Baby Trek: The Next Generation

Baby Nege #2 – ETA December 20

2010-05-19T23:53:00.001-07:00

As many of you already know, David, Timothy, and I will be welcoming a new little one around Christmas. We have no idea yet where we’ll be living then, so we are taking this one day at a time. But it’s official. I saw Baby AJ on the ultrasound today, and suddenly all the nausea felt a little more worthwhile. AJ is tiny, but we could see her moving around, and her heart is beating. So cool. I never would have been able to see AJ this early in Nigeria!

Oh, and AJ is from the first initial this little one will tentatively have – A if it’s a girl and J if it’s a boy. Not for sure yet, but it’s a decent name for our little squirt at this point, so I’ll stick with it for now.

Timothy as yet does not understand the concept of Mommy’s having a baby in her tummy, but I have mentioned it, and I think once I start showing and once he can feel AJ kicking, he’ll start to grasp the meaning in some way, shape, or form. He’s such a cutie – a rascal and a disobedient little tyke but still very cute and lovable. :) And to think, three years ago, I was throwing up because of him! Ha. Yes, it’s definitely worth it after the birth. :)

Time for bed. I’m exhausted from a heavy workload this week. Good night, world!

Easter egg hunt

2010-04-03T16:41:00.001-07:00

Timothy, Grandma, and I had a great time at the Exeter Easter egg hunt this morning! We met my friend Mia and her family at her house first and followed them to the park. There we saw patches of grass that had been roped off with yellow CAUTION tape, and scattered on the grass lay brightly colored plastic eggs. We waited a few minutes with Timothy’s friends Claudia (3) and Patrick (4) before we were given the go-ahead. Even though Timothy is only two, I let him hunt in the three- and four-year-old area with Claudia and Patrick. It ended up being a mad rush anyway, so he could have been in the 0-2 lot, and he wouldn’t have noticed any difference!

He may have been racing older kids, but Timothy still got plenty of eggs, and he had a fun time collecting them. We emptied out our eggs into a plastic bag (thanks, Mia!) and then put the plastic shells in the bin for next year. (That sure is a great idea for recycling!)

Afterwards we followed Claudia and Patrick to the little petting zoo. We saw two miniature goats, two calves, two rabbits, two chickens, some brightly colored chickies (including pink and green), a Golden retriever, and a sheep. Timothy kept coming back to the upright calf and the little goats, especially once the chickies “went to sleep” (got covered up to keep them warm).

We passed on getting our photo with the Easter Bunny (never having been a real fan) and ended the morning by playing in the playground with Claudia, Patrick, and three other older friends from church and MOPS. I tried to get a photo of Timothy and Jenna playing chase, but they were just too fast! So instead, here’s Timothy playing in the sand with funny expressions on his face in both photos!

We had a marvelous time and were glad we went. Now Timothy gets some new “treats” for potty training. :) Happy Easter!

Training pants

2010-03-27T13:19:00.001-07:00

I unintentionally started potty-training recently, and now I am bracing myself for the long haul, knowing there is no going back. We got a free DVD from Pull-Ups in the fall, and I let Timothy watch it this week for fun. It was probably time anyway, but I have not been looking forward to this stage at all since I got pregnant three years ago! So please wish us luck!

Handsome little man

2010-02-28T17:58:00.001-08:00

Here are some photos of Timothy in the past few months.

Opening presents at Christmas (December 26, 2009)

Enjoying the Christmas tree (January 2, 2010)

Seeing Zoo Lights at the Fresno Chaffey Zoo (December 27, 2009)

Putting dirty laundry in the kitchen sink! (January 2010)

Timothy and David on the Star of India – San Diego (February 8, 2010)

Playing in the heavy rope on the Star of India – San Diego (February 8, 2010)

Timothy playing with his blocks and Little People (February 28, 2010)

Timothy’s talking

2010-02-28T17:26:00.001-08:00

Here are some of my favourite things Timothy has said recently.

When I thought aloud, “Wow, did I just give that paper a hundred percent?”

Yes, you did!

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When I asked if he wanted an egg for breakfast:

No yolk. Mommy eat yolk.

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When watching the beginning of a DVD that has a preview for Shrek the Third:

No scary one! No scary one!

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Lining up his animals in front of the computer:

Hippopotamus watch Thomas [the train].

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Getting wiped off after lunch:

No nap, no. Watch pig, yeah.

(He does this one with the shaking of his head and nodding – priceless.)

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During afternoon “rest time” in his room with the shades drawn:

Get dark. Put light on.

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After I’ve told him not to spit:

Horses spit?

Me: “No, horses don’t spit.”

Horses spit? No.

Me: “No, horses don’t spit. Camels spit.”

Horses spit, no. Camels spit, yeah!

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When asked where his owie was:

Right here! Right here! [pointing to his leg]

TWO YEARS!

2009-11-05T23:00:00.001-08:00

I truly can’t believe it’s been two years since David drove me the three-minute walk down to the hospital for Timothy’s birth. Wow! These two years, God has blessed David and me so richly with our delightful and sweet son. As I’ve mentioned before, Timothy is far from angelic, but his sweetness and delight far, far, far outweigh his naughtiness (most days)! I wouldn’t trade being his mom for anything.

Some people say the reason women can have more than one kid is that as soon as each baby is born, they forget the awfulness of pregnancy and delivery. Well, not me. I can tell you what it’s like to feel nauseated most of the time, to have awful heartburn every night and no Tums, to agonize through each contraction, to be poked with needles “in case they need to set a line” and because I’m Rh-negative, to actually deliver. Oh yes, I remember very clearly. Even if my body doesn’t remember, my brain remembers – which is why Timothy is all the more a wonder to me, and why I’d seriously consider not having another kid! But I’m glad for Timothy. He was worth every minute of it. And I hope I can still say that honestly in 13 or 14 years when he’s learning to drive, spending time with girls, hiding in his room… God, prepare me for those days!

Here are some of Timothy’s recent “cute” moments:

Lining up toys and other items in a careful and precise row. I’m pretty sure this is a normal development step, not a sign that he’s obsessive-compulsive. :) He’ll take his toys in the bathtub and line them all up in a row, or his animals from his Noah’s Ark. It’s a real hoot.
Playing games with his books. He’s got a touchy-feely book with puppies and kittens, and the other day, he pointed to the dog and said “meow.” When I said, “That’s not a cat!” he just laughed and kept doing it to the other pictures of puppies. He then pointed to each cat and said “woof-woof,” just to keep me laughing and himself giggling.
Reading aloud his books. He’s got one book that just has one word on each page and then a picture of that word – butterfly, flower, friend, airplane, frog, and moon – and he’ll say them now. Okay, so to those of you who have older kids, this may seem silly. He’s not reading. He’s just saying what the picture is. I know that. I’m not delusional. But to see him open the book and say the word that happens to be on that page is still adorable!
Calling me “Mary.” He has a First Christmas book we’ve been reading for months now, and the first page has a picture of Mary and says, “This is Mary.” Yesterday morning, Timothy pointed to me and said something I couldn’t understand (“mimi”). He finally pointed to the picture in the book and then at me and repeated himself. I finally understood he was calling me Mary! I just loved it!
Saying hi to everyone he sees. He doesn’t do this all the time, but in the past week, we’ve been several places where he’s just kept saying “HI!” to everyone he’s seen for at least ten minutes straight. Great attention-grabber!
Repeating back “Happy birthday!” He’s a good repeater (although he seldom is intelligible), and he always copies my greetings – good morning, see you later, good night, how are you. In fact, when I ask him to “ask nicely,” instead of saying, “please,” he says “ask nicely.” It cracks me up. So today every time he heard “happy birthday,” he said his garbled version of “happy birthday” back to the person. We all loved it!

So that’s Timothy for now. His birthday party is tomorrow, so I’ll try to take some pix and post them. Dada is still in Nigeria, but he returns Monday, so we’ll try to have a family celebration next week.

Pumpkin patch excursion

2009-10-17T16:00:00.001-07:00

Timothy and I visited a pumpkin patch for the very first time yesterday! We’d been scheduled to go with some MOPS moms and kids this past Tuesday, but it ended up raining all day long (what are the chances, especially around here?), so we went yesterday instead. After two mostly-sunny days between Tuesday and Friday, it was overcast and sprinkly. And it wasn’t even particularly cool. So weatherwise, we didn’t get the best of days for our outing, but at least it wasn’t hot.

The pumpkin patch is south of town a bit, bordered by corn fields, and includes a corn maze. I was disappointed we didn’t get to go through the maze because of the mud, so we might have to return when it’s dried out a bit. There are two tractors that pull wagon trailers with hay bales, so we enjoyed a hayride with the other moms and kids (above). The mud the tractor went through was really amazing – the exact kind of mud you would never drive through in a regular car or even probably a 4-wheel drive. I mean, these tractor wheels were almost as tall as I am, and they were quite efficient!

We also got to sit on picnic benches (right) and hear two books read to us by one of the patch employees. Honestly, I’m not sure I’d have picked the first book. Although it wasn’t “scary,” per se, it was about pumpkins not being scared by witches and ghosts, etc. I grew up with Halloween as a fun holiday but never scary (we never dressed up as anything ghoulish, only wholesome characters), and I don’t think Halloween ought to be scary, especially for pre-schoolers! Most of the kids there with us were 4 and under, so maybe the book wasn’t right. Oh well. I’m not going to write a formal complaint about it, but maybe next year I’ll find an alternative book to recommend…

The pumpkin patch itself was so muddy we didn’t even dare go to that side of the compound. I mean, honestly, if it had been our only chance of going this year, I’d have ignored the mud and explored more. Mud comes out of most clothes, and Timothy loves baths, so we could have gotten clean. I’m not obsessive about that kind of thing if we can go home and get clean right away. And we can go back for free later when it’s dry. So we just avoided the actual patch this time (and still managed to get a bit muddy).

Timothy spent most of the time we were there pulling around an empty wagon. (At left, he started pulling someone else’s wagon full of pumpkins!) I finally chose a pumpkin from one of the piles of hay bales and put it in Timothy’s wagon to give him more of a sense of purpose. (LIke it matters to a 23-month-old.) We pulled the wagon all over the grassy, hay-strewn part of the compound, around the hay bales, steering clear of other children and parents. Timothy loved it! Then he noticed a pyramid of hay bales that had no pumpkins, so he climbed up and started playing on them, followed by other kids. His favourite thing was to jump down from the bottom row (right) – one, two,, three!

So all in all we had a pretty good time, even though we didn’t really hang out with anyone but each other. We got a little muddy and brought home a pumpkin! I have no idea what to do with it now, never having cooked a pumpkin before, but at least it looks nice on our porch for the time being. We won’t even be home for Halloween!

