Saturday, May 31, 2008

The first 60 hours

Things are going great! Here's a run down of the first 60 hours:





  • Heather has figured out Meera's cries: Low pitched and throaty is hungry, high pitched and breathy is other "bodily functions", middle pitched and more subtle is "Papi, you're changing my diaper again?!?!"



  • Meera is a very good baby. She communicates a lot, eats well, sleeps well and loves to be held. She slept for 4 hours in a row last night!


  • Owen loves to hold his baby sister. He always wants to take her out of the blanket and remove the onesie. If she was a toy, he'd try to take her apart to see how she works, but that's not happening, since he's extremely gentle and careful with her.

  • All on his own, Owen included Meera in nightly prayers.


  • Kyle doesn't want to hold her. Why? Because he's afraid he'll hurt her. He gets very very concerned when she's crying and tells mommy that baby Meera is hungry.

  • Yesterday when Meera was crying, all on his own, Kyle went and found the pacifier and gently put it in her mouth.

  • Kyle understands Meera has different cries and is pretty good at identifying them.



  • The staff at St. Lukes is wonderful.

  • The staff at St. Lukes pretty much takes it in stride when K & O "walk" around the place (walking = skipping as to avoid "running").

  • K & O both love the adjustable hospital bed.

  • K & O are both super sensitive with mommy's belly.

  • Meera has the sweetest baby smell and her skin is so soft.


Heather is truly a wonder. And I am not just being subjective. Heather labored for 9 hours on pitocin without any pain killers. No epidural, no codeine, no nothing. Just breathing and relaxing. During labor, the nurse asked her what her pain was from 1-10. Heather said a 6. Both the Doctor and the nurse looked askance and the nurse said: "I can't tell you what you're feeling of course, but most women right now would be screaming." Heather replied: "I am waiting for it to get really bad." The Doctor chimed in "well, I think this is about as bad as it will be."

She wound up going to plan C (where plan A was natural, plan B was induced): cesarean. I witnessed the whole thing, and it was something no words can describe. Note, I am not posting those pictures here.

Heather is recovering beautifully. She's up and about, dressed in her own clothes and we're hoping to be discharged today.

Thursday, May 29, 2008

She's here!


We are joyful and thrilled, Meera Grace Johnson-McCormick has joined the world!

Born at 10:21 PM EDT on 5/28/08
Weight: 8 lbs, 4 oz
Length: 19"

Both baby and mom are doing great, Kyle and Owen are ecstatic and Papi is overjoyed!





Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Moving forward and signing off - for now...

So - we're here at the hospital! The plan is for Heather to be induced tomorrow morning, and they have things starting tonight.

The next time we sign on - it'll hopefully be with news and a picture!

More of the same.

No baby.

We have an OB appointment today, so we'll see. It's only two days until it's 42 weeks.

Poor Heather is in a state of misery. She is beyond ready for the baby to be here. We all are, but she is the one with the baby in her belly and no control over getting this show on the road.

Monday, May 26, 2008

Status Update

Still nothing.

Sunday, May 25, 2008

Status Update

Still no baby.
I was having mild contractions (not Braxton Hicks, but not severe/intense) every 15 minutes for most of yesterday afternoon and evening. We were trying not to get our hopes up. Good thing, because we went to bed last night... and then... nothing. As of today -- 10 days past due date.

Status Update

Still nothin'!

I was having contractions every 15 minutes yesterday afternoon and evening. Went to bed. And then... nothing.

Saturday, May 24, 2008

It's 6:00 AM, we know where our baby is...

Still "in mommy's belly" with no signs of emerging any time soon.

9 days overdue and counting.

Friday, May 23, 2008

5 Things Meme

Tagged by Corey, playing because I'm 8 days past my due date and trying to pass the time.

1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read the player’s blog.
4. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.


What were you doing 5 years ago?
May of 2003... My sister had just had her baby, my only niece, so that was very special and at the forefront of my mind. Braydon and I were in the process of selling our first house and buying our second (current) house. We were also about to leave for a big vacation -- turned out to be the best vacation of our lives -- a cross-country road-trip through France. We were regularly talking about the idea of starting a family/adoption. I was big into cooking (my major hobby at the time), was experimenting with lots of different kinds of cuisine, and throwing lots of dinner parties. I was finishing up my 2nd year on the faculty at Lehigh.

