fine and was perfectly normal. Phew!
But that definitely does not do it for the first time expectant parents. The doctor could see the stress and concern on our faces and suggested that we could go for another ultrasound a few weeks later to re-confirm that everything was ok. Sure enough we opted for a second ultrasound.
About the rash
The rash has started to subside and is actually almost gone. Eucerine did it. Although it may take a long while for the pigmentation to give way to normal skin color. No more cream to prevent stretch marks (ouch!). Although she will continue to use Aveeno which help in stretching and hopefully she won't get any marks on her belly. Better than some scary looking rash that we don't know how it will affect the baby.
Boy or Girl
Yes we know! This is actually old news because we found out during Ultrasound at the 18th week. Remember how I had completely brainwashed Minal and led her into believing that we are having a boy no matter how much she wants a girl? Well, she won. We are having a baby girl!!
I do not know how God has been picking up signs but his system seems to be picking up wrong signs. During our long drives I used to pretend to have conversations with our imaginary child. And during those conversations I used to try to turn our child against the mom. And guess what name I gave to our imaginary child. Pinky. So there. Pinky is on her way. This is just like when we said ok, we are ready to have a baby and boom! Sure He is picking up wrong signs. I know what you are thinking. That this guys does not seem to be happy to have a girl. Well, that is not true friends. I am as much thrilled to have a girl as I would have been to have a boy. Just that I was wrong!
Other updates
We are almost packed and move is scheduled for next week. With having lost my right hand (Minal that is) I was thinking of calling movers. But a bunch of friends have offered to help and this week is our last week in Framingham. I am sure we will miss the convenience of all stores, malls and restaurants within a couple of miles from our apartment. But then Royal Crest Estates is a nicer place where Minal will get enough ground for her walks and it will also be a pleasant location for our folks. That reminds me Minal's parents are scheduled to arrive next month. But we are thinking of moving their arrival out by another month since Minal won't stop traveling may be until middle of June.
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