Imminent arrival of the terrible twos

2009-10-13T22:35:00.001-07:00

Timothy will be turning two in just about three weeks. Wow.

In some ways, it will be fun. I have no idea yet what sort of celebration to plan, since we’re not a very party-oriented family. I know, though, that Timothy loves playing at the playground, so we might just meet a few kiddie friends there and eat cake. Oh, and we must have balloons, since Timothy is a balloon-lover. (Even when they pop, he doesn’t worry.) The presents will be few, but at two, will he really care? I think not! As long as there’s something sweet to eat and a slide to go down, he’s likely to enjoy himself.

In the past week or two he’s developed a special attachment to Elmo (or “Melmo”), so I’m thinking of looking for cheap Elmo gifts. He’s only seen a few snippets of Sesame Street, since we don’t have a TV, but he’s got an Elmo book about colors, and we picked up some Pampers last week (instead of our usual Costco diapers), which of course have Elmo on every single one. I tell him he’s got Elmo on his bottom, and he gets a kick out of that.

But I’m afraid the bad behaviour has already begun – perhaps not in force, but enough to bother me. On our play date last week (yes, we actually had a real play date!), Timothy started being aggressive, which he has never done before. The next day at Bible study, they told me he had pushed a few kids and hit some. This is not the little guy I know! The problem is that 90% of the time he’s with other little kids, I’m not there, so I can’t even figure out a way to combat the problem. This is going to be tough.

Tonight we went out to eat (it’s been a long past few days for me with grading papers), and Timothy is usually great at restaurants. Loud, perhaps, but not bad. Well, tonight was different. He was downright rotten for most of the time we were there. When he wasn’t being naughty, he was pouting because we were being stern with him. David finally had to take him outside while I paid the check and got the leftovers to go. He hadn’t even eaten anything. Good grief. And Timothy cried for the next half hour until he finally got ready for bed. I don’t know how I’m going to get through this – between being angry and frustrated half the time, and feeling sorry for the little guy the other half of the time. I cannot even imagine having to go through all this again in a couple of years with another kid! How do people do it??

Timothy-isms

2009-09-26T23:59:00.001-07:00

I know I’ve been absolutely horrible about working on this blog. And trust me, it’s not because Timothy’s not funny or interesting! Considering how lax I’ve been on my own blog, I guess it’s hardly surprising I haven’t done much work on Timothy’s. But I’m here to say that’s going to change! So if I have any readers who were reading and gave up, the good news is I’m getting back to it! That’s a promise. If I make that promise publicly, I’ve got to keep it, right? ;)

So what has Timothy been up to?

Talking! Not very many words yet, but one of his favourites is horse, which he pronounces “oh-se.” On the way to the grocery store one day when we were walking—which we will probably never do again because there’s no sidewalk much of the way, and it’s a narrow road with a 45 mph speed limit—we saw a corralled horse in a paddock. Now whenever we go that direction, Timothy makes a cow sound (go figure) and says “horse!” Another of his more familiar words is “yeah.” Whenever you ask him a yes or no question, he’ll say, “yeah!” Sometimes he’ll shake his head, too, to indicate no. The painful thing is that he’s also started using “no,” which he just says as a very long and drawn out “oh,” usually while covering his face. The terrible twos are just around the corner.
OCD already! Timothy has always had this thing about getting anything on his hands, whether it’s jam, peanut butter, dirt, crumbs, or milk. He whines and wants me to clean him up as soon as possible. Well, in the past week, he has started to notice particles floating in his bath water. They’re practically microscopic, but he notices them. Two bath times this week, he just stood in the bathtub, surrounded by his toys, and whined, refusing to sit down in the water and play. Oh no, he pointed to the elusive particles and fussed. There was no way I could get them all out—especially considering I couldn’t see most of them—so I just forced him to get wet, washed him, and gave up on “bath time.” Tonight I scrubbed the tub before his bath, and he seemed not to see particles. Phew. So now I get to scrub the bathtub every time he takes a bath. Yay.
Building a social life! Now that I go to MOPS twice a month and Bible study every week, Timothy’s spending a couple hours in the church nursery two to three times a week. He gets to play with kids mostly his own age, which is something he hasn’t really done ever, so I’m sure he enjoys it! One day when I went to get him, he just turned back to playing, unlike the other kids, who ran to their mamas. I had to laugh. We had him in the “baby” nursery at first, since he won’t be two for another six weeks, but two weeks ago the person in charge asked us to please put him in with the two- and three-year-olds. He’s just too big for the babies! Hardly surprising considering he is bigger than many of the two-year-olds! (And outgrowing more clothes…) He’s also enjoying story hour at the library every week, especially the songs when he can jump up and down. It’s a little intimidating (with anywhere from 30 to 100 kids), but as long as I stick close to him, he loves it.
Learning to cook like Mama! (May God make him a better chef than I!) I don’t have baby-proofing in my kitchen, so I arranged everything such that things on the lower shelves are Timothy-safe. That includes the pots and pans, which Timothy loves to take out and play with around the house. He even uses the potholders to hold the handles, and sometimes will put a potholder on the table or floor before putting the pot down. He’s getting the hang of it! He likes to fill the pot with his little animals – Noah’s Ark Stew!
Reading books! Timothy loves books, especially about animals. (I’m grateful for such a wonderful library!)He can say words that I recognize as giraffe, frog (although this can be confused with dog and duck), and dog, and he makes the noises for other animals. One of his favorite books is Barnyard Dance by Sandra Boynton.

And his feet are really wide and fat. If anyone has insights on where to get shoes for huge toddler feet, please let me in on your secrets!

So these are some of Timothy’s antics of late. He sure can be naughty, but he sure can be sweet, too. And generally speaking, he’s a good little guy, a real bundle of joy. Thank heaven for little boys!

Cute tidbits

2009-05-28T07:51:00.001-07:00

I thought the other day, as I watched Timothy play during a break from my work, I’m going to miss so much of his development because I’m sitting at a desk in another room. I envy the moms who are active in their toddlers’ development, the ones who plan activities, art projects, trips to see museums, etc. I sometimes try to do those things, but at this point in our lives, if I don’t work, we don’t eat. Not that any mom sits and watches her little ones 24 hours a day! But maybe if I weren’t working, I’d see more things like this:

The other day, I was cooking dinner, and Timothy came into the kitchen to play. (He really likes to be in the same room I’m in if I let him.) He climbed up onto a chair at the kitchen table, put his plastic peahen on the table facing him, and proceeded to “talk” to it. He used a high-pitched voice and jabbered away at the little peahen. He stuck his face right up into the peahen’s face (it’s about 1-1/2” high) and talked to it! I had to turn around from the stove and just watch for the duration, which was several minutes. It was priceless!
One day last week, I was really tired and went to lie down after dinner. (This is the first time I’ve ever done that.) Timothy came to me and brought me toys and books as I lay there. He climbed up and sat with me. When he brought a book, he lay down on my chest and let me read it to him lying down. When he left the room, he came to bring me his precious Pippin-Bear. Then he gave me a kiss and went out the bedroom door. Within seconds, he was back with his Pascal-Bear. He gave me a kiss again and headed out. But before he got to the door, he turned around and came to give me another kiss! This was so reminiscent of our nighttime routine that I just had to laugh.
Yesterday, I turned around from working at the computer to look into the living room, where Timothy was playing quietly. (Quiet is always worrisome when you have a toddler!) My little boy was sitting across the living room, facing away from me, reading a book, and he had his little hat on! I can never get him to wear the hat, but he was sitting there inside, wearing it, happy as a clam!

These are just some examples of my cutie. I hope I get lots more of these glimpses, even though I’m working. At least I get to work from home!

Timothy’s 1-1/2!

2009-05-10T23:00:00.001-07:00

This past week, Timothy turned one-and-a-half. Wow! It’s been a crazy last few months, and I’ve been awful at keeping up this blog, but Timothy’s still growing and being cute. One of his new things is to run into the depths of the closet when I want to change his diaper. He knows that one of the closet doors doesn’t slide open, so he goes in as far as he can so that I have to go into the closet myself and remove him physically.

Oh, and he just adores cheese. This morning at breakfast, he threw a tantrum in his high chair because he wanted cheese, and I wouldn’t give him any. He did the same thing again tonight at dinner. Yesterday, we attended a tea at my aunt’s institute of fine arts (the imaginarium), and Timothy had a blast. He enjoyed lots and lots of cheese, strawberries, and grapes, and he ran around without my chasing him. He climbed up onto chairs and sat with strangers. He danced to the live guitar music and clapped with the rest of the guests. He had a wonderful time!

He has also fallen in love with the song “Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed.” I guess it’s not really a song, but it’s on a CD that we hear every week at the library storytime, and he’s learning the actions. He’ll put his hand up with five little fingers and fuss until I do the ditty.

He loves to try to eat things. He chews on the ends of crayons and has tasted my chapstick more than a dozen times. While we were moving, and I was busy packing a box, he found my deodorant and took a bite out of that! Ugh! He spit it all out and made a face, so I hope he doesn’t get tempted to do it again. Yuck.

And I’ve discovered a problem: his Pack ‘n Play portable crib is getting too small. With the sheet on, the mattress becomes scrunched up and doesn’t fit the length of the bed. Timothy is now longer than the scrunched mattress. And I keep thinking, That bed can’t possibly be comfortable. Its padding is only 1/2-inch thick. I think it’s time to move on to bigger and better things. The problem is that I’m not sure what. My aunt has said we might be able to borrow a toddler bed, but this presents two problems: Timothy would roll off, and he would also be able to climb out of bed and play during naptime and nighttime. Another option is to just get a crib mattress and put it on the floor. This would allow him to sleep more comfortably and not fall off of a bed, but it would still allow him to play with his toys. And I guess the third option is to bite the bullet and buy a real crib. That would be a huge expense, and it seems almost a waste, since Timothy will be too old for a crib before we even realize it. What to do? Any ideas?

Trip to the Zoo - American style

2009-03-08T14:13:00.003-07:00

My aunt and uncle took us to the Fresno Zoo yesterday, and we had a wonderful time!

