Still here!

Tomorrow is the due date of Baby Two, and we are still in a holding pattern. I'm feeling perfectly good, and the baby seems totally content in there, so basically it is "just another day."

Also, by not having the baby early, two of us have been able to go on a "date night" to see Avatar in 3-D (fun! totally worth seeing on the big screen) and also three of us did a really pleasant leisurely breakfast at a friend's place. Cooper was a shockingly delightful breakfast guest and availed himself of ample pancakes and a huge mug of milk while sitting very nicely in an adult chair. "Numm! Pah-shakes!"

How remarkably civilized. We figure if we're gonna have extra time before being faced with the challenges of a newborn, we might as well make it fun for everyone.

Really?

Really? Cottage cheese and oreos don't constitute a fully nutritionally balanced lunch?

Oh well. Too late now.

Bun is done

It is official, the bun is done. At my midwife visit yesterday, she declared that her personal opinion was that baby was fully cooked and ready for prime time. Thankfully, she also said that baby seems to be in a better position than last week (rotated a little more into the right spot). Baby and I are still doing really well, health wise, so there is no rush. But we're all hoping to get this kid out before it grows much more. It isn't scientific, but the consensus is that I'm cooking another 8 1/2 to 9lb child. So no need to wait! Show-on-road! Get 'er done!

We'll see.

Can't rush perfection. :)

Videos not working

Dang.

Not sure why those videos are not working. I'll work on it soon!

In the mean time, here is a link to the second one;
Cooper demands More!

Also, I am still pregnant, and maintaining a solidly positive attitude. So that is good!

Cooper's first day of skiing!

We took Cooper up to the local ski hill today and it was a huge success! After the extremely predictable tantrum in the lodge (he HATES when we put on his ski pants, despite them fitting well and looking really awesome) we headed to the little bunny hill.

Matt started off by taking a run so Cooper could see how it works, with me narrating while we watched, in the hopes that it would help Cooper figure out the process. "See, Dada goes up the hill next to the rope, and then he turns around, and then he uses his skiis to glide back down! On snow! He's having fun!"

Cooper, being the cautious and nervous little guy that he is, wasn't really sold. But he had gotten used to wearing his boots by then, so that was a good start. Matt then took Cooper on three short runs just carrying the little guy in his arms. That was met with a lot of enthusiasm for the general process, but screams of protest for the cold wet snow in his face. However, each run ended with a smile. We took that as a very good sign.

In this video, the word that Cooper says is "Skiis." Awesome.



After the first couple runs went pretty well, we upped the ante and put Cooper's teensy weensy little skiis on, and Matt took him on his maiden voyage. Cooper refused to put any weight on his feet, and he screeched the whole way down to complain about the snow and wind on his face. But when Matt stopped at the bottom, we'd ask "All done?" or "Do you want to stay with Mama?" and Cooper emphatically said... No! More!

In case you are not familiar with Cooper-speak, the word "more" is used mostly as the word "again," as in... let's do it again! So when he kept saying "More!" it was absolute music to our ears. Matt and Cooper ended up doing two long runs on skiis, and then one short run before I got worried about how cold Cooper's nose and cheeks were. Don't want him to remember the cold more than he remembers the fun, of course.

Naturally, I've rarely seen Matt more excited about anything in his life then Cooper's first day on skiis. We both were really surprised at how well things went, given Cooper's tendency towards getting very worked up over new experiences. When we were back at the lodge afterwards, Cooper even refused to let me take off his boots- a very good sign! He enjoyed a post-ski snack of raisins and cheese puffs, and then we all went home for a nap.

Enjoy the short video of his second successful run! You can faintly hear Cooper whining about the snow in his face for almost the whole video, and also at the start you can hear me giggling over the fact that he's like a little siren even though we could tell he was having fun.

What term looks like

One week to go, and I look like this. Yes, still smiling. I'm doing very well given the, shall we say, rather burdensome front end loading.

Sleepytime

Cooper gets better and better at going to bed peacefully as he gets older. Right now, he's a total dream- bath, toothbrushing, pajamas, read a story, turn off the lights, give him a kiss, and put him in his bed. Done. See ya in 12 to 13 hours, buddy.

Last night after we had rearranged some furniture, Cooper seemed a little nervous about the arrangements. There is now a particular large chair in his room, which he calls a couch, and which he was puzzled by having in his room. So after the whole bedtime routine, I put him in his crib and pulled his blankey up over him just right, and went to walk out. As he snuggled into his blanket, he said, "Bye bye mama. Bye bye dada. Bye bye doggie. Bye bye couch."