What are 5 things on your to-do list for today?
I'm currently guest-editing a special volume for Sociological Studies of Children and Youth-- I need to take care of a bunch of stuff related to that project. Write thank-you notes for all the baby gifts. Remove the chipped nail polish from my fingernails. Switch K & O's clothes' closet over to summer clothes and put away all their winter clothes. Figure out what we're going to eat for dinner.

What are 5 snacks you enjoy?
Nachos. Popcorn. Chips and salsa. Crackers and cheese. Cashews. (yep, all salty - not sweet)

What 5 things would you do if you were a billionaire?
Buy a vacation home on Virgin Gorda, large enough to accommodate family/friends at any time. Put away enough money so that K, O, and Baby Sister will be all set to pay for whatever they may want to do re: long-term education. Donate a huge chunk to organizations/people on the ground in Haiti. Pay off all of our student loan debt and financially support Braydon's RVibe project so that he doesn't have to work his corporate job anymore. Give at least 1 million to my parents to do with whatever they please.

What are 5 of your bad habits?
Not sending thank-you notes. Procrastinating by reading people's blogs. Constantly letting the gas tank on the car get to 'empty.' Dragging my feet on grading (my students' papers/exams). Worrying about things I shouldn't worry about.

What are 5 places you have lived?
Freedom, NH. Waterville, ME. Charleston, SC. Jamaica Plain/Boston, MA. Bernardsville, NJ.

What are 5 jobs you have had?
Ice Cream Scooper. Lifeguard. Camp Counselor. Legal Case Manager. Research Assistant.

What 5 people do you want to tag?
1. Lori from Our Journey Through Everyday Life
2. Bek from Ignore the Crazy
3. Manmi from Chapter Two
4. Malia's Mama from Journey To/With My Daughter
5. Cindy from Ethiopian Tripletland

Status Update

8 days past due date. Still no baby.
I've crossed some sort of threshold and now I'm pretty miserable.

Thursday, May 22, 2008

One Week Since Due Date

Time keeps on tickin' tickin' tickin' into the future...

Here I am just a few minutes ago, one week overdue. Hopefully this is the last in the baby bump series.

Not much left to do but wait. In mid-February, after getting back from our trip to Florida, we realized that with only 3 months left to go we really should start getting ready for baby. Before then we'd done nothing. Literally nothing. So we made the TO-DO BEFORE MAY 15 list. Which morphed into the TO-DO BEFORE MAY 15 lists. Four of them, to be precise. When I look at what we've accomplished in the past 3 months -- on top of holding down the fort, holding down the careers, holding down the rambunctious twinados, and holding down Baby Sister... well, honestly, it amazes even me. The crossed off items range from "Set up maternity/paternity leaves" to "Buy new car (that can hold 3 kids)" to "Get crib from attic" to "Plan K & O's 4th BDay Party" to "Buy diapers." There are maybe 4-5 things that haven't been crossed off, but the rest is done.

On a lighter note: Strawberry season is upon us here in Pennsylvania. The strawberries are ripe and ready at all of our local farms. We've been eating them by the quart for the past 5 days. It makes me really happy to think that our girl will be born at the height of strawberry season!

Baby Sister's Room




Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Weighing In on Braydon's Post

The preggo one here... just weighing in. Couldn't help but comment on Braydon's post from earlier today (see post below this one)...

  • #4 sounds really good to me right now. I could really really really go for some good chicken parm. But the drive to Brooklyn isn't worth it to me.
  • No offense to all of you who have gone this route but... as far as I'm concerned... #5 is absolutely positively out of the question. I'm way sore and way achy with lots of pressure 'down there.' No other comment on that. Just not going to happen. No matter what. No way Jose. Not that desperate. Not 'gonna happen. Period.
  • And re: #13 -- again, no offense to all of you who swear by it.. but... um, no. I'm having a hard enough time already with the whole concept of machine operated pumping. Yes, we have a breast pump. Yes, I plan on using it. P.B. (post birth). Braydon's read the instruction manual cover to cover. If all goes as planned I'm gonna do it - for the sake of B, K, O, and Baby Sister (I/we dearly want Papi and Big Brothers to be able to feed her)... but pumping is not happening until she's here to (hopefully) motivate me to plug in and hook up. Period.
  • My favorite question I get all the time: "Have you tried walking?" ~~ Uh, yeah. I have wild high octane just-turned-4 year old twin boys... I haven't ever stopped walking/running/jumping/pulling/grabbing/scurrying/bending/leaning/climbing/chasing!?!!!