We actually started the day off at a living history exhibit put on by an organization for the deaf and hearing impaired. It was a silent exhibit, with everyone using writing, gestures, and sign language to communicate. (People even got thrown in "jail" for talking or making noises.) Timothy didn't last too long and went outside with Daddy after the first two sections, but the rest of us stayed awhile longer. I found it frustrating, since I don't understand sign language and certainly can't communicate with it. (I can sign the alphabet and my name and a few other things, but generally, I've lost almost all the ASL I used to know.) It was just like being in Nigeria, surrounded by people who couldn't speak English. But it was fascinating to watch everyone else actually communicating in ASL, not to mention the cool things we learned about Martha's Vineyard in the 19th century. It was a neat program. I think Timothy's favorite part was eating a brownie. :)

Afterward, we had lunch out - yum! - and then went to the zoo. The only other zoo that Timothy had ever been to was the Jos Zoo, which really doesn't compare. The zoo in Fresno is larger, prettier, and has many more animals. Some of Timothy's favorites to watch were the black leopard, giraffes, and elephants. He also got to pet some sheep, goats, and a llama, and he got to touch a stingray! We got wet and a little cold, but we had a lot of fun! (I just wish we'd had a camera. I always forget mine when I know we'll most want to take photos!)

Timothy is 16 months old now and has 12 teeth. He loves my aunt's cats and tries to say, "meow," which just ends up being "maw."

The other night we were eating Mexican food, and he kept pointing to the black olives in a dish on the table. But when he tasted one, he spit it out. Only after several minutes did I realise he'd thought the olives were grapes!! What a rude awakening!

Fifteen+ months!

2009-02-22T16:26:00.001-08:00

Timothy is such a big boy now! He has ten teeth now (six on bottom, four on top) and loves to eat almost anything. His favorite foods are fruits – especially tangerines, bananas, and grapes – and yogurt, but he also loves cheese, tomatoes, and any type of juice. He’s not a huge fan of lettuce or Dijon mustard. But he had his first corn dog yesterday, and that was a huge hit! He loves coming to Costco with Aunt Pamela and me to get the yummy samples while we shop!

Timothy got an interesting haircut a few weeks ago. I asked his daddy to use his hair clipper, so Timothy came out of the bathroom looking like a new military recruit! It was a little uneven at first, but now that it’s grown in a little, it looks cute.

We’ve taken Timothy to the nearby playground a few times (Daddy more than Mama as Mama has had to get a lot of work done recently), and he loves the swings, the sand (mostly just throwing it, which of course we don’t encourage), and playing with balls. Aunt Pamela just bought him a nice big ball yesterday, so now we have something larger than a tennis ball. :) Timothy loves to run and dance and is just always active!

He has also attached himself to my bear, Pippin, whom we just call “Bear.” I’m glad he’s really settled down with another best friend, after I lost his other one. :(

Timothy also loves to say “bah” and wave, meaning “bye-bye.” And he’s learned an approximate sign for “banana” in addition to his other signs. I know it’s just a matter of time before he starts speaking words. Goodness.

The other day, Timothy got into the bottom drawer in the kitchen, the one where Aunt Pamela keeps her Ziplocs, wax paper, aluminum foil, and shelf paper. He took out the aluminum foil, so I took it, said thank you to him, and put it on the counter where he couldn’t reach it. So he thought he was being helpful and proceeded to empty the whole drawer, putting each one on the counter! It was the cutest thing, and afterward we put them all back in the drawer together. :)

December-January

2009-01-17T03:24:00.001-08:00

Here are some of my favorite photos from the past month. There are more on Flickr.

Timothy's first time opening his own Christmas presents

Playing on the floor during our Christmas dinner at the Singers' house

Did I ever mention that Timothy is completely weaned now? I can't remember. Well, he is, and it's pretty strange and good at the same time. I haven't nursed him in over a month. It was easy as pie, and completely unintentional, but I'm glad it's over and done with.

A week or two ago, Timothy learned how to climb onto the dining room chairs and thus onto the table. Fortunately, he hasn't actually tried the stunt more than a few times. It sure would be a headache if he decided to make that his favourite trick!

Timothy's newest thing is opening doors. He just started a few days ago by opening the kitchen door at my parents' house. (We had to start keeping the door shut after Timothy learned how to crawl on top of the box that we were using as a barrier.) Today he opened the hall door for the first time, too, so we're sunk! It's a good thing we're leaving soon and going to a country where we can get baby gates and other safety devices!

Santaclausophobia and sleeping over

2008-12-30T10:53:00.001-08:00

Wow, a lot has gone on in our lives since the last time i blogged here. Timothy is almost 14 months now and has seemed to stop growing. Phew! It's nice to have a break after having to change out his whole wardrobe every month or so. He's settled into 18-24 month clothes, size 4 diapers, size 6 shoes, and hopefully that's where he'll stay for awhile. J It's almost impossible to find shoes for him already, and I know it's only going to get worse! Such fat feet!

The past week has been nice and restful. Timothy slept poorly Monday night, as he was coming down with a cold, but he had a grand time Tuesday at our friends the Savelkovs' house. They have a sort of stroller that looks like a big plastic car, and my spoiled little one-year-old refused to get out once he was in. He screamed and thrashed whenever I tried to remove him to let another child have a chance. Good grief. In the end, we all had snacks and tea, and he kept sitting in the car. Olga's helper even pushed him around the house while we were eating. It was pretty funny but pretty pathetic, too! I'd say he needs some more social time with kids the same age to get adjusted to sharing. What do you think?

Timothy's at the age where he gets stuck on one present instead of enjoying all Christmas presents. He opened up a gift from Mary D. - a butterfly that flutters paper confetti inside its middle when you touch the antennae - and that was enough for him! We had a lovely Christmas dinner with our friends the Singers, Aunt Claudia, and Timothy's godfather Marc, even though Timothy didn't actually eat more than two or three mouthfuls of mashed potatoes. (He was napping during most of the meal.)

But the funny part was yesterday when we went out to Mr. Biggs as a family (with my parents and Luke). David actually had to eat and run because he was on call, but the rest of us stayed at the restaurant for a little longer. While we were finishing our food, a tall Nigerian man in a Santa suit (complete with big white beard) came out from behind a corner. Timothy started walking toward me, shying away from this new figure. As Santa got closer, Timothy pressed himself closer to me and started whimpering. Santa, maybe not realising the agony he was causing, came right up to Timothy and tried to touch him. Timothy lost it. He cried and flung himself into my arms, clinging to me. Santa didn't get the hint and kept trying to get near Timothy. I just held Timothy tightly and tried to keep him from being too scared. But Santa remained for several minutes, and poor Timothy has been traumatized for life! When he's old and gray, the psychiatrist will probably attribute his multiphobic personality to the trauma of a Santa Claus who wouldn't leave him alone when he was a year old!

And last night, Timothy slept over at Grandma and Grampa's for the first time! Grampa put him to bed at 20:00, and he was asleep pretty quickly. I didn't go home until almost 23:00 (after watching two episodes of House with my parents), and they said he slept all through, without any trouble! Yay! I was a bit anxious at first to leave him, but I'm glad he did fine during his first sleepover. J

(Pictures to come...)

Timothy turns one! (in photos)

2008-11-06T23:42:00.001-08:00

Birthday morning - Einstein hair

Getting into my cabinet at work

At work with Mama

Naptime at work

Coming home from work with Mama

My first haircut! What do you think?

My first birthday cake, thanks to Grandma!

(That's I on my cake!)

Grandpa and me!

Blowing out my candle. (Mama and Daddy helped a little.)

Loving my new cell phone!

Grandma and me!

Opening another present... I could get used to this!

Timothy turns one!

2008-11-06T11:37:00.000-08:00

Timothy had his first birthday yesterday! Our celebration was pretty low-key. We just had a nice dinner and yummy carrot cake, and Timothy opened his presents. Such fun ones! He got an adorable new bib and Mother Goose nursery rhymes book from his auntie Lisa and uncle Steve; some clothes, a kids' songs CD, and a neat phone that makes noises from Grandma and Grandpa; and lots of beautiful cards--including lovely handmade ones from his cousins. His favourite part of the present-unwrapping was actually playing with the boxes! Only a one-year-old!

But the other big event of the day was Timothy's first haircut! David and I both took part in the ritual, and even though we just took snips here and there, with no method to the madness, it still turned out okay. It's a little shaggy, but he's got curly hair, so it will never be exactly right without using an electric buzzer. I collected most of the hair in an envelope to save. It's so nice and fluffy... it would make a great birds' nest.

All in all, we had a nice day (until Timothy woke up at 2am...but I guess that was November 6 already). Happy birthday, Timothy!

P.S. Thanks, everyone who's sent condolences about Jack. He's still missing, so I guess he's gone for good. The odd thing is that Timothy hasn't let me get him attached to anything else instead. Poor little guy!

Jack's still missing!

2008-10-31T14:26:00.003-07:00

It's been a rough week without Jack. Timothy has had a pretty hard time getting calmed down once he gets worked up. Usually I just give him Jack, and he'll stroke his ears until he stops fussing. Or chews on Jack's ears, as the case may be. But without Jack, everything has changed. It's amazing to me how one little toy can affect us so deeply.

And today was especially hard because Timothy has been sick. He hasn't been sick yet since he was born, and I knew the day would come when he had his first illness. So far it hasn't been too bad--just a few extra diapers to change and a fever--but we're worried it might be malaria, since the fever seemed to come and go a lot today, along with his droopiness. Oh dear. I've never had malaria, so I kinda thought maybe he'd get my luck--or genes, or whatever it is that's kept me safe all these years. Alas. And since Timothy is sick, I wish we had Jack even more than I usually wish it. I know it would comfort Timothy so much to be able to snuggle up with his furry friend. *sigh* We checked the lost and found at school, and on Sunday we'll check in the nursery, just to make sure I didn't miss it last week. But I'm desolate. The realist in me knows it's likely we'll never see poor Jack again. And we'll miss a good friend.

Climbing onward

2008-10-28T07:45:00.000-07:00

It's been one of those nights when, no matter what I do, Timothy cries and won't go to sleep. He only slept for an hour-and-a-half this afternoon, or less even, so I know he's tired. And there he is in his Pack 'n Play, just screaming his head off. What am I doing wrong?

Anyway, Timothy started climbing today. My first clue was seeing him on top of my voltage stabiliser at work, playing with the windowpanes. I knew he could fall off, but it's only 10 inches off the ground, so I wasn't really worried. But five minutes later, I heard something heavy fall to the floor, turned, and saw my little boy standing on top of a box that's at least 18" off the floor, pulling stuff off my filing cabinet that's probably 4' or 5' high. I snatched him down off the box and scolded him, but really, it's I who have to be more careful!

So when we came home, Timothy started climbing on the living room chairs and the couch. I wouldn't worry so much about that if the floor of my parents' house--where we've been housesitting for three weeks--weren't cement. Oh sure, they have a rug in the living room area, but there's no pad beneath it, so it still hurts when you knock your head against the ground. He's actually learning to climb down as well as climb up, which is a relief. I figured he'd get up and then not know how to get down for awhile yet. So it's nice that at least half the time, he's able to get down feet-first.

