thankful


btw richelle, i love my mug :)

in a year's time


The last time we saw these friends, we were drinking beers around our fire pit in the backyard last Christmas. Alot can happen in a year.

a change of pace

Life around here is very peaceful. We're starting to really understand Avery's needs and a routine has been developed. I look forward to every morning when it's just me and him curled up with a great book, a hot cup of tea and Pico at my feet. Quiet, lazy mornings.

Pico is trying her best to disguise herself as a baby, too, hoping for some extra attention. She's been adjusting remarkably well.


Anyhow, the holidays are approaching and I'll be making most gifts this year. I'm looking forward to crafting, though I seem to be unable to get much done these days, but it'll give me something to post about besides baby blabber.

yay!

We won third place in the colors contest and I love the prize.

it's a beautiful day in the neighborhood


Thankfully the sun did come out today. Too bad we got caught in the rain on the way home.

the nest

Avery's room is a semi-finalist in Ohdeedoh's color contest. Some of those other nurseries are really spectacular, so we're not getting our hopes up. It's just an honor to be listed.

i've created a mini-bobby


I went from working in a highly stressful advertising agency to spending my entire day staring in the eyes of this little guy. The simple life is good.

rearing avery

I've set up a separate blog for Perry Avery here. Set up mostly for family members out-of-town, it'll document his first year on a daily basis without commentary.

project nursery

Check out our nursery here. I wish I could say it still looks like that, but lately it's been an explosion of dirty baby clothes (he's gone through all his clothes in two days), diaper changing paraphernalia, and crumpled blankets on the floor - the spot where Bobby has decided to make his own nest for the time being.

we're home!

Good news - the MRI showed the mass to be an epidermoid cyst - meaning it's not harmful and we can have it removed by a plastic surgeon. No spina bifida (one of the first concerns), malignant tumor, or other life altering diagnosis which would call for immediate surgery. Our appointment is tomorrow, so I'll have more information later.

We were able to take him home Saturday evening.


This has been the greatest and scariest experience of my life. I can't help but just stare at him for hours on end and cry.

he's here!

Perry Avery
Born a day early on Nov. 5 at 5:30 in the evening.
7 lbs. 14 oz.

He is absolutely perfect in every way.


Unfortunately, he was born with a golf ball-sized lump on his back which has caused him to be transferred to CHKD. They don't think it's attached to the spinal cord, but none of the doctors are able to determine exactly what it is yet. We are awaiting results from an MRI done yesterday.

I was discharged from Sentara Leigh on Thursday afternoon and we've been spending every spare moment with the little guy in the NICU. Cell phone usage is prohibited, so I haven't been able to return calls (for those who have been leaving messages and texts).


The lump doesn't seem to hurt him, nor does it affect his overall movement, so we're praying it's just something cosmetic. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

We hope to bring him home tonight.

More photos have been uploaded here.

i think today is the day

Some signs have lead me to believe today might be the day of Perry Avery's birth. Now that the bathroom is complete and we have hope in this country, I'm ready.

waiting...

I don't know what to do with myself. I'm trying desperately to enjoy these last few days, but performing simple chores can be so tiring. I made a trip to the grocery store and was completely exhausted by the time I got home.

So, yesterday I spent some time at Marissa's hanging out with baby Annie...


...and watching our moms cast bird bath tops from elephant ear leaves.


It's now election day (cast my ballot by mail weeks ago) and the rain is unrelenting. It's a good day for sipping tea, finishing up some craft projects...


...and taking cat naps.

flush!

We now have a working toilet and sink in our house. It takes being without to sometimes really appreciate the little things in life, like when I had to wash all my clothes in a bucket in Italy for two months. It made for stiff socks and underwear.

Of course, now my sewing machine has given out. That's what happens when you cart it around for ten years without ever getting it reconditioned or cleaned. I'm trying to finish four more owls before the baby comes - trying to pay off some of the bathroom costs - and I'm so close! I'll think of something...

the first day

Yesterday marked my last day of work. It's a very strange feeling knowing I'm not going to step foot in the office for the next two months. At the end of the day, I cleaned off my desk and tidied my desktop folders. Welcome motherhood.

So now it's just a waiting game. I have an induction scheduled for this Friday (one day after my due date), which wasn't my original plan, but the placentas of GD patients tend to prematurely decay, so I don't really have much of a choice. I can only hope he decides to make an appearance naturally a couple days before, but we'll see.

The bathroom renovation is not going as well as planned. I woke up this morning to find our new toilet packed back into the box it came in - meaning it's defective. We had to special order it, so I'm praying I have a working toilet by the time I get out of the hospital. Stumbling out to our cold garage bathroom numerous times in the middle of the night is getting very old. Bobby is working around the clock on the bathroom, so it has nothing to do with him - it's just bad luck.

So, I'm looking ahead to the next week. I'm going to focus on doing everything I won't be able to do once a baby is in the picture, like sit in silence, sleep-in, run meaningless errands, read, craft and perhaps a little cooking.