Attack of the capris

Again, somehow, our child is wearing mostly capri pants. And I don't think we've accidentally moved to Florida.

Matt commented as I was complaining that Cooper's cute fleece pants (that I made for him) were grown out of too quickly, "Next time, make them so that you can let out the hem as he grows. His butt never gets any bigger, anyway."

This is true. He still wears some of the same cloth diaper covers from when he was three months old. Really. They are just on the last snaps, instead of the first. That's nearly two years of having approximately the same size bottom.

Return of the stink-eye

Last time, around this point, I got a serious talking-to from my doula about not yet having newborn diapers. In a nice way, of course, but I think she was worried that I wasn't prepared in more than just that way. Of course, we ended up doing fine (both in diapers, and in general preparedness).

This time, my midwife gave me a serious "you need to get your act together, young lady" talk about a few things (birth certificate worksheet, frozen lasagna, and other necessities of life according to her practice). I was chagrined. Yes, I've been putting off some stuff. I just have no sense of urgency yet. I know that's a little insane, considering I'm due in about two weeks, but I just, well, don't think I'm having this kid for at least another week.

For some reason, I keep thinking I'll have the kid on the 25th. I have no idea why. But if I end up having it on the 25th, or at least going into labor on the 25th and dragging it out until the 26th, then I will be fairly impressed with myself. You may feel free to make a note of this prediction and see if it comes true.

Cooper today pointed to my belly and started talking about the baby (baby sleepy, baby mama belly, etc). The baby kicked as Cooper was clearly looking at my belly, and I asked, "Can you see the baby?"

He looked at me like I was totally off my nut. "Noooo!" Tone of complete indignation.

Matt laughed. "You are right. None of us can truly SEE the baby. Good job keeping us honest, Cooper."

Nephew details

I'm so glad to be able to report that the nephew's induction was apparently really smooth, and everyone is doing very well. Having heard some rough things about induction, I'm glad that this was quite "textbook" and the birth was very simple and quick. Turns out she was induced because she'd going into strong, yet false, labor periodically for about two weeks. Oooof! That sounds very unpleasant to me.

My mother-in-law reports that everyone is heading home from the hospital this afternoon. Congratulations again! I can't wait for more photos.

Welcome Noah Michael!

My nephew was born in the early evening last night- Noah Michael "Rad" (because by odd chance, we are 3/4ths "R"s around here- either Rad... or Rag...). Weighing in at a sweet 6lbs 7oz, he looks super cute in the one picture I've seen so far. I don't know how the birth went, but I hope all is well and of course I'm so excited for them!

Welcome, Noah!

Nephew news coming soon

The due date for my new nephew passed as of Monday, and I found out a few hours ago that my sister-in-law is getting induced sometime today. I hope all goes smoothly for everyone! I'm very excited for them.

More news later, I am sure!

What is a name?

OMG. My townspeople are at it again.

Recent boys names of note:
Kipten
Breckin
Tarrick
Styles
Trayzen

And girls? Less is more? Seriously.
Aleeonna
Bexley
Skadi'Jun

Please note that according to my self imposed standards, I never make fun of children of single moms or children of couples with obviously very unusual or ethnic names themselves. For instance, I will give a complete pass to the child named "Yum" (yes, really) because the parents have very unusual Asian names and I suspect this might be a perfectly respectable first name given their evident non-caucasian ethnic heritage. However, if you name an innocent baby girl Skadi'Jun and you are named something to the effect of Bob and Susan, I feel totally justified.

A bunch of sissies?

I'm writing this mostly for my mom, who will need to decode some of Cooper's most abstract words when she comes to visit in February.

Here are Cooper's most challenging, yet crucial, words that do not closely resemble the words that they are used for.

Boo-boo: Cooper's own name for himself
Sissy, or Cee-cee: precious yellow sacred blanket
See-sez: Kisses
Ah-dee: Water
Daa-doos: Pajamas
Doo-doos: Cookies (usually used when requesting to give the dog a dog biscuit for fun, which he is allowed to do up to twice a day)
Owl or Owww: either Towel, Dishcloth, Owl, or Penguin. Typically obvious from context. Often used to indicate that bathtime should be over i.e. demanding to be put in a towel.
Boop!: "I pooped" or "I just heard you fart" depending on context. You can't get away with anything around here.... :)

Almost all his other words closely resemble the word they really are, or are getting more accurate with time. And his newer words are usually stunningly good, like when he recently learned the words ostrich, mountain goat, turkey and donkey all in one day. Because learning truly useful words would be so boooooring.