Next thing I know, he'll be running around, climbing trees, bringing home scraped knees and black eyes. Am I really cut out to raise a boy??

Missing dog

2008-10-26T08:37:00.001-07:00

We lost Jack today. The good thing is that I know roughly where, and since we lost him at Hillcrest, there's a pretty high chance that someone found him and will turn him in. After all, we retraced our steps and didn't find him, so I figure someone picked him up. And I already put out an email to the expatriate community in Jos, asking for information.

But it's disheartening! Jack is Timothy's favourite thing to hold. He cuddles him and strokes his ears. He chews him, even. He goes everywhere with Jack. After lunch today, when Timothy was getting sleepy, I could tell he was looking for Jack. He went all around the house, with his pacifier in his mouth, whining. I saw him look under the couch, and I felt this huge pang of guilt. How could I have lost Timothy's best friend?? What kind of mother am I?

I just hope he turns up. Otherwise it'll be another six months of initiating a new best friend. Oh, the woe!

The mess dilemma

2008-10-16T05:08:00.001-07:00

I've been wanting to take photos, but my camera says the batteries are dead, which a load of tosh since they're brand-new, so I think I'm finally seeing the results of my having lost the charger. I honestly don't know that I've ever had it, but oh well. There it is. No pictures for awhile 'til I can figure something out.

So today I am confronted with the mess dilemma--again. If you're a parent, you'll know what Imagine the floor strewn with board books, shape blocks, small stuffed animals, Duplos, and sundry other items including a wooden spoon and two little size 4 Spiderman sandals.

Now, to a normal, logical, childless adult, the mess would seem a simple thing. All you have to do is tidy up a bit. Put the blocks back in their container and the Duplos in theirs. Put the books on a shelf. Collect the other toys into some sort of basket or box. Make the room nice and neat.

But honestly, what's the point? As soon as Timothy gets up from his nap, he's just going to get into it all again. Within five minutes, ten at the most, he'll have the room in the same shape it's in now, or worse. He's not breaking anything, and the room isn't dirty. It's simply cluttered, messy. So what do I do? Do I expend the energy necessary to put all the toys away, knowing full well that it's only for an hour, two if I'm lucky? Or do I just leave them out for him to play with later?

Ah, the joys of parenting!

Almost a year

2008-10-07T13:58:00.001-07:00

On Sunday Timothy turned 11 months old. It's hard to believe he'll be a year old so soon! Around here, families often have big celebrations when their first child turns a year old, but I don't want to do anything overblown. Tasteful but not big. I've never been much of a party person, and David isn't fond of parties, either, so we'll be low-key. It's not like Timothy will remember this birthday anyway.

The greatest thing the past month has been that Timothy is only nursing twice a day now--when he wakes up in the morning and before he goes to bed at night--so I can wear all of my clothes that have been packed away for a year-and-a-half. Yay! It also means Mom has an easier time babysitting him occasionally.

I was sitting at my desk at work the other day while Timothy played on the carpeted floor of the office, and I started to hear him babbling. He likes to "talk," but he usually doesn't do it quite as much as he was just then. I didn't turn around to look at him at first but asked him what he was saying, etc. I finally turned around to discover my baby boy holding my broken cell phone up to his ear and talking into it! I cracked up. Since that moment, I've seen him do the same thing several times--even without the phone. Sometimes he just puts his hand to his ear and talks as though on a phone. It's amazingly ironic considering I'm telephonaphobic and avoid phone use if at all possible! Where did he get his interest from?

Jack the dog is still Timothy's favourite toy. He carries him around--sometimes with Jack's ear in his mouth--and sleeps with him. Poor Jack started out white and yellow but is now a decidedly dingy shade of grey. Laundering doesn't seem to help much, alas! But Timothy's happy, so we are, too.

This past week, Timothy had a chance to play for a few hours with two babies who are six months older than he is. It was amusing to watch them fight over toys and learn to be gentle with each other. I'm afraid I'll have to be proactive in making sure Timothy doesn't end up a spoiled brat. He likes to hit--not to be mean, just to get attention. We sure need to nip that in the bud. And he has a delightful attraction to playing with sticks. Hey, cheap toys! I can't complain!

And I am finally sleeping through the night again. Yes!! This is a great age. And don't you dare ask me when we're going to have another baby!!

Snaps

2008-10-04T08:56:00.006-07:00

Timothy's not allowed in the kitchen; this is one reason why.

Luke has a hacky-sack that Timothy used to love to put in his mouth, but he needed his hands to cruise the furniture (before he learned to walk, which tells you this photo is old). It was great!

Timothy playing with Grandma

Timothy enjoying walking and playing at Grandma & Grampa's house

David and Timothy with David's sister Vic

Little man

2008-09-09T23:51:00.001-07:00

**Photos won't upload, so I'm posting this without them...again, and hopefully I'll post the photos another day, if the web permits. Sorry!

[September 7, 2008]

Timothy is ten months old now and walking around like a little man. He now has seven teeth, can easily eat Cheerios by himself (although I give them out sparingly since they cost $10 a box), and can drink by himself from a sippy cup. He loves guavas and yogurt (with jam mixed in) and Grandma's waffles. He dances to music, especially his baby "CD player" that plays nursery rhymes about several different animals. He can pick up a basketball, and he's started rolling tennis balls--albeit without seemingly realising what he's doing. He's a bundle of love, and I find I'm just falling more and more in love with him as the days go by.

I'm relieved that he's fallen into a sort of daily routine without any coaxing on my part. It's especially helpful now that I'm working every day (and not from home). He comes with me most days, and he can sleep on his little pile of blankets in my office. I've tried hard to baby-proof the room so he has almost-free reign. Otherwise he'd get into everything. He's so curious! And he's so good at playing by himself with his toys. I feel pretty guilty for not being able to give him my full attention all the time, but then what mom can? Even stay-at-home moms have cooking and cleaning and what-not to do. So I guess I can't belittle myself too much. I'm doing the best I can in my circumstances!

And my little one is thriving, so I can't complain!

The missing photos

2008-08-24T22:43:00.008-07:00

Timothy standing in our living room, lookin' cute

David carrying Timothy on his (Timothy's) first day at the zoo. Can you find the animal?

Timothy and me in front of the chimp, who does acrobatic tricks if you feed him enough groundnuts.

Nine months

2008-08-06T14:02:00.002-07:00

[August 19: Okay, I'm going to try posting this without photos since I've been trying unsuccessfully for two weeks to post it. Sorry for the delay. FYI, Timothy is now WALKING!]

August 6, 2008

It's strange to think that this time last year, i was starting to think about delivery and what I needed to get. I was just entering my last trimester... Weird!

Timothy's now nine months old, as of yesterday. Today we got his measles shot and yellow fever. Poor kiddo. And I can't for the life of me find his immunization record. I took it to the States (just in case) and brought it back, and now...oh well!!

My baby boy weighs over 25 lbs (11.5 kg). It's no wonder he's wearing more 18-month clothes than anything else. Good grief.

I'm thrilled to report that his sleeping is still going well--on and off, of course. And it's such a relief to not be getting up at all hours of the night anymore. Phew!

He's finally started crawling on his hands and knees instead of on his tummy. And this morning, he shocked me by getting himself off my bed, just the way I've shown him. It was amazing! I'm so proud! No more going headfirst over the edge! :) Timothy's also standing alone a lot better, for almost a minute now. Any day now he'll start walking! (Oh wait, is that a good thing???)

He's also eating really well. He loves carrot muffins and zucchini bread and all of Mom's cookies. He also likes carrots and potatoes, and he seems to enjoy bananas on and off. Yesterday he ate a tortilla for the first time. And he loves making messes of his food, oh yes!

We went to the zoo a little over a week ago, and he loved the animals. Can you find the animal in this photo? (David & Timothy don't count.)

Trip snapshots

2008-08-01T15:27:00.012-07:00

Here are some of my favourite photos of Timothy (etc.) from our Road Trip Mania...

David and Timothy in the Heathrow Airport - London, UK

Timothy playing at my aunt Brenda's house in Appling, Georgia

Timothy sitting in my friend Megan's apartment in Smyrna, Tennessee

Timothy and me in the "spider" at my aunt Mary's house in Coalinga, California

David and Timothy at Ocean Beach in San Diego, California

Timothy playing on the floor with my grampa (Dad's dad), Timothy's "GGpa" in San Diego, California

David and Timothy on the 4-poster bed at the "Froofroo Inn" in Oakhurst, California

David, Timothy, and me in front of lower Yosemite Falls in Yosemite National Park, California

Timothy at Jonathan & Lori's house in Eau Claire, Wisconsin

Timothy playing in the bath at Lisa's in-laws' in Lexington, Virginia

Some more teeth and whatnot

2008-07-28T14:20:00.001-07:00

Did I mention before that Timothy now has THREE teeth on the bottom and TWO coming in on top? Pretty snazzy! He's cuter than ever when he smiles.

He also has started to let go of me or the couch while standing. Admittedly, it never lasts long (10 seconds is his maximum so far), but he's gaining confidence! He just zooms all over the place now. Nowhere is safe from his curious hands and mouth!!

He's sleeping better at night, thank God! I'm putting him down now around 9pm, and if he wakes up, I just let him cry. I've learned to tolerate it. Sometimes he cries a few times in the night, but usually only once if at all. And he wakes up almost like clockwork at 6am to eat breakfast and go back to sleep. It's so refreshing to be getting a bit more sleep...although it's times like this--at night--that I can blog, since he's going going going most of the day. I still haven't figured out how I'm going to work with him around, since he's so active. I'd love suggestions.

What's new with my tiny tot

2008-07-21T03:45:00.001-07:00

Gosh, it's been awhile, huh? Things were so hectic with our trip to the U.S., and since we've been back, our Internet connection hasn't been fantastic--not to mention we were out of town for a week at a workshop for my job. Kai!

Timothy is so cute and just zooming along. He has mastered the army crawl, which takes him everywhere--places he can be and places he really oughtn't. I've made our living room and dining room safe for him by moving the coffee table up against the TV stand to cover that outlet and all the cords there.

He loves cruising, too. He'll pull himself up to standing by holding onto the couch or a chair (or my leg) and then toddle around the chairs and coffee table. Sure, he falls over sometimes, but he's getting better at landing on his bottom or hands instead of on his head!

His favourite toy is his white-and-yellow dog, Jack Morrison (from the '80s show St. Elsewhere), whom he always likes to cuddle when he nurses and when he sleeps. He also loves his book That's Not My Lion (Usborne Books), especially feeling the fuzzy ears and shaggy mane.