My goal all along has been to go as natural as possible. I'm still clinging to that goal. I'm holding out as long as possible to use induction only as a last resort. Luckily I've got my doctors and my husband on my side with that. I am still hopeful that Baby Sister will come when she's ready -- in her own sweet time. And as the matriarch of this testosterone filled house... I 'gotta admit: There's a part of me that's kinda enjoying watching my three guys go nutso having to wait for this girl (who clearly has a mind of her own)! Get used to it my fellas -- I have a feeling she's 'gonna have all three of you wrapped around her pretty little finger (and waiting for/on her) for many years to come!!!!

Some of the suggestions we've heard....

Now that Heather is overdue by 6 days, we've been hearing lots of great comments and suggestions around why the baby is late, the state of the baby, what other people's experiences have been and suggestions on how to bring on labor faster. A few are below. Would love to hear any others too!

  1. She's very comfortable in there
  2. She's going to be well baked
  3. The full moon induces labor
  4. If you eat chicken Parmesan from a specific restaurant in Brooklyn it induces labor within 30 minutes [that seems a bit risky to me]
  5. Sex will induce labor
  6. Hiking will induce labor
  7. Turns out that lots and lots of people were "late". [Which makes me wonder, if so many people are late, does that mean that really other people are early?]
  8. Don't listen to the doctors
  9. Listen to the doctors
  10. Take a hot shower, or get into a bath.
  11. Girls are always late
  12. Girls are always early
  13. Using the breast pump will start labor / stimulate the nipples
  14. Jump on a trampoline
  15. Ride on a bumpy road
  16. Drink castor oil [yuck!]
  17. Drink raspberry leaf tea
  18. Drink rose hips tea
  19. You're going to have to be induced
  20. You won't have to be induced

The doctor said it's a complex interplay of hormones between the mother, the placenta and the baby. They all have to work together to start labor. Needless to say, while informative, that does nothing to help with getting the ball rolling.

Status Update

The full moon has come and gone. Still no baby.

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Status Report

Nothin'!
Nothin'! Nothin'! Nothin'!

Went to my 41 week OB appointment yesterday afternoon -- 90% effaced (direct quote from the doctor: "Your cervix is as thin as paper"), 0 dilated.

Tonight there will be a full moon -- my parents swear that this will be the night. We shall see if Baby Sister agrees...
Here's hoping!!!

You 'Gotta Hurry Up and Play Before She Makes Her Grand Debut!
Guess Baby Sister's Name CONTEST!

Monday, May 19, 2008

Personal prayer from Owen

Every night we say prayers and we all repeat it together.  We've recently started adding a little personal prayer where each person talks to God followed by Amen.  Heather starts, then me, then Kyle and last is Owen.  In our little 1-time-is-a-ritual family, that's how we do it now - every night.  For this little personal prayer at the end all kinds of things come out:  "Thank you for school, I love it", "I love my Mommy and Papi", "Thank you Dear God, it was a beautiful day."

Tonight, after Owen rambled and said his prayer, he also said the following, completely unprompted. In fact, we've never used this phrase with him and are pretty sure no body else around here has either.