The horse apples tree

Cooper loves apples. He loves horses. And he loves trees.

So when he noticed that there is a picture in one of our books that has a horse under an apple tree eating a fallen apple, he was in heaven.

Unfortunately, somehow his brain has wired itself to say "Horse apple tree!" instead of "Apple Tree Horse!" or even, neutrally, "Apple Horse Tree!"

And of course, he says it incessantly as soon as that book is spied on the shelf, or even just when I serve him sliced apples, or sometimes sliced mozzarella because he often mistakes that for sliced apples until it is placed on the table.

And all I can imagine, every time he proudly exclaims "Horse apple tree!" is big wet clumps of fresh horse poop falling out of a tree. Eww.

Baby's first expletive

We all knew it would be my fault.

I've been really, really trying to reign in my potty mouth around Cooper. It is hard, because I have become such a conversational curser, and that is no good. Everyone has flaws, right? Mine just happens to be really bad if you have a speech developing toddler in the house.

So you have to picture the moment. I'm gigantically pregnant, it is truly 3 degrees outside, we have about 15 feet of slippery icy snowy expanse to negotiate from car to front door of day care. It is 7:50am- still almost dark. I get Cooper out of the car seat and up and in one arm while I have his special daycare bag over my other arm, and his precious yellow blanket draped over my shoulder. And as I close the door to the car, the blanket slips on my slick down jacket and falls into a heap of soft snow on the ground. "Oh, shit." I muttered angrily, realizing that the blanket was now both where I can hardly reach, and covered in snow- with no real way for me to shake it out until I get inside, which is kinda rude.

And of course, Cooper just started parroting us in the last week or two. He's getting very funny about it, and quite accurate most of the time.

So right next to my ear, Cooper mutters under his breath... "Oh, shit." Inflection was perfect. Pronounciation- flawless. My surpressed laughing (don't reinforce! don't reinforce!) nearly made me pee myself.

I walk in and say hi to the daycare owner, Shane, as he is tending to some other kids. I tell him, laughing, that Cooper's had his first spoken expletive. Shane smiles beautifically at me (the man is like a zen master) and says in just the right funny tone of sarcasm and yet appreciation, "Awwww... another big milestone for the Cooper man."

36 weeks

Baby Two is now thirty six weeks along. Favorite activities include hiccuping, growing, kicking, and squirming. According to my midwife, baby probably already weighs a solid 6lbs or more, and she guesses I'll give birth to another kid around 8 to 9 lbs, in about 3 week. She follows that up with, "Of course, you can never tell, and your baby could be much bigger or much smaller, and you could have it later or sooner than that."

Thanks. At least she's honest.

Like last time, baby is very active and is positioned in the vertex-posterior position, which translates to baby is upside down (that's good) and has its feet towards my belly button and spine to my spine (not so good). Note that this position (spine to spine) isn't actually bad, really. Just uncomfortable, and prone to making labor last a bit longer and sometimes, with some people, more likely to cause back labor. So let's call it sub-optimal without being bad.

For the record, Cooper was vertex posterior from about 35 weeks, until about 5 hours prior to the moment of his birth. He spent most of his time which I was laboring like that, and then swiveled into the best possible position right near the end. I think actively managing his position through various tricky midwife and doula suggested techniques is what ended up getting him to shuffle around just in time.

Nappus interruptus

Cooper's napping has been erratic lately, and it is making me batty. He's been waking up at one hour into his nap, and then whining for up to 30 minutes, and then falling back asleep for between 30 minutes to even up to 2 and a half more hours. It is kinda miserable and I wish I knew why that one hour wakeup was happening.

The worst is when he gets angry during the wakeup and throws his stuffed dog out of the crib. That ends the nap for the day, and Matt or I end up with a grumpy, exhausted and groggy toddler. Attempts to hand the dog back to him and get him to fall back to sleep during his naptime have succeeded only once in historical record.

Welcome to 2010

On the behalf of all the members of the Radwood family... happy new year!

If you want to know our current monikers in Cooper-speak, they are; Mama, Dada, Boo boo, Bay-bee sleezy, Ucky Dawh-ghee / Beet Dawh-ghee, and 'En Schiz-schens

However, if adult english is preferred, go with; Mom, Dad, Cooper, New baby (dubbed "Baby sleeping" for unknown reasons), Lucky Dog (or Big Dog), and the Hen Chickens.