Timothy's eating some more solids, but his most common one is still cereal--oatmeal or rice. He also loves banana and drinks some apple juice. At a restaurant in DC, he tried onion for the first time and seemed to like it. (Daddy's boy, for sure.) He ate some jollof rice at Miango but didn't seem too fond of potatoes. Anyway, we're trying to introduce new flavours to him!

Two nights ago we put Timothy back in the other bedroom. We'd tried it before, but it drove us both crazy because he cried and cried and cried (and I cried). This time, he's older, and we've been very much encouraged to try again. The first night, he cried on and off for over two hours in the middle of the night. (That's what we're working on: his not waking up so much at night.) Last night he woke up twice but each time only cried for five minutes or less. Both nights, I went in to reassure him when he first started crying, and the first night, I kept going in periodically.

I don't remember the last time I'd slept so well. I hope it lasts, but I'm not naive enough to really think it's that simple. *sigh*

But Timothy's my darling, and we'll sort through this together!

Creepy crawlers

2008-06-27T21:33:00.002-07:00

Timothy started crawling--army style--on Monday at the Kirschners' house in Park Ridge, Illinois. Woohoo!! As soon as we get home, I'll upload lots of pix and a video if I can figure out how to. He's so adorable. Everyone is doting on him, even cousins Rowan (3-1/2) and Ian (15 months), who met Timothy on Tuesday this week. "Saint Timothy" has continued to be an exemplary traveler, but yesterday and today has been drooling up a storm and biting everything ferociously, so I'm thinking another tooth or two are on their way... It's been such a blessing to be in the U.S. and show Timothy off to everyone!!

Auntie Henrietta

2008-05-30T23:41:00.001-07:00

Our friend Henrietta, whom I've known since maybe middle school or high school, came to visit this week. She's about my age, has finished her schooling here, and is doing her National Youth Service Corps service in Kwara State, down south (11 hours away by taxi or bus). It was lovely to see her, and she just adored Timothy. I'm so glad my son has so many loving aunties and uncles!

Complete turnaround

2008-05-28T07:30:00.001-07:00

Timothy rolled over from his tummy to his back yesterday, which means he can now roll a full 360-degrees. It's exciting, obviously, because it means he's really developing, but it's also a a bit frightening because now it means he can roll off the bed or couch. Plus when he was crying this morning, and I picked him up, I discovered him on his tummy. Oh boy.

In five days he'll go on his first airplane ride. Yay! That should be interesting...

Here's recent photos of Timothy in one of his favourite games. He sits on the arms of the two chairs next to each other, like riding a horse, and plays with the cushions and the chair backs (which come forward on hinges). He's happy for l ong amounts of time, just playing with the chairs!

Rolling babies may not gather moss, but they sure do get dirty!

2008-05-16T14:55:00.005-07:00

Timothy rolled over today! He's been able to do it with help for several weeks now, but this is the first time he's actually done it independently. And the first time it happened, I wasn't even watching. I heard him fussing and looked down, and there he was on his back, when I could have sworn I'd put him on his tummy. I turned him back over, and this time I watched him. Within a few seconds, whoop! He was over again! Yeehaw!! So far, he can only go from tummy to back, not vice versa. But I'm sure he'll learn quickly. Mom says it's his fat legs preventing him from rolling easily. Admittedly, he does have pretty chunky legs.

I sorted all of his clothes yesterday and am putting away almost all the clothes below 9 months. I can't believe how quickly he outgrows things!

His two teeth are visible now (you can see them in the top photo), and sharper every day! His favourite toy is a wooden spoon, which he can chew on and make loud noises with. So fun. He's been eating rice cereal and has tried maize-with-soya a few times. And he loves banana. We tried pumpkin last night, and he had a rough night, so I'll try it again tomorrow to see if it makes him feel yucky. (I didn't want to lose sleep again tonight!)

I'm so excited for all my family and many friends to meet Timothy (and David, of course) in just a few weeks!! I just pray he'll travel well...

Six months

2008-05-07T10:58:00.002-07:00

Timothy is six months old!

It's hard to believe I delivered him half a year ago. Wow! He's developed such a personality and is just a sweetheart!

Timothy's discovered scooting. He's still a ways away from crawling, but he pushes himself backward with his hands, so he's become mobile. He's also starting to roll over - yay! He now has TWO (2) teeth coming in, and they're sharp!! We weighed him on Monday the 5th, and he was 9.4 kg (20 lbs, 11 oz). Goodness! No wonder my arms get tired when I'm carrying him! He always wants to sit forward or stand up, and when I've left him on the armchair, he's learned to pull himself up to a standing position, holding onto the arm of the chair. Granted, he wobbles and falls right over, but I'm amazed he can get himself up! He's chewing on anything and everything, and now that he's a little bit mobile, I have to really start baby-proofing the house.

And Timothy loves animal noises! He giggles when I moo or bark or oink. What a sweetie! He's so winsome. I wish you could all meet him!

Timothy hard at work

2008-05-01T11:53:00.003-07:00

Timothy joined my friend Adena and me on working retreat this week. We spent two nights in Miango, working on the lesson profiles for the second book in our new teen curriculum of Sunday school materials. He was such a sport! He endured long hours sitting and lying down on the bed, playing in the stroller, watching the workmen across the fence from his Pack 'n Play, and generally just being good-natured! I'm afraid he doesn't like the local cereal, acha. He spit it out at breakfast one morning. And he had his first bath in a big tub Wednesday morning (after getting acha all over himself). He also went in a baby swing for the first time. Such a good kid! I'm truly blessed.

My cutie

2008-04-27T06:12:00.006-07:00

Timothy goes to the Joint Project office with me. Here we are with Rose, the Joint Project secretary and assistant.

Timothy loves his grandma! We're so thankful to be near my parents!!

Sometimes I feel like we hardly ever get to see David, so I try to take advantage of photo moments with Timothy and his daddy.

Luke (9) loves to play with his nephew, Timothy, and especially loves to tickle him!

Here's Timothy in the Pack 'N Play at Joint Project on my birthday this past week.

The first tooth!

2008-04-26T15:07:00.003-07:00

I felt a tooth tonight! It's not fully out or anything, but I can feel the edge of it. Wow!! My little boy's teething! Well gosh, it's no wonder he's been so fussy the past few days. Poor kid's got sore gums. I guess I'll have to break out the Orajel or whatever to give him some relief.

Here's a photo of my cutie today. He pulled off my bandanna, so I put it on him instead. He looked hilarious, and he kept laughing at himself, especially in the mirror. What a hunk! Note the wooden spoon in his hand. Oh boy, does he love that spoon!

Mission complete

2008-04-26T01:13:00.004-07:00

Timothy now has two passports and thus is officially a dual citizen. Yippee!

Ironicaly, getting his Nigerian passport--a task we thought to be almost impossible--was extremely easy compared to getting his U.S. passport. The people we worked with were kind and efficient, and 48 hours after we originally filed our paperwork, we walked out of Immigration with Timothy's passport. Wow! How cool is that?! Now we don't have to worry about re-entry visas or anything like that. We're on our way!

We had a long week this week, with a full eight-hour day at the Joint Project office--on my birthday no less! This is a photo of our staff, plus two youth workers who helped us edit our teen lessons. And I took the Pack 'N Play with me so that Timothy could hang out while we worked. (It actually didn't work so well, but at least I tried!) Here he is in the Pack 'N Play, just chillin'.

Hmm, anything else to add? He's just such a sweetie!!

Another baby step

2008-04-17T08:35:00.002-07:00

Well, Timothy started on solids last night.

I'd really hoped we could make it to six months, and we were doing so well. But then in the past few days, he's been fussy and seemed to be eating more frequently, so--with Mom's guidance--I decided it was time to move him on to bigger and better things, like rice cereal. Yum!

It was quite comical trying to feed him his cereal last night--the first time he's eaten anything besides my milk. He loved the act of slurping off the spoon, but he'd spit out the cereal every time it made its way into his mouth. He thought it was a really fun game! I don't know if he actually ate any of the cereal, but at least now he's tasted it and knows what's in store for the future.

Did I mention last post that he got weighed the day before he turned 5 months old and was 19 lbs 4 oz? He's in the 93rd percentile. Dude! And he's a long kid, too, but I haven't actually measured him recently. It's funny 'cause my friend just became a dad, and his baby girl is exactly Timothy's birth size. Should I warn him that she, too, might be almost 20 lbs in five months? ;)

I have two full days of work next week so am thinking of maybe taking the Pack 'N Play with me. That way he can sit up safely--the floors are all carpeted concrete--or sleep without having to sleep in his carseat. Unless anyone has other brilliant ideas? And I've finally given notice to one of my jobs, so I'll be free after May 23 to spend more time with my darling baby boy. Yay!

The end of the road but the beginning of the journey

2008-04-05T08:56:00.002-07:00

Timothy has a passport!!

Finally, two months to the day after we first appeared in the U.S. embassy to apply for my son’s passport, we have it in hand. And it looks fabulous! I have a million people to thank, too. Without your help, it would have taken a lot longer and caused us a lot more stress.

Thank you:

Pam
Mary
Sara
Musa
Dunji
Brenda
Grampa
Julie
Mrs. Ferrin
Dad
Scott
Mark
Jenny
John

And anyone else I missed out, especially those of you who were on your knees on our behalf. You guys are absolutely stars in my book! We couldn’t have done it without you. Yay, God!

So the next step is to get Timothy a Nigerian re-entry visa or a Nigerian passport. Eventually we’ll want the passport, but as I said once before, it’s a monster headache logistically to apply for, so it may take some time and effort to get together all the necessary documents. Phew! But with a re-entry visa, Timothy will be able to travel to the U.S. with us and travel back unhindered. Yay!!

America, here we come!

Star sitter

2008-04-03T05:01:00.006-07:00

Timothy can sit up so well now! Okay, so he doesn't have it down exactly, but he can sit up for several minutes at a time before keeling over. He's learning to balance himself by putting his arm out (Kelly calls it a "tripod") one way or the other. He's so adorable.

He puts everything into his mouth now. The past few days, he's been grabbing for my cell phone and wanting to chew on that. Kai!

He still hates eating his mefloquine (anti-malarial). I haven't found the answer to this dilemma yet. I've tried (thrice) putting it in expressed milk and giving it to him by eyedropper. Last week I tried it in apple juice, but he just didn't like it at all. Argh! I am determined that my baby will not get malaria as far as it's in my control!!

Chiato (our kitten) is losing patience with Timothy, now that Timothy has n iron grip and doesn't understand that pulling Chiato's tail isn't a good idea...or eating Chiato's ears, either. I guess they'll learn together.

