Another Snugglebug to Love

Scout Marceille

born August 19, 2009

8:56 am

9 lbs 5 oz

21 inches

Don't let those juicy lips fool you.

The nurse in the NICU used sugar water and a pacifier to get her to stop crying. She would put a drop of sugar water in her mouth, I would stick the pacifier in her mouth and then pull it out really quick for the shot. Out of all the pictures this one was our favorite.

First Day of School

My two "little" boys.
Like every other parent I am surprised at how big my boys are and that its time for another school year to begin.

They weren't exactly thrilled about getting up and going to school but it was more of an attitude like "what the heck....we have nothing better to do." :) Tubbs started Kindergarten this year and he was not the least bit hesitant about his new school. I think his two years of pre-school prepared him well for making new friends and a new environment. Bubba started 2nd grade and I think he has officially entered the mode of "mom-is-the most-embarrassing-person-ever." It makes me a little sad.

Right before we left the house

Good bye bugs from brother
There was a little shadow hanging over us on Monday morning. Baby Jiggs was still in the hospital in the NICU and it was going on Day 4. We thought we might get to come home Sunday evening so we could start the school year out on a good note. The doctor said Sunday morning that if her Bili blood draw came back under 10 she could go home. We got the results that afternoon at 5pm and they were 10.2.

We had to come home empty handed AGAIN.

The next draw was Monday morning at 6am so we called on our way to taking the boys to school and it was 10.1. I was going to freak out.

I couldn't take another day being at home without her. After the boys were at school my mom drove me over to the NICU to feed her and visit. While we were there the nurse talked to the doctor and surprise-surprise he said we could take her home. I was so shocked (and thankful)! We gathered up her stuff and we were outta there as fast as we could move. It was the perfect addition to our first day of school---the day Baby Jiggs got to come home!

Last Supper

Where would you spend your last supper?

Well, tonight was Scout's last chance at some decent grub---at least for a while. We headed to Dewar's. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

She picked out a 2 scoop banana split with chocolate sauce and caramel.

I asked the guy what the difference between the ice cream and the ice milk was. His response was that the ice milk had half the fat but 9 times the sugar.

I didn't know which one to pick---but just to make Scout happy I chose the ice milk.

Probably the wrong choice considering she has no more room to move around from her sugar high.

The boys picked out one scoop sundaes and Luke got a George's special shake...but was disappointed because he didn't read the fine print that listed all of the ingredients. He said it tasted like one of his breakfast shakes. Poor baby.

Welcome to the "Crib"

Welcome to Scout's "crib." Its alllllllllllmost complete.

There are a few more items we need to find for the walls, but I think we are about 90% done....and Luke can finally put the drill and laser level away!

People have asked what our "theme" is for the nursery. I can honestly tell you I have no idea. Luke's only request was no princess "stuff!" I had to agree.

Grandma Hogue designed the bugs/flowers on the window shade and Grandma Baer is cross stitching a Holly Hobby birth announcement for above the door. We know it will all come together once we get our act together and completely finish the room....and hopefully Scout will love her pink room as much as Luke and I have enjoyed working on it.

Ready or Not...

So---we got an ultrasound this morning. We were excited to see Scout again for the first time since March. (Of course we couldn't see much because of cramped quarters) The first thing the technician said was she had a good size belly. This really comes as no surprise and Luke and I laughed because we knew she had been eating good. As long as her big belly doesn't get stuck on her way out, I am OK with it.
After getting checked by the doctor later in the morning, everything seemed the same as every weekly check up over the past month. I was still only 1.5cm dilated and her head is high. She asked me what I wanted to do and I had to concede that having the baby BEFORE school starts on the 24th would be more convenient for me. We agreed that either Tuesday or Thursday morning would work good for an induction. She scanned over the results from the ultrasound and suddenly became concerned. My placenta was a stage 3. Whatever that meant. She ordered a stress test to track the baby's movement and suggested an induction this evening.
WHOA!
Remember my last post?! This baby was never going to get here. I certainly didn't expect to go to the doctor this morning and wonder if today was the big day. I called Luke during the stress test to let him know what was going on. He of course was on cloud 9 and ready to rumble. Me---I was too pre-occupied thinking about what I was going to eat for lunch and making sure everything was set for home if I had to be induced. I was not ready. Thankfully the stress test came back good. I go back Sunday morning for another stress test and if thats normal I go back in Tuesday morning to be induced. At least I know I have potentially 3 more days of rest before the little one gets here. I am not worried about her surprising me and making her entrance on her own this weekend. She knows I need a good pedicure before she arrives. :)