"...and please have the baby come out, because it's hurting in my heart. Amen"

Swinging - In and Out, In and Out, In and Out


We've been working on pumping skills (when swinging) lately. For as physically agile and ridiculously adept as Kyle and Owen are, their swinging-pumping skills have always been surprisingly lackluster. Given that they -- for example -- walked at 10 months, could hit golf balls very hard and very far at 14 months (hard and far enough that one of Kyle's hits from the front yard broke a window in our house), were shooting hoops to a full height basket at 18 months, were riding Razor scooters (and doing tricks on them) at 24 months, were diving swan dives off the ledge of the pool (and swimming underwater the width of the pool) at 2 years 2 months, were snorkeling in the open Caribbean when they were barely 3, and are now hitting baseballs into the neighbors' yards at barely 4... (... you get the drift...)... you'd think that they could pump on a swing. But no. So lately we've been really trying to get them to grasp the whole pumping concept: in and out, in and out, in and out. Really, I think they just really like being pushed and have no motivation to learn to pump. But with a lot of coaching and a lot of coaxing, they are starting to get better at it. This weekend we saw their swinging skillz greatly improve. And I see this as a metaphor for the weekend for all of us: in and out, in and out, in and out.

Our emotions are like four pendulums, our tempers are swinging, our patience is swaying, etc. Again, you get the drift -- lots of fussing, screaming, tantruming, dropping-onto-the-floor-in-a-weeping-heap (I'm speaking both literally and figuratively for all four of us here!). But also lots of moments of sweet contentment, sheer happiness, empathy, and pulling together too. Kyle kisses my belly hundreds of times a day just at random, and tells me "Mommy, I love that baby inside there." Owen talks gently to the baby regularly trying to convince her to "get out of there." In hopes to find inspiration for tolerance, Braydon is back to re-reading our favorite parenting book of all time (the perfect owners manual for our particular twinados; OMG are our boys ever classic textbook SSpirited with a double capital 'S') -- Raising Your Spirited Child (click here). And I'm just basically using every single bit of self-control I have in me to try to remain calm amidst the storm. K & O are trying to be good for their frazzled parents (which is a lot for them, all things considered). And Braydon and I are trying to keep up with our wild high-energy pushing-pushing-pushing boys (which is a lot for us, all things considered). I feel like we're all in and out, in and out, in and out. And not usually swinging in coordination with one another. But we're dealing. And trying to pass the time. What else are we supposed to do?

The truth is, this is nothing compared to the waiting that we went through (all four of us) during our adoption. Nothing, absolutely nothing, compares to that. This just pales in comparison. Pales. I think about that constantly. I can't really speak for what K & O must have gone through (I hate to even let myself think about what those first eight months of life were like for them). So I'll only speak for myself here. But I can confidently say: I'd take the in-and-out, in-and-out, in-and-out emotional rollercoaster of physical discomfort, aches and pains, feeling like a beached whale, hard-to-sleep, everyone-on-the-edge-of-their-seat, trying-to-pass-time, 4-days-passed-the-due-date, weirdness of this melodrama over the in-and-out, in-and-out, in-and-out emotional rollercoaster of a literal ticking-clock, life-or-death, tiny-babies-barely-surviving-in-a-Haitian-orphanage, no-end-in-sight, sleepless nights melodrama of our Haitian adoption process any day of the week. Seriously. I'm sorry if that offends anyone out there who just doesn't get it. But it is the honest to God truth. After having gone through what we went through (and knowing the stories of so many others who have gone through much worse), I have a hard time complaining about this. It is all relative. So, at the end of the day (or the end of a very loooong past-due-date weekend, as the case may be), and at the end of this pregnancy (hopefully the end!!!!!!!!!!!) I really can't bear to complain. It just feels foolish to me -- the idea of complaining about something so relatively easy. Yes, being 9 months + 4 days pregnant kind of sucks. Yes, I'm ready to be done with this. Yes, I kind of want to spend the entire day napping. Yes, I kind of wish someone would devote themselves to catering to my every whim for the remainder of this baby-countdown. But it really isn't that bad. In comparison... it really, really isn't. And so we just keep swinging.

Here are some random (very random!) shots from the weekend. Our good camera is packed for the hospital, so we just have our old camera out -- and our photo taking has been sporadic, at best.







