Merry Christmas!

John, Nicolaus and I wish all our family and friends a Very Merry Christmas!

Milestones

Last week was full of milestones for little Nicolaus. Not only did he turn one month old, but at his appointment with our pediatrician, he weighed 11.1 lbs and is 22 inches long. John gave Nicolaus his first bottle which he guzzled down. Now every evening when John comes home he gives Nicolaus his nightime feeding. Not only is this great bonding between father and son, but it gives me a little break too. On Sunday we took Nicolaus to his first party. Of course he looked dapper in his Christmas outfit and was the star of the party. Nicolaus is awake and alert for longer periods of time and is starting to enjoy some of his toys.

One Month Old!

Nicolaus is one month old today! My my how time flies...and Nicolaus looks pretty excited about it too.

Splish Splash

We are so happy Nicolaus likes bath time. With all the spit up going on, I am pretty sure he'll be spending lots of time in the tub!

Our First Family Thanksgiving

Yesterday we celebrated our first Thanksgiving as a family of 3 and we certainly are ever so thankful of everything we have been blessed with this year...most of all the birth of little Nicolaus. John cooked the entire meal complete with a turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, grean bean casserole and buttermilk dinner rolls he made from scratch. I really do have the best husband in the world! Everything was delicious. We were so tired by the end of the day though that we waited to have our pumpkin pie for breakfast this morning. We hope all our family and friends had a blessed Thanksgiving and continue to have a happy holiday season.

It's a Boy!

After nearly 15 hours of active labor, Nicolaus Hunter arrived 11/11/2008 at 12:15pm weighing 9lbs 3oz via C-Section. We are completely taken with our little (ok not so little!) boy and though cliche sounding, it is so true that words cannot describe how it feels to be parents.

My water broke at 7:30 pm Monday evening. John had been working late since he was to stay home one Tuesday for our next OB appointmnet. When I called him to let him know, he dropped everything at work, left the office in a rush, and actually got pulled over on the way! He told the officer the situation and thank goodness he let him continue with no ticket. We checked into the hospital at 9:30pm and my contractions had pretty much just started. We really wanted a natural labor and brought with us things to assist in that like a birthing ball etc, but things just were not moving along when I reached about 7-8 cm. They put me on Pitocin and finally reached 9 cm but stayed there. This baby was not coming out! My OB advised us to have a C-Section and of course we agreed. So 15 hours of laboring without meds ended when they prepped me, wheeled me into the operating room and gave me a spinal. The C-Section experience was a blur and scary since John wasn't able to come in till right before they cut me open. I could feel pressure and things going on for a few minutes--even the doctors and nurses making bets on the baby's size--until they said, "here's the head with a ton of hair," and then a few seconds later, "It's a boy!" John and I just looked at each other crying. Nicolaus was finally here. John cut the cord and followed the team of doctors and nurses to the nursery while they finished me up and we were reunited about an hour later. We knew we were having a fairly large baby, but no one would have ever thought a 9 pounder. He is beautiful and perfect.

Happy Anniversary!

Four years ago today I married my best friend and soulmate. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful man in my life. I cannot wait for our little one to be a part of our love. I just thought I'd share a few pictures from our special day.

We've Been Boo'ed

For Halloween, the members of the Mom's Club I recently joined are "BOO-ing" eachother. Basically you secretly leave some sort of Halloween themed goodies at another members' house without them knowing. Look what was waiting for me when I got home yesterday... Thank you to my secret pal!

Also, the nursery is 99% complete! I say 99% because we are waiting till after s/he is born to put up window coverings and artwork as these will be different depending on whether we have a boy or girl. I am in love with the nursery. I have already spent several hours knitting in the glider.

Presidential Debate

The debate was so thrilling last night...just look at the excitement on these faces only 5 minutes after the discussion began.

Blankie Finished!

I finally finished the blanket for Baby Pedersen to go with the pumpkin hat. I wanted something special made by his/her mommy to wear home from the hospital. Both the blanket and the hat are organic cotton from Blue Sky Alpacas. I am so happy with how they turned out. If interested, the blanket is my own modification of the Tiramisu Blanket pattern by Alicia Paulson. The Pumkin Hat is is a pattern from Lettuce Knit that was in my Stitch-N-Bitch knitting calendar.

Month 8

Honeydew



Baby’s senses are continuing to improve -- when light peeks in through your (extremely) stretched belly, those tiny eyelids and irises blink and dilate. And, baby can now recognize and react to simple songs… time to start practicing your lullabies! Growth (at least inside your womb) is starting to slow, and you may notice baby descend into your pelvis at the end of this month.

So Baby Pedersen is now the size of a Honeydew. And s/he certainly does react to light. Occasionally John and I will shine a flashlight into my belly and s/he will move all around and try to figure out what is going on. John doesn't like to do that though...he thinks he is hurting the baby.

Nursery Painted

Just wanted to share pictures of our painted nursery. I love, love, love how it turned out. John did an awesome job on the wainscoting. Now we just need window treatments, furniture and, of course, a baby!

Baby Shower

My mom and my sister hosted a wonderful shower on Saturday. The theme was Baby Pedersen County Fair and everything was so cute! From the wagon full of gifts, haybails and farm animals to the fair fare, they sure did not miss a beat. To top it all off, Amy baked 2 cakes -- a little pig and a little lamb. They were both delicious and John and I are enjoying finishing them off at home. Thank you to all our family in friends for your generous gifts. They are much appreciated. I am including a few pictures here, but if you would like to see them all, e-mail me and I will send them to you.

