Labor Day

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How long were your labors?

I started having irregular contractions Friday morning.  Around 11:30 that night they started to become more regular and harder.  I started pushing around 9 am and delivered at 11:40 am.  So I was going for about 24 hours, but the hard part was really 12 hours.

How did you know you were in labor?

I didn’t, for a while.  But when I couldn’t sit down or lie down I was pretty sure that’s what was going on.

Where did you deliver?

At a hospital, but the “maternity ward” is really a Birthing Center.  Where the smart people are.  Our Lamaze teacher said many times, “When you start to want to be where someone knows what they are doing, it is time to go to the hospital.”

Drugs?

Yup.  Well, sort of.  I didn’t have an epidural, but the transition contractions were killing me and I had narcotics to help me rest and ease through that part.  I would totally do it that way again.

C-section?

Nope.  He was heads down for the last 4 months.

Who delivered?

I delivered, but I had a midwife who was there to catch the baby.  I saw three midwives through my pregnancy and I got just what I needed in delivery, the sweet, funny one to get me through the early stages (3 am -7 am) and the no nonsense one in the pushing part (I don’t remember a few hours in there).  I barely remember my first two nurses, but the two that were there for the delivery were terrific!  My husband was there with me the whole time, holding my hand, rubbing my back and holding my leg when I had no strength left.  My mom arrived just after 6 followed by my MIL and then my dad.  My sister arrived at 11, just in time for the “good stuff”.  I didn’t think I would want them all there, but in the end it was great.

My little guy

I found this meme on Rocks in My Dryer and I am so glad I could participate, finally, in one about my baby.

Baby shopping

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On the way home from Gramma’s we stopped at Babies R Us and Target.  I had never been in a Babies R Us.  Wow.  I could totally go broke if there was one closer.

Tumblebug now has:

Not to mention loads of stuffed animals, boxes of toys, shelves full of books, a Bumbo seat and a wagon, a Cozy Coupe, a little car and a slide (all bought used for a total of $35).  And he is only 3.5 months old.  We are already running out of room for our own things.

6 word Saturday

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Mamacita started her own 6 word Saturdays last week. Show My Face started it, but Mamacita learned about it from Magical Mystical Teacher.

The idea came from a book Joe bought me for Christmas. The book is: Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous & Obscure and it was edited by Smith Magazine. The book is based on Ernest Hemingway’s short story, “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” The idea is to tell a story or describe your life in six words and the book is a collection of these. A few examples from the book jacket: “Found true love, married someone else.” “After Harvard had baby with crackhead.” It’s interesting reading and has set me thinking in many directions so it might be worth checking out if that’s your kind of thing. ~Show My Face

Labor Movement: Thanks for the weekend! >link<

Friday night highlights

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Tonight we are heading to NY to spend time with my mother-in-law, her mom and her brother’s family.  We are going to the Capital District Scottish games. This will mark my 10th year going to the Scottish Games with my husband’s family.  The games are okay.  We get there in plenty of time for the parade of tartans and then the massed bands.  We also walk around and look in the shop tents.  We like to watch the games.

Some very neat things have happened in conjunction with the Scottish Games.  In 2000, I went to my first games 3 months after we started dating.  I got to meet my husband’s family for the first time.  A couple years ago we got to meet Steve Caporizzo from WTEN. He took a picture with Gramma and then (after I emailed him) he sent her a really nice note.  But last year was the best.  We stayed in a hotel in the Berkshires on Sunday instead of going home.  40 weeks later we were 3 instead of 2.

My feet like parades too

My feet love a parade in 2008.

My feet at the Scottish Games in 2007.

My feet at the Scottish Games in 2007.

Standing at the Scottish games in 2005.

Standing at the Scottish games in 2005.

Theory Thursday

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Partially reposted from 8.28.08:

One of the best things about being a teacher is that you get two new year’s each year.  Two chances to start over; to set goals; to feel refreshed.

In September my goals are usually school related.  Keep my classroom neat, keep up with my lesson plans, be a better teacher.  Sometimes they include eating better, walking more, laying my clothes out the night before.

In January my goals are more personal.  Lose weight, watch less TV, declutter my house, eat better.  I also include school related goals, keep up with the planning, be more creative in the classroom, get stuff done.

I am lucky.  I get to start all over every few months.  It is such a blessing.

Today is my fourth day of school.  It is interesting to see how my goals have changed, just a little.  For example, this January my only resolution was to have a baby.  Okay, so I was already 4 months pregnant at the time, so that was an easy one.

This fall I have similar goals to last year (when I wasn’t pregnant quite yet – only a few days though), keep my classrooms neat (doing okay on that one a week in), keep up with my lesson plans (have not written a plan yet), be a better teacher (I was so tired last year, it will be easy to be better this year.).

This fall I am also going to have to work on picking out my clothes in advance and making my lunch at night.  But I also have to be out of the house on time because now I have to drop my little guy off at school before I head to work.  I have to have clothes for him clean and ready.  I have to have my stuff together.

So this fall I am falling back on an old favorite: “try harder”.

I feel so good starting up this year.  I have already started cleaning out a cabinet in my tech lab and soon will be asking for it to GO AWAY!  I want the room to be cleared of all the crap I have been saving for the last 10 years and never used.  I want to see if I can start fresh.  Have a good new year.

I am back, really I am

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So last September I was tired all the time.  My breasts hurt and I had to pee 3 times a night.  I had no idea what was wrong with me.  Duh!  Finally in late September I took a pregnancy test.  And then I took another one.  And another.  And needless to say, I have a baby now.  Probably my pregnancy would have been a great thing to blog about.  Especially since many of my favorite bloggers were pregnant this year too (her, her, and her off the top of my head).  But I really didn’t think it would be all that interesting to any of you.

Anyway (not anyways), I am back and I will be trying to blog every day this month.  The theme on NaBloPoMo is beautiful, so let me leave you with something beautiful from the last year.

First snuggle

PS  Today is one year from the date of conception.

It has been too long

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So I think the last time I posted was September. I sort of fell out of blogging due to exteme sleepiness. I also couldn’t think of anything interesting to write.

Of course, looking back, I could have written about being pregnant. But everyone was doing that and I am just not that interesting.

So now I have a baby and an iPod Touch. Maybe I will blog more with those two items in my hands.

Theory Thursday

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newyear1.jpg

One of the best things about being a teacher is that you get two new year’s each year.  Two chances to start over; to set goals; to feel refreshed.

In September my goals are usually school related.  Keep my classroom neat, keep up with my lesson plans, be a better teacher.  Sometimes they include eating better, walking more, laying my clothes out the night before.

In January my goals are more personal.  Lose weight, watch less TV, declutter my house, eat better.  I also include school related goals, keep up with the planning, be more creative in the classroom, get stuff done.

I am lucky.  I get to start all over every few months.  It is such a blessing.

I start school today.  Happy New Year!