In other news -- interestingly, June was back with us pretty much full-time this weekend. (For those of you who don't know about K & O's imaginary friend click here for one of many posts where we have written about her.) Here are some fun facts that I've learned about June these past couple of days:

  • June's bike is black
  • June's raincoat is gray
  • June's rainboots are blue and green
  • When June "has a pee pee accident in the night" (i.e., wets her bed) she "cleans herself up all by herself"
  • When June goes out to lunch with us she always orders macaroni and cheese, if at all possible
  • When June goes out to lunch with us at California Tortilla (where mac 'n cheese is not possible) she chooses an Oatmeal Raisin cookie over a brownie for dessert after she finishes her burrito (just like K & O)
  • June has her own bedroom -- it is between Kyle and Owen's bedrooms
  • June has a peace crane hanging from the ceiling in her bedroom -- just like K & O do
  • June is not good at pumping
  • June is not K & O's sister
  • June is not going to be allowed to hold Baby Sister (she'll have her own baby)
  • June's age is variable depending on what we (or she) is doing at any given moment -- sometimes she's 4, sometimes 10, sometimes (often) she's 35 or 36. And every once in a while, June is "tweety" years old (see below)
  • June does not know how to snap, but she is trying to learn (see below)


And here's some more recent random info from our neck of the woods -- The Latest Re: K & O Twinspeak (click here for another post on this topic)

  • "Tweety" (not to be mistaken for the word 'twenty' -- how dare you!!!!!) is a number. This number is 100% made up by K & O and does not resemble any other number known to humankind, and yet is used in their language many times every day. From what I can gather, it means 'many' or 'a lot' or 'a high number' or 'infinite.' But, importantly, it is also fluid (i.e., it is not a fixed number and can fluctuate depending on the circumstance). It is not interchanged with any other word and does not replace any real number. Examples --there are tweety caterpillars swarming around in the nest in the tree in the front yard; the ocean has tweety fish in it; a car driving too fast is driving tweety [mph] on the road; David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez (red sox) can hit the baseball tweety far; Tiger Woods can hit the golfball tweety; a very old man might be tweety years old; sometimes June is tweety years old (when she gets to do something that K & O are not allowed to do, such as cook by herself on the hot stove); K & O are so hungry that they want to eat tweety cheese; Papi is so funny that he is tweety funny; and my favorite... K & O "love Mommy tweety times around."
  • "Snap!" is a remark. Owen can snap his fingers to make a loud snap sound. Kyle cannot. Snapping has become a big thing around here. The word "snap" is now part of K & O's twinspeak. To say "snap!" while motioning a snap motion with their fingers in someone's face (sound or not), indicates something along the lines of either 'awesome! you're totally cool! hip hip hooray!' or 'bummer! you're a total drag! boo to you!' Examples -- I say, "I have an idea! Let's go play outside!" and I get two quick loud punctuated verbal "SNAP!"'s along with both boys jumping up and doing the snapping hand motion fast and furious in my face as they run toward the door; I say, "No, we're going to eat dinner soon, you cannot have any cheese!" and I get two quick loud punctuated verbal "SNAP!"'s along with both boys jumping up and doing the snapping hand motion fast and furious in my face as they give me the hairy eyeball and saunter off to the playroom; Kyle does something rude to Owen and he gets the "SNAP!" in response; Owen suggests some fun pretend game to Kyle and he gets the "SNAP!" in response; sometimes they'll be chattering together in the backseat of the car and suddenly they'll both do the "SNAP!" at the same time (in the midst of talking about something super cool or something that they think is a super downer).

O.k., that's it for today. Blogging can now officially be counted as one of my "things to do to pass time waiting for baby"!!! We know that many of you are checking in here for updates -- 697 of you yesterday, to be exact. We feel very checked-in-after, and I've gotta say-- it feels good! Thank you! Don't fret -- we'll keep you updated! ;)

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Status Report

Nada!
We are in a holding pattern just trying to pass the time.
Still no baby!!!!

Status report

Heather is really, really ready. The baby is clearly not.

Saturday, May 17, 2008

Status Report

No baby.

Friday, May 16, 2008

Spring Rain

Day After Due Date: Still no baby. It was pouring rain all day today. We had a great day!










Thursday, May 15, 2008

May 15

We know that many of you are checking in on us -- Braydon checked our blog meter last night and it showed that yesterday alone over 575 people visited our blog -- thank you for thinking of us. Status as of today: STILL NO BABY! ;-0

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Hunkering Down



Well, tomorrow is May 15, my due date. Things are getting kind of... how shall I put it?... intense... around here. We are bracing for what is about to come. We are so ready for this baby.