My 1st Sock!

One of my goals this year was to learn how to knit socks. Over the last few weeks I have been in a beginners sock class and I am proud to say I finished my first sock this morning. Now lets hope I can knit a 2nd one to go with it so I can have a pair! I love the colors in the yarn...it really makes me think of th eupcoming fall season. In case anyone is wondering, the yarn is Noro Kureyon sock yarn # 185 and I used size 3 dpns.

Been Fishin'

3rd Trimester

Today is the first day of my 3rd Trimester. I can't believe it! After going through 2 miscarriages, John and I are so blessed to be at this stage and we cannot wait to meet our little baby boy or girl. Part of me wants this last phase of pregnancy to go by quickly because I feel and look bigger every day. But the other part of me wants the time to pass by slowly because there is still so much to do and I feel like I will never be ready. Those are normal feelings though I am sure. My Gestational Diabetes test is next week and I am a bit nervous for that. Ever since the begining of the pregnancy, I have had quite the sweet tooth. I feel good though and really try not to over-indulge. At least the Holidays will be after Baby Pedersen is born!

99

There are 99 days left until my EDD (Estimated Date of Delivery). I really can't believe how fast the 2nd Trimester is flying by after the 1st Trimester seemed to move at a snail's pace.

Some interesting factoids about the number 99 from Wikipedia:

- 99 (ninety-nine) is the natural number following 98 and preceding 100.
- 99 is the ninth repdigit, a palindromic number and a Kaprekar number. It is the sum of divisors of the first eleven positive integers.
- Einsteinium, an actinide, has the atomic number of 99
- Several songs have the number 99 in their title:
99, a 1979 song by Toto
99 Bottles of Beer, a traditional American children's song
99 Problems, a 2004 song by Rapper Jay-Z.

- There is also 99 Records, a record label; ninetynine, an Australian indie band; and Pompeii 99, a rock band inspired byFleetwood Mac.
- 99 is the NBA record for Most Free Throw Attempts in a 7-game series, set by Elgin Baylor of the LA Lakers in 1962
- In the fictional film Major League, Charlie Sheen's character wore the Cleveland Indians #99 u
- In cricket, if you reach 99, it is considered unlucky, due to most get out and not make the century.
- In the NHL, 99 has been the only number retired league-wide as of 2008, forWayne Gretzky.
- 99 is the maximum jersey number a player can wear in theNFL.
- Agent 99, a character played by Barbara Feldon on the 1965 TV Show Get Smart

10 Things...

Lately the smallest things make this pregnant lady happy. Very deserving of a blog post, don't you think?

Here are 10 in no particular order:

1. Adult swim at the pool
2. A dinner buffet with really good macaroni and cheese
3. My body pillow
4. Fresh Peaches
5. Postcards in the mail from my Dad
6. A husband who willingly watches movies with me that make me sob uncontrollably
7. Tomatoes from John's garden
8. 50 degree evenings...the first hint of Fall
9. Finishing the first of many planned hand-knit Christmas gifts
10. Feeling Baby Pedersen move on the inside and seeing it on the outside

Eggplant

Baby Pedersen is the size of an eggplant...or at least that's what the pregnancy website I frequent informed me of today. No wonder I can feel more kicks and bumps--I have a baby in there getting pleasantly plump!

Let your spouse put an ear to your belly -- he might be able to pick up baby's heartbeat (no stethoscope required). Inside the womb, the formation of tiny capillaries is giving baby a healthy pink glow. Baby's also soaking up your antibodies, getting the immune system ready for life outside the womb. Eyes are forming, and baby will soon perfect the blink -- perfect for batting those freshly grown lashes.

In honor of my little eggplant, I share a recipe for Baba Ghanouj. Yum...

3 large eggplant
3/4 cup tahini
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 teaspoons minced or pressed garlic
1 teaspoon cumin
Pinch of cayenne
1 teaspoon salt

The eggplant can be prepared 2 ways:

1. Broil or barbecue the eggplants, turning often, until the skin is blackened and blistered and the meat is tender, about 20 or 30 minutes . Let them cool for about 10 minutes and then peel the skin from the eggplant. Or
2. Bake the whole eggplants in a 350° oven for about 1 hour or until the meat is tender. Cool for about 10 minutes, then peel, or cut the eggplants lengthwise and scoop out the meat.
(To reduce baking time, first cut the eggplants in half lengthwise and place skin side down on a baking sheet.)

Squeeze the cooked eggplant meat to release excess liquid.

Puree the eggplant and all other ingredients in a blender or food processor.
Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with sliced olives and/or fresh parsley if desired. Serve with pita bread wedges, radishes and green onions. Makes 3-4 cups.

24 Weeks Today!

My belly has definitely grown. Check out my progression from the beginning...

La première fête pour le bébé

This past Sunday I attended Baby's first party! Catesby hosted a Mommy and Baby brunch in Fredericksburg where we grew up and it was très magnifique. From the organic fare to the yummy cupcakes and generous guests, it will be an afternoon I will always remember. Annie, Catesby's co-host and daughter was certainly a big help and I cannot believe it was 5 years this November that I watched her being born. I am so lucky to have friends and family with whom to celebrate this joyous time.