In Denial

I don't know how else to put it, but I am beginning to really doubt that I am pregnant and will deliver a human within the next 5 days. Maybe its an alien...or a tumor that has grown fingers and toes...and long legs that like to kick...?!
Yes, the countdown clock tells me my due date is 5 days away, but I just can't believe it. I wouldn't actually say the past 9 months have gone by fast, but I can't believe its here. I am ready to be able to bend over without an enormous amount of effort, BUT I don't know if I am ready to have an infant in my arms again...and attached to my chest (Gotta keep it PG). I am sure you are thinking, "Well...you should of thought of that 9 months ago." Its just seems like its been so long for us since we had a baby in the house. Tubbs is almost 5 1/2 years old and our little man is starting Kindergarten in a week. Thankfully he was out of diapers at 2, so its been a while since I have had to use a diaper or a wipe! I know once Scout gets here everything will be fine. I am just getting nervous thinking about it.
I was induced with Bubba on his due date and he was 9lbs 9 oz. I was induced with Tubbs at 41 weeks and he was 8 lbs 1 oz. So, I am anxious to see what the doctor is going to say tomorrow morning after my ultrasound...and I have a feeling we are in store for another induction. My kids never want to come out on their own. Maybe if I ate a little healthier they would have an incentive to pick breast milk or over whatever I was stuffing my face with. But, that's not really the case. (Yesterday I just had to stop at Sprinkles cupcakes in Beverly Hills on my way home and pick up 12 cupcakes. If she is like her mama, she is no idiot.--- She is waiting until I eat every last one until she considers making her way down the birth canal)
I have been on maternity leave officially for 14 days now. These last few days have been a blur as I feel like I am running out of steam. I think I have everything I need to bring a baby home, but I keep racking my brain thinking I am missing something. I pride myself on being the "planner/scheduler" in this house and I don't want to miss something obvious. Luke laughs at me...as usual. I know its still possible to go to the store and buy what we need even AFTER the baby gets here...but I like to be prepared. Since its been a while since our last "delivery" Luke and we find ourselves forgetting a lot of the details. He asked me the other day if we need to bring our own diapers to the hospital for the baby and I couldn't remember. Just to be safe, I have packed a few outfits and some diapers. I think they provided some kind of beanie for the baby's head, but heck if I can remember so I picked up a few today just in case.
My mom calls to check on my every day or two and see how I am feeling. I assure her that the baby is not coming on her own and give her my estimate. She asked me if I was having an "elephant" pregnancy---which I guess is something like 2 years long. Heaven help me if I was an elephant, even though I feel like one right now.

Smug's Treasure

Thank goodness we have Luke to spice up our lives around here. I don't know how the boys or I would survive without him. He is always thinking of ways to surprise the boys and make things interesting. One thing the boys like to do with Luke is go on a "secret bike ride." Sometimes they go alone with Luke, sometimes they go together. Its a good way for Luke to talk privately with the boys because they all ready seem to think their mom is lame! :)

Anyways, on these "secret" bike rides they explore areas that are out near new construction and mostly dirt and fences. There is a new rod iron fence put up around a dirt field near the park and the boys call it the "secret passage." Luke thought it would be fun to put together a treasure map and hide a treasure box somewhere near the "secret passage." I think almost any idea he has is great so I agree that the boys would love it.

So, last Thursday Luke is home a little later than usual so that he can go hide the treasure box. When he gets home he is in a hurry to eat dinner because he doesn't someone else to find the treasure box. After dinner Luke nonchalantly drops a wad of crumpled up papers in the front yard, one of which is the treasure map. When Bubba comes outside for the bike ride he asks Bubba to throw away the trash he found. Bubba starts looking through the papers and finds the treasure map. The boys get all excited and the three of them take off on their bikes. They were gone for about 30-40 minutes. When they got home they were so wound up and excited...and hot. They told me ALL about the treasure and the map they found. It was so priceless to see their faces and how excited they were. Bubba was so good at reading the map and the clues, he kept talking about how lucky they were the rest of the night. He even slept with the treasure box.

The Treasure Hunters....

Treasure box!

Eight dollars....the boys are rich!

I feel so fortunate that even though Bubba is seven, he is still my little boy and would never guess it was his daddy who put the whole thing together. I love that Luke's imagination and creativity helps spark the same thing in Bubba and Tubbs. I am also thankful for the little bit of peace and quiet I get while they are on their "private" bike rides in the evenings. I can lay on the couch with my feet up in complete silence and read---which is something that I won't be able to do that much longer. :)

Thank you Luke for all that you do for our little boys. I can't wait to see what you come up with for our little girl! LOL

Call it "Nesting"

I officially started maternity leave Thursday at 4pm. (Holla!!) :)
Since Friday I have been on this cleaning/organizing rampage. Going through every closet (nook and cranny in the house. I wouldn't say I have this burst of energy, but the thought in my mind is that once this baby gets here I am not going to be able to do much. Having all this time off work ahead of me, I am trying to squeeze in as much as I can now, hoping that the baby is still a couple of weeks off and I will still have some time to relax. I am probably kidding myself, but I am trying to humor myself. (No one else will!)

Yesterday was Luke's first day back to work and the boys weren't exactly thrilled about it. I knew they were going to miss big papa A LOT! When we all rolled out of bed I sat them down with the "plan" for the day. They humored me and went along with it. First it was breakfast...next was cleaning out their toy drawers and closet. The incentive was, the more they got rid of, the more $ they earned toward a "prize" from Toys R Us. My bribery worked very well and they worked hard. I think it only took us an hour to go through everything. We had a HUGE trash bag of stuff to toss and three smaller bags of items to donate.

After we were done the boys were motivated to get showered and dressed so we could head to Toys R Us. Surprise, surprise the boys both picked out Legos. I don't mind Legos much anymore because they keep them all in this huge plastic bin in their room. Thank goodness I only found small traces in their toy drawers.

The enthusiastic trash collectors---aren't they cute?

Give away-o-give away!

My master Lego builder. (After some persistance on Tubbs' behalf he put together Tubbs' set for him) Thank you Bubba.