The photo above was taken in early September when we were at Assateague Island (see posts from September 4). It was an incredibly great weekend for our family. Just incredibly, incredibly great. By the end of the weekend we were all rejuvenated and exhausted at the same time. I remember sleeping in the car for over three hours straight on the drive home -- the boys were sleeping too -- but Braydon and I thought it was so odd (very, very rare) for me to be so sound asleep for so long in the car. Little did we know then that I was pregnant. What a surprise when we found out the following weekend -- on Saturday night, September 8 -- from a store-bought pregnancy test, that we were going to have a baby. I had been dragging and queasy and feeling funky all week. Braydon bought the test on a whim thinking, 'could she be pregnant????' But neither of us really thought it could be. But it was. Talk about shocking! We were totally and completely utterly shocked. And now, nine months later, here we are. Hunkering down, trying to hold strong together, just waiting for her arrival.

The picture of K & O above portrays perfectly to me what it feels like they're doing right now. When I think about what they're going through, I think about this photo in my mind. They are so anxious and so excited and so nervous and so full of anticipation about this huge life event that is about to unfold. In the face of it they pull together, sit tight, and face the wave head-on. The past few days they've been on edge-- Kyle, especially, has been melting down left and right. They are just little bundles of raw nerves and emotions, so ready for this waiting-for-Baby-Sister phase to be done. So ready for her to, as they put it, "come out." In the past 24 hours we've been talking about it a lot with them. They verbalize many, many things about their feelings. They're frustrated that she's not born yet; they're worried she won't be born; they're worried she won't be able to "really be theirs" when she's born; they're worried Mommy and Papi won't be their Mommy and Papi anymore after she's born; they're nervous about the baby breast feeding; they're nervous about Papi feeding the baby a bottle; they're anxious about Mommy having to be in the hospital; they're frustrated that they don't know how much longer it will be; they're excited about the baby coming soon; they're "super excited" about bringing the baby home; they're jealous that their friend at school now has his baby sister and they don't have theirs yet; they feel like they "can't wait any more" and they feel like "it is taking too long." Talking about it really seems to help. The more we talk about it, the calmer and more even-keeled our emotionally charged boys are. So we talk about it. A lot. Mostly, though, I just see and sense their inner selves hunkering down. None of us know -- really -- what this new chapter will bring. It is so unknown for all of us. But for K & O especially, it is so very unknown. They are so incredibly excited and wanting this, but so incredibly bracing for whatever it may be too. Not really knowing. It is just like that photo above. They so love the splash and salt and rush and strength and full-sensation of that big wave crashing over them. They anticipate face-forward and eyes wide open the power of it, the adventure, the excitement, the drama, the life-force of it. They pull tight together in anticipation -- their natural instinctive and learned reaction to all such things. And yet there they sit, two tiny little guys, amidst the hugeness of it all, the gravity of it, everything swirling around them, two little souls, trying to hold steady on shifting ground, just hoping that Mommy and Papi are right there behind them. But not turning back. They are so strong and so fragile all at once. They are so individual and so united all at once. They are so full of all that is good, hard, blissful, and scary in life... all at once. And the wave crashes on them. And they scream with thrill and squint their eyes and spit out the salt and run back to hunker down for the next wave.

It does feel now that Baby Sister will come at any moment. The physical signs are all there (according to me and my doctor). The emotion of it is in full swing, clearly. And Braydon and I are hunkering down too. It feels imminent. It feels scary. It feels content. It feels intense. It feels certain and uncertain. I remember when we looked at that pregnancy test in September and it was -- shockingly -- positive. We were in our bedroom and the boys were asleep in their beds. My first reaction was to realize that tears were springing from my eyes. I was surprised at myself because they were tears of sheer happiness. My very first conscious thought was, "Yes, this is exactly right, now our family will be complete." The thought surprised me. I can't explain why I would have that feeling. But I still do. This feels like the completing of our family. No matter how unplanned or how illogical... or how unusual our family will be... this will -- at least for as far as our minds' eyes can see -- complete our family. This big wave is about to hit. We hunker down and wait. So much uncertainty swirls around us. Only two things are for certain: life for us four is about to get even more rich, and this little baby is going to have quite an interesting life.