Bigger and better

2008-03-24T14:45:00.007-07:00

It's been terribly hot here recently (92F today), and I just can't bear to put Timothy in a sleeper. In fact, one night I didn't put anything on him except a diaper. (He has the mosquito net over his crib, which makes him warmer and--we hope--keeps out the mosquitoes.) But after rummaging around in his clothes, I found a few pairs of pajamas that said 12 months. And yet they looked pretty small. So last night I put a pair of blue dinosaur pajamas--shorts and a shirt--on my 4-month-old baby, and--lo and behold!--they fit! Then this morning, I thought I'd try on a pair of overalls that say 12 months but also look rather small. And whaddya know, they fit, too! Just barely--they're pretty snug. Good grief. Do I have a big guy or what??

Timothy's sitting up now--not for more than a few seconds on his own, but still, we're impressed! He's also holding things a little better now. Unfortunately, this includes my hair, which he grabs by the fistful. OW! He continues to chew anything he can get his hands on, so we've had to start being careful about what's in his reach. And yesterday I discovered--before it was too late, thank goodness--that it's no longer safe to leave him on the couch unattended. He can scoot himself right off. He isn't rolling over yet, but he's trying, so it's only a matter of time. He's now had three doses of mefloquine (an anti-malaria drug), and this week's was in apple juice instead of mommy-milk, so we're introducing him to new things. But apart from his medicine, he's only getting mommy-milk until he's six months old. "Baby-friendly," yeah!

I think we'll have to graduate him to the bigger carseat (still rear-facing, of course). He's starting to hang over the ends a bit. I just can't believe how big he is! David calls him a sumo wrestler and says he looks as though he should be walking already. Ha.

At least my little guy is healthy and laughs a lot! :)

Sleeping habits

2008-03-17T01:37:00.002-07:00

I just want to throw up my hands sometimes and quit. Timothy's sleeping has been so erratic lately. Last night after I put him down, he woke up three times in the space of two hours, and he wouldn't go back to sleep right away. I ended up finally bringing him into our bed because I knew he would sleep just fine with us. And I was right. He slept through the rest of the night.

So what am I supposed to do?

On other fronts, he continues to be an extremely pleasant baby most of the time. He loves to smile and loves being around people. He's usually okay with others holding him--at least for a little while. He laughs when tickled, and he giggles at animal sounds, especially the donkey bray. He's started scooting himself out of the carseat or bouncy seat if he's not strapped in. And when I leave him on the bed asleep, I find him in different positions when I get him up. So I know he's moving around a lot. He's really too big for the bouncy seat; his bottom touches the ground! And he's rapidly outgrowing the infant carseat. Everyone comments on how huge he is.

We got a backpack from a family leaving to go back to Europe, and I'm so glad! He is just getting too big for the front pack; my back hurts whenever I wear him in it. And a backpack will be great for when we travel in June--easier than a stroller. We're so blessed!

No teeth yet, but it's only a matter of time. He's got strong jaws and loves chewing everything. It's a good thing he still can't grab things very well!

When the going gets tough, the tough...eat chocolate?

2008-03-09T16:20:00.003-07:00

I laugh to think that a few weeks ago I tried to get Timothy to sleep without picking him up from his bed. Hahahaha. Very funny. It lasted that one night, and then I gave up. He's been sleeping pretty well, actually, but last night he just would not go to sleep. He was exhausted, after having very short naps all day long, but he just would not fall asleep! And I'd already told myself that this week I would move him into his own bedroom.

So I collapsed the Pack 'n Play enough to get it through our very narrow doorways, put it back together in our other bedroom, and put my tired baby down. I covered him with blankets and went to brush my teeth, leaving the hall light on.

By the time I got back into the bedroom to put on his mosquito net, he'd kicked off both blankets. He was happy as a clam, talking to himself, kicking his legs. So I left him and went to lie down for a few minutes. He was still pretty happy. Then he reached a point when his breathing changed significantly, and I knew he'd covered his face with his blanket. So I went in and uncovered it.

Then I came out to the living room to check my email. In a minute or two, he started minor fussing, so I put his pacifier back in and left him alone again.

Well then he started crying in earnest, and soon was screaming, as I knew he would, from what other mothers have told me. I tried to tune him out, started this post, let him scream. I did okay for 20 minutes. Then David got up and told me he thought we should pick Timothy up. No! I told him. That will ruin the whole thing! And I cried. Five minutes later, David picked up our son, and I ended up rocking him to sleep and putting him down around 1 AM.

Sigh.

So at least we've moved him to the other room. When he fussed a little in the night, I didn't even go in, and he went right back to sleep. He woke up crying at 7 AM, and I fed him, and he's back asleep on our bed, as usual in the morning. And I think we'll just deal with having to rock him to sleep for a littie longer, thank you very much.

Shriek

2008-03-05T09:57:00.002-08:00

This week Timothy has become a shrieker. I was worried about this because my cousin's daughter was a shrieker. Like Cousin Madeline, Timothy likes to shriek when he's happy as well as when he's upset, so it's hard to tell the difference sometimes. And oh! It hurts the eardrums! More than that, I'm worried about our poor newlywed neighbours. Maybe it will convince them not to have children. ;)

All smiles

2008-03-02T22:38:00.005-08:00

Baby Timothy is almost four months old now and is a bundle of joy! He loves to smile, and he's started laughing a bit more, especially when he's tickled. I'm noticing an attachment he didn't used to have--or maybe it's just that more people are holding him than used to. In any case, he seems to want his mommy most, which is both flattering and frustrating (though mostly flattering!).

He's now had all his early immunisations; the next one won't be for another five months. Yay! He's such a trooper, I tell ya. He hardly cried at all and was just a bit fussy the rest of the day. We also got him weighed, and he's now 8.1kg (17lbs, 13oz). WOW! No wonder he's so heavy to carry around! I've gotten to the point of not being able to easily carry him with one arm, so the front pack is just simpler.

I took Timothy to work with me two days last week, and he did just fine! He fussed a little but was generally pleasant and easy to take care of, even in the office. Thank goodness for such an easygoing child! (I know it won't last, most likely, but I'm enjoying it while it does.)

At the Carnival, Timothy and I had a fun time watching David play two games of ping-pong with the Hillcrest Physics/Chemistry/Calculus/Computers/etc. teacher, Mr. Alabi ("Mr. A"), the local ping-pong champ. We also got Timothy's face painted with a balloon that wiped off very shortly after we took this photo! Maybe next year, if we're around, I'll take him on the horse. And eventually the zip line. ;) He had a great time grabbing for my cotton candy. What a cutie!

Every day I love him more and more, and it's harder for me to put him down.

Aches and pains

2008-02-19T13:56:00.004-08:00

The hardest thing for me yet, as a mom, was to sit outside the theatre (operating room) while Timothy was being circumcised. It broke my heart, hearing him scream like that. The next hardest thing was to hold my precious baby one night, when he wouldn't stop crying. I could tell he was in pain, but I didn't know the origin of the pain, and there wasn't anything I could do anyway. All I wanted was to comfort him and make it all better. I wanted to wipe away his pain. (I bet God sometimes feels the way I felt during Timothy's circumcision: "Child, I can take the pain away, but I choose not to because what you are going through is necessary for your health and growth.")

Tonight I felt like the Wicked Witch of the West. I've heard about the mother leaving her baby in the crib to scream for a night or two in order to get the baby to learn to fall asleep on his own. I detest the thought of this, but I remember my sister had to do it with her firstborn. Oy, Lord, do I just bite the bullet and weep through a few nights of my own, while listening to Timothy scream and cry?

I thought I could do it tonight, since David's on call, but I just couldn't. Instead, I did what an article recommended: start small. I changed him, fed him, and put him down in the crib. He was okay for a little while. Then he screamed. I left him screaming for just a minute or two. Then I leaned into the crib, patted him, touched his face, and sang him "Edelweiss." The song always helps him fall asleep. But I told myself I wouldn't pick him up, no matter how much he cried. Tonight, I'd just sit there and sing to him until he fell asleep.

He fussed some, but he actually fell asleep pretty quickly once I started singing to him and stroking his cheek. Ideally, I try this again tomorrow, maybe another night after that. Then I try singing to him without touching him for a few nights. And then, theoretically, he'll learn gradually that I don't have to rock him in order for him to fall asleep.

Of course, this is all theoretical. I know that it's likely I really have two choices: Either I let him cry for a night or two and just beg God for mercy, OR I forever deal with an infant who must be rocked to sleep. I'd almost rather rock him to sleep every night of my life than have to go through that crying... Oy. Why is it so hard being a mom? Why does love hurt this much?

Babbling

2008-02-18T14:54:00.003-08:00

I love listening to Timothy "talk." It's midnight exactly, and Timothy's in his Pack'n'Play, talking away. In five minutes or less, it will turn to fussing, but for now, it's just a playful babble. I adore it. There is nothing I like better to hear, not even my favourite music. It's truly music to my ears.

I backed Timothy today. I'd tried to a handful of times before, but he always fussed. Today he lasted for about ten minutes before starting to fuss in earnest. He'll just have to get used to it, 'cause that's how babies here are carried. Always. And it's darn convenient, I have to admit, at least unless you're riding in a car... We'll just have to keep trying it out, more and more often, until he feels comfortable. (The photo is courtesy of Luke.)

Timothy's teething?!

2008-02-11T14:02:00.000-08:00

Yes, he's only three months old (14 weeks, to be exact), and David says it's very unlikely that he's teething already. But I'm convinced. Several times in the past week when Timothy's had hold of my hand, he's stuck my [clean] fingers in his mouth and chewed on them. Not sucked, but chewed with his molar-gums. Furthermore, he's started putting things in his mouth--cloth, mostly. He can't grab intentionally yet, but he's trying! And when he does get hold of something, it goes in the mouth. Isn't this an indication of teething? I'm just glad he's not crawling yet so can't put anything dangerous in his mouth! I got out his first teething ring this week, a Tweety one. I put it in the fridge to chill, and he loved chewing on it when I got it out tonight. Nope, I'm convinced. This boy is gonna have teeth pretty soon!

On another note, we were unable to apply for his passport again today. We need more documents. Please pray that we'd be able to get enough of these papers to satisfy the immigration officer!!

Picture of perfection

2008-02-08T14:08:00.000-08:00

This little sleeping figure in my arms is what I imagine "perfect" is really all about. I just overflow with awe and with love for him. It oozes out of every pore in my body. He is such a darling. And to think, God loaned him to me of all people?! Wow.

Timothy's three months old now. We celebrated his 3-month birthday in the U.S. embassy, between applying for David's visa and Timothy's passport. It was an extremely long day. And we came away without the passport application completed. But we're hopeful! You should see the photos for his passport; they're a riot. So pudgy and serious!

Up to speed

2008-01-30T02:13:00.000-08:00

Timothy got his second DPT shot today (and oral polio), and just like last time, he hardly cried at all. My doctor says yeah, but he'll run a temperature tonight. He didn't last time, so we'll see! And today he actually swallowed most of the paracetamol (Tylenol) I gave him, so maybe he'll do okay. (I, on the other hand, am nursing cat scratches all over my legs and torso from the kitten's climbing up my body. Ow!)

Timothy now weighs 6.9kg, or about 15 lbs, 3 oz. Yeehaw! I'm so glad to have a healthy fat baby instead of a sickly, skinny one! And Timothy's such a happy guy, too! (Most of the time, anyway.) Yay!

Timothy's First Laugh

2008-01-25T04:20:00.000-08:00

Timothy laughed for the first time today!! It was so adorable. I was just playing a sort of Peek-a-Boo game with him, and he giggled. I am SO in love with my baby boy!!

"I refuse to smile for the camera today, Mommy."

2008-01-24T05:33:00.000-08:00

It's been - ahem - awhile since I wrote last. Why? Because honestly, not much has been going on recently! Timothy is getting bigger every day. He's outgrown the size 1 ("Mini") diapers officially and has also outgrown many of his 3-6 month clothes. His torso is so long that even though the clothes are okay for his weight, they're just too small for his height. It's kind of a strange problem to have. Today when I went to the seamstress to get a dress sewn, there was a lady helping out there, and her one-year-old was Timothy's size! Yikes!!

My dad bought us a swaddling cloth for Timothy, but it was too big at first. Now he fits in it just fine. Of course, he doesn't technically need swaddling at his age. But it's been so cold lately that I've been using it anyway, to keep his hands warm! It was so cold a few nights ago that I had three blankets on him. And this is Africa! He's hardly been out of warm clothes for over a week but is now comfortable in a onesie and short-overalls. But he just refused to smile for photos today. *sigh* Oooh! I finally got a smile!

We got some great presents recently! One package was a set of three onesies from my sister, brother-in-law, niece ,and nephews with their hand- and footprints. So cool! Another gift was a book of children's nursery rhymes, followed shortly afterward by a music book of children's songs. Then we got a package full of fun clothes for a little later (including a Hungry Caterpillar outfit!), a "junior goalkeeper" hooded towel, odds and ends, and a book called The Dangerous Book for Boys, which David has pored over. The same day, we got a package from my 2nd and 3rd grade teacher with some clothes, a hand-crocheted blanket, and a scrapbook she'd made for me to just add photos to. WOW! I love gifts.

Okay, I honestly can't think of much else to say. Timothy's a real smiler, such a cutie! He wore shoes for the first time when we went out to lunch on Sunday. Very chic. I just can't imagine my life without him!!

Two months tomorrow--wow!

2008-01-04T05:12:00.000-08:00

So I finally got some "Christmas" photos of Timothy. Yeah, so it was January 3, but that's when the camera was working and I remembered to put him in his Christmas sleeper. At least I got it done at all!!

Timothy will be two months old tomorrow. How crazy is that?! I can't believe how big he's getting. We went in on Wednesday to get his vaccinations and weigh him, and he weighs 5.7kg--about 12-1/2 lbs. Wow! I'm thinking of moving him up into the next bigger size diapers...

Poor kiddo got some yucky shots on Wednesday but did great and hardly fussed at all. (I was expecting him to run a fever and fuss all day long!) But I think New Year's ruined his sleep habits. It was so noisy he couldn't sleep until almost 4am, and since then he's had more trouble falling asleep initially at night. But once he falls asleep, he's out! It's nice. :) Tonight we're going back to the Pack'n'Play instead of the drawer, which he's definitely entirely outgrown. Wish us luck!

I love his smile, and I'm so glad he's finally the age of smiling. Even when we're up at 2am (still), if he's smiling, I'm in a good (if tired) mood! He's such a darling.

We got him passport photos day before yesterday so we can get him a passport when we go to the U.S. embassy in a month. I guess we should get him a Nigerian passport, too, but there's no rush for that.

When I put him down at night, I just look at him and marvel at how great and awesome God is, to lend me such a beautiful, sweet little boy. Of course, the terrible twos etc. will come, and I'm sure he won't be an angel forever. But just to think that he's mine (in a sense)... Wow. I'm so blessed!

Sleeping revolution

2007-12-29T06:48:00.000-08:00

For the past three nights, Timothy has slept seven hours at a stretch! YES! It may not be what the docs call "sleeping through the night," but it works for me! He's a night owl, I'm discovering, and doesn't like to sleep before midnight. But once 12 rolls around, and I feed him a midnight snack, he drifts off until 7:00! Woohoo!

David thinks he's up to 6kg now, which is about 13lbs, 3oz, but that's double his birth weight, so I'm a bit skeptical. Still, he's the doctor, and I have no experience with babies' weights, so he's probably right. I guess we'll find out next week when he goes in for his immunisations. (He was due to go last week, but there were public holidays the past two Wednesdays for Sallah and Boxing Day.)

Okay, so he's got a really dry scalp, and is balding on top of his head. Any ideas for how to treat this? I'm trying lotion, but that seems kinda weird, putting lotion on his head and in his hair! Yuck. If anyone's got a better idea, I'm all ears!

I sure wish I could get some photos!!

Timothy's First Christmas

2007-12-26T01:45:00.000-08:00

Timothy is seven weeks old, and yesterday we celebrated his first Christmas! My friend Aunt Miriam gave him a cute red sleeper with "My First Christmas" and a Christmas tree on it. He looked adorable. Sadly, my camera isn't working. Can you believe it? One of the big events in Timothy's still-so-short life, and I'll have no record of it? So frustrating! We had a nice Christmas. He watched us open presents from his bouncy seat and then watched "It's a Wonderful Life" with us. He smelled great after his bath, and I told him all the ladies would want to hold him. Haha. It turned out Sara was the only lady who held him, but Uncle Chuck also got his "grampa fix" with Timothy in the evening. (Uncle Chuck has 5 grandkids of his own in the States, and another one on the way.) All in all it was a good day.

Timothy continues to grow, almost out of control! He's now wearing several 3-6 month outfits. I've heard three times recently that he looks like my dad. ?! Not sure why, but it's a common theme. He's starting to smile a lot more, especially right after eating. And he smiles at games, instead of just smiling randomly. (I tap him on the nose, and he smiles.) He's also cooing a lot more. So cute! His sleeping is still pretty erratic, but he's gone 5-1/2 hours at a stretch now, so I'm hoping he'll be sleeping through the night pretty soon. I could sure use the sleep!

He's had the pleasure of spending a lot of time in the kitchen with me this past week. I figure I should start making a list of everything I'm cooking that he will also know how to cook. After all, he's been watching pretty closely! Maybe Mom and I will make a chef out of him!

As soon as I figure out the problem with my camera, I'll post more pix. Promise!

Oh, he just woke up. I'd better pick him up...

Smile for the camera!

2007-12-16T08:23:00.000-08:00

Timothy smiled for the camera for the first time yesterday. Yay! I was pretty excited to show you all that I have a happy baby! :) He's been smiling occasionally for a week or two now, but whenever I've tried to capture it digitally, he makes a constipated face instead! Silly goose! Right now he's in the bouncy seat, looking at his fist as though it were something amazing. And now he's trying to eat it. Oh yes, I think we'll have a thumb-sucker in the family. He gets that from me. He'll be six weeks old tomorrow. Wow!!

Chubbier and chubbier

2007-12-10T05:42:00.000-08:00

Timothy isn't the chubbiest baby I've ever seen, but he's certainly not on the thin side! He's five weeks old today and getting bigger all the time. Here he is (LEFT) at one month old last Wednesday.

He took a bath today, and for the second time, he was actually happy during the bath! The first few times Mom and I bathed him, he sure put up a fuss. This time, though, he cooed and seemed to enjoy himself. Yay! It sure makes the whole experience nicer for us all.

Timothy was dedicated on Friday night at our monthly mission potluck. Rev. Dwight Singer - a good family friend - briefly explained Timothy's name and gave a prayer of blessing. I made a spice cake for the occasion, since Mom was disappointed she wouldn't be around to do a really nice cake for him. (The cake was delicious, but the decorating was another matter. It was a total flop. I did write four of Timothy's names on it, but it was a really lousy job, so no photos to show off!) The whole thing was short and sweet. We were only sorry that my parents couldn't be there, having left Tuesday for the U.S. Timothy looked so cute in a brand-new blue jumpsuit outfit a friend had given him (RIGHT).

And we've moved Timothy back into his drawer. He's getting too big for it, but it's so much more convenient than using the Pack'n'Play just yet. The only real problem is mosquitos. (Is there an "e" in that word?) I've noticed a few bites on his face--including one on his eyelid from Friday night's potluck, poor kiddo!--and am worried about malaria. But I guess we'll just start him on weekly chloroquine just to be safe. Isn't my baby a cutie pie? Here he is today, napping with raised hands. Does this mean he's going to be a Pentecostal??

Weight check - 4 weeks

2007-12-03T07:12:00.001-08:00

It's hard to believe that at this time four weeks ago, I was getting stitched up after giving birth to my darling Timothy! How the past weeks have flown! That's right: Timothy is four weeks old today. Wow!

I took him down to the maternity ward today to get weighed, and he is a whopping 4.6kg (10 lbs 2oz) - a gain of 1.6kg (almost 3-1/2lbs, over half his birth weight). WOW! Yep, he's sure been eating well and growing like crazy. And he gets cuter and cuter. When he goes to sleep, I wish I could just sit and stare at him for hours. So adorable. (Obviously he gets that from his daddy!)

Oh, and true to form, Timothy peed all over the scale while we had his diaper off. Scalawag!

He's been sleeping better. Last night I only woke up twice to feed him - yay!

Mom and Dad leave tomorrow for two months, and David and I will move into their house for the duration. We'll be taking care of my little brother Luke for a month, so we'll be a family of four for the month of December. Crazy! Timothy will sure miss his grandma and grampa. We all will! But they'll be back soon.

Marriage arrangements

2007-11-30T00:01:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, one of our doctor friends came to visit "Bature" (Timothy). He kept saying, throughout the visit, "He's so handsome!" When he was getting ready to leave, he told us, "I wish I had a daughter, so I could start making arrangements for them!"

We laughed. I told him to wait 18 years. He said, "True. It's not too late."

So my darling baby boy has already had a future-father interested in an arranged marriage! This will have to go down in the baby book!

Also yesterday, two of Timothy's aunties came to visit--Hannatu and Victoria, David's older sister and next younger sister. Hannatu was transferred to Jos earlier this year and works as a police health official, while Victoria is in teacher's training in a town several hours away. Hannatu had just been to visit my mother-in-law in the village and brought greetings and a gift. She said her mother wanted to send a live chicken, but Hannatu had vetoed the idea, not wanting to carry a live chicken on public transport all the way back to Jos!