Monday, May 12, 2008

Some kite-flying napping fun

While Heather napped a little on Mother's Day afternoon, the boys had a little kite-flying fun in the front yard.  After that we played whiffle ball (which means I pitched the ball to them for about 45 minutes).


Sunday, May 11, 2008

Friday, May 09, 2008

contest!

Our first ever
Johnson-McCormick Family Blog
Contest!!!
**************
What do you think Baby's Sister's name is going to be???
Leave your guess in the comments below~
~the first person to guess correctly wins!
*****
Grand Prize is...
drumroll please...
a personal phone call from the two Big Brothers to congratulate you on your big win! No matter where in the world you live, as long as you have some sort of phone, they will call you! (and believe us, that is an experience worth playing for!)
*****
Rules
  • Multiple family members can play, but only one guess per person
  • To play you must leave some sort of name or identifying information so that we can announce 'you' as the winner if you win (in other words, no purely anonymous comments will be posted)
  • There exist a handful of people out there in the world who already know the name -- you are ineligible and are not allowed to play!
    • *****
      Contest is on until Baby Sister's arrival!
      *****
      Latest blog meter stats tell us that at this point we have between 450-500 readers per day (who would have ever thunk that?!?!). Anyhoo, what this tells us is that there are a lot of you out there who are reading. Click on 'comments' to play folks! We may never have another contest again! It is time to come out of the woodwork!
      **************
      P.S. There was a clue in our post from May 1...

      K & O's 'Sibling Class' at the Hospital

      Last night was K & O's Sibling Class at the hospital where Baby Sister will be born. We had signed the boys up for this one-night "class" through the same organization where Braydon and I took our Lamaze class (CES, click here) -- K & O even had the same great teacher/nurse that taught us Lamaze, "Nurse Barb." It was a terrific kid-friendly class. Nurse Barb read them a book about how babies are born, she showed them a movie about the roller coaster of emotions that come with having a new baby enter the family, and they got a tour of the hospital baby/maternity wing where Baby Sister will make her debut.

      The kids got to wear scrubs, etc., but Owen did not want anything covering his "I'm Going To Be A Big Brother!" t-shirt. (!) Kyle was thrilled (and took it very seriously) to dress like a "real doctor!"

      *

      In one of the labor/delivery rooms Nurse Barb used a special doll with a baby in its belly to demonstrate the whole process. K & O knew all about this already, but still they were absolutely enthralled with the whole thing.

      *

      Kyle was so incredibly excited while we were on the tour of the hospital. He would go listen to Nurse Barb for awhile and then come back to find Braydon and I -- jumping/prancing/grinning-ear-to-ear -- just so excited he was about to bust at the seams.

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      The boys' favorite part was when they got to look through the windows into the nursery to see the "real just born babies!" They were so taken with this. They could have stayed there forever.

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      They could not get enough of looking at the babies. We had to literally pull them away from the windows when it was time to go.

      *

      This morning when Kyle woke up he came stumbling into our bedroom as he always does. He climbed into bed and the first thing he said was, "Mommy, are you ready for the baby to come out?" A few minutes later, this was the conversation~~ (note for new blog readers: June is K & O's imaginary friend)~~
      Kyle: Mommy, I am excited about Baby Sister. But June is not excited. She's feeling mad.
      Heather: Oh! Why is June mad?
      K: Because Kyle and Owen and Papi and Mommy are going to feed our baby. But not June. She can't feed her. So she's mad.
      H: Oh, she's mad about that? Is she feeling jealous?
      K: Yes. But June has her own baby.
      H: Oh! What's June's baby's name?
      K: Her name is 'Baby Sister'
      H: Oh!
      K: She is inside June's belly. Right Owen?
      O: That's right!
      K: And she will be born very soon. So, she'll have her own baby and we will have our own baby.

      We're getting very close to the due date (6 days away), and I feel like it could be any minute now. I caught a cold from the boys this week, so I'm feeling under the weather with sore throat, runny nose, low-energy, etc. I am hoping to get rid of this cold fast so that it will be gone before I go into labor. But now that K & O's birthday has come and gone they are all set for their sister's arrival. In late December when we told them they were going to be big brothers May seemed soooooooooo far away!!! And, here we are.