Vic held Timothy and told me that she was going to take Shima (Timothy's Tiv name) with them to Abuja to visit my brother-in-law Andy and his wife. Poor Timothy! Fortunately, he was asleep and missed her little joke. She said that if ever we got to travel to the U.S., we'd have to leave him here with his grandmother. Ha! Not happening!

Hannatu noted that Timothy has an African nose. She said that a friend had asked her once why white people have pointy noses. (Have you ever thought you had a pointy nose?) He had heard that when white babies are born, the adults put some sort of contraption on the nose and leave it on for several months to make the nose pointy. Was it true? Oy! We laughed together. Nope, little Shima is going to have an African nose, just like his handsome daddy!

A growing boy

2007-11-26T04:38:00.000-08:00

Timothy's three weeks old today! And yesterday, when I was taking off his onesie, I realised it was actually snug on him! And when I put on his gown and tried to cover his hands with the hand covers attached to the sleeves, his arms had to be bent at strange angles in order to fit in the sleeves! What's going on? My baby is growing!! Too cool! Mom suggests I take him down to the clinic next week and get him weighed officially. Good idea.

He's such a cutie. And he just gets cuter and cuter every day. My mom says that he smiled at her today, which would be the first time smiling awake. But I didn't see it, so I'll wait to announce his first smile. :) Yesterday was his first Thanksgiving and Christmas, rolled into one. Since my parents are leaving on Dec. 4, they decided to have Christmas before they left, so we celebrated both yesterday, to some extent anyway. It was fun. Timothy's first gift was a kids' Arch book about Timothy of the Bible and how he worked with Paul. Very cool!

Timothy's graduated from a drawer into the Pack'n'Play our missionary neighbours left. (It even has a mosquito net!) He's slept in it fine so far. It does seem a bit big, but the drawer was just getting too small. He's sleeping better at night now; I think his circumcision site is healing well. We haven't had had to keep him in bed with us for a few days. Not that I minded that too much, but I honestly didn't get as much sleep that way, being too worried about suffocating him. But David and I are getting a little more sleep, and we're thankful for that.

I talked to a friend on Saturday, and she gave me the information I need for getting Timothy an American passport and social security card. Very cool. That will save us an extra trip to the capital; now we'll all the documents we need when we go in a month or two. (No rush.)

Anyway, we're adoring our little one and constantly thanking God for him!

Two Weeks Old!

2007-11-20T04:54:00.000-08:00

Wow, it's hard to believe Timothy was born two weeks ago yesterday. Already it seems like an eternity, and yet I still can't believe he's here, so close I can touch him whenever I want, look into those beautiful brown eyes, and whisper, "I love you." Wow! God is good!

A friend came to visit on Friday, and I mentioned that Timothy's umbilical cord had fallen off that past Tuesday (a week ago). She said, "I sure hope you wrote that in his diary!" Uh oh, I thought. I don't have a diary for my baby! I did recently ask a friend who's coming to bring a baby book for him. And then I realised...That's what this blog is for, right? Of course! So I'm officially recording that Timothy's umbilical cord fell off last Tuesday, not that you care. But there it is.

And my poor dear celebrated his 2-week birthday in the theatre (operating room) being circumcised. It was terrible. I had to sit outside waiting, listening to him screaming. I couldn't do anything! This is what being a mom is going to be like, isn't it? Knowing my son is going to have to endure moments--or even periods--of hardship and pain, and knowing there's nothing I can do about it, or maybe even should do about it? Aargh. However, the little munchkin is very strong and has hardly been cranky at all. He's his daddy's son, for sure! He was spoiled last night and got to sleep in bed with David and me.

Okay, so I know Americans are very anti-sleeping-with-baby-in-bed. There's concern about rolling over, suffocation, squashing, etc. etc. But I'll have you know it's been done in Nigeria for hundreds if not thousands of years. And no, I don't want it to become a habit. But I think occasionally we have to do what seems right and natural instead of politically correct and approved. I'm a light sleeper and very vigilant. And if you have a problem with how I'm mothering my child, I don't want to hear about it!

I'm finally feeling a little more rested, praise God. And I'm not sore anymore at all, which is awesome. Now I just have to start an exercise program to lose all this excess weight, right? (HA!) I can only try.

Baby Timothy says hello (*squeak* more like)!

More photos

2007-11-12T09:04:00.000-08:00

Daddy David holding Timothy - 1 week old!

Timothy with our neighbour doctor friend, Ruth, who helped with the delivery

Timothy with his godfather, Marc

A week old

2007-11-12T03:17:00.000-08:00

Timothy's a week old today! And just keeps getting cuter as the days go by. I'll try to keep taking photos to put up.

It's been such an exhausting but wonderful week. Timothy has so far been a wonderful baby. He sleeps great (typically 3 hours at a stretch) and eats well. He's a little goose, though, when it comes to diaper-changing time. It's been so long since I've changed baby boy diapers (Mom's last two foster babies were both girls), and Mom reminds me that urine fountains are one of the joys of baby boys. Ah, yes! Joy!

Timothy has had some jaundice, but it's pretty mild, and I'm happy to say it's fading. We even had to go down to the hospital on Friday to get a blood sample, just to make sure it was mild enough not to need phototherapy. Poor baby had his hand stuck, but the lab worker said he was "strong." I smiled, "OF course! He's his daddy's son!"

Speaking of daddy, David has been so wonderful. He burps Timothy when I need a break and has even changed a few diapers! He's been just as exhausted as I (being on call four nights our of seven last week) but has really rallied to be supportive as much as possible. He's going to be a fabulous daddy.

I'm so sore! But that's normal, I'm told. And it's getting better...I think. One of my missionary friends came back from the States recently with her own newborn, and she brought me some great soothing stuff for new moms. She's my hero! (Thank you, Heidi!) And I'm so glad that my heartburn has completely vanished. (I wasn't sure there for awhile, after hearing it might continue for months.) Yay!!

And over the weekend I received some gifts one of you sent all the way from London! (Thank you, Kemi!) I am truly blessed.

I still can't believe this little boy sleeping next to me was inside me a week ago. He's such a doll, so beautiful. And God's given him to me on loan to love and care for. WOW! Talk about overwhelming. Will I always feel this way when I look at him? I hope I never lose the wonder.

Photos

2007-11-08T05:04:00.001-08:00

Here's Timothy lying on our bed.

And here he is sunning himself in the carseat. (He's a little jaundiced.)

The long and short of Timothy's birth

2007-11-08T02:59:00.000-08:00

It’s Thursday, and I’m finally sitting down with the computer to blog about Timothy’s arrival! He’s still less than three days old, so I guess I’m doing pretty well, actually.

Here’s the short version, for those of you who don’t want to hear all the gory details:

I started labour sometime Monday morning. When the contractions were about five or six minutes apart (noon-ish), David came home from work, examined me, pronounced me officially in active labour, and we rushed to the hospital. (This was about 12:30.) In the “first stage room,” the midwife confirmed I was 4cm dilated, and they put me into the next room over, the “second stage room.” I laboured there for about an hour-and-a-half. By the time my own doctor examined me, she declared that I was 7cm, and I was moved into the delivery room. I got on the delivery bed, followed the directions of my doctor and the chief resident—who actually delivered the baby—and at 3:40pm, Timothy emerged. Mom and Dad were both in the delivery room, and David cut the umbilical cord. By 8 o’clock that evening, my doctor returned, declared me fit to go home—as long as David took my vital signs at home, and we left the hospital. That’s it!

Now for the whole story, if you’re interested:

I started having contractions Saturday morning, but they were very mild and far apart. By Monday, though, in the wee hours, they were getting pronounced and painful, but were still 15 to 20 minutes apart. I didn’t get any sleep either night and was completely exhausted by the time David left for work Monday morning. (He’d been on call Saturday and Sunday, so he was pretty tired, too!) He left, promising to call me later to see how things were going. (The hospital is only a 5-minute walk from our house.) My helper, Mary, arrived around 8:15 and started cleaning up the house a bit. (I’d left her a note that I wasn’t feeling well and that she should just do what needed doing because I’d rather not be disturbed.) I meanwhile lay on my bed in anguish. When David called at about 9:30, I told him I felt terrible, and that the contractions were still 15 minutes apart. He told me not to worry, just try to remember to breathe. Poor Mary wasn’t sure what to do with me. She could hear me screaming but couldn’t do anything. David called again around noon, and I told him the contractions were six minutes apart. He promised to come home within the hour. In 15 minutes, he showed up, felt me tummy during a contraction, said, “Yes, this is adequate,” examined me, and said I was in labour, about 4 or 5cm.

I knew this was good news because he was excited. He’s usually such a calm person, but he was speaking quickly and rushing around. We got me dressed and into the car, and we rushed down to the maternity ward. I went straight into the 1st stage labour room, a little room off the hallway with two beds. The midwife examined me, confirmed David’s assessment, and checked the fetal heart rate. The baby was doing fine, so they moved me into the 2nd stage room (exactly like the 1st stage except not off the main hall). My doctor came by and said she thought the baby would arrive before evening. That’s when the real agony started.

Oh my gosh. I knew contractions were painful, but I didn’t have any idea. How can people actually do the breathing exercises to distract them? I couldn’t stop hollering. David told me to stop, and I really tried, but it just hurt too much. David called my parents, and Mom arrived with some ice chips and a tennis ball. (She said this was her salvation when she was in labour with us kids.) David rubbed the tennis ball on my back during contractions, and somehow we pulled through each one. I wanted to die. I’ve never screamed so much in my life. My arms and legs began to tingle—my doctor says, because I was hyperventilating. It was awful. But David was my hero and stayed with me, letting me squeeze his hands and rubbing my back.

My doctor, who’d been coming in occasionally, finally examined me and said I was 7cm. I would definitely have a baby before the evening, probably before dinner. They took the fetal heart rate again, and the nurse declared that the baby was doing better than the mommy! (Hey, I resent that!) I heard my doctor tell David that if they broke my water, the baby would probably come right out. So they moved me into the delivery room, where I climbed onto the bed laid with sterile sheets. Mom and Dad were both there—Dad with a video camera—and David, too. A neighbour friend Ruth (a young doctor from N. Ireland) was also there to encourage.

I was still hollering, but I didn’t feel like pushing yet. The chief resident, Dr. Golnung, examined me, broke my water, and said to push if I felt like it. He and my doctor joked that they’d try to get this baby out before the residents’ lecture at 4:00. We all laughed. (Okay, I grimaced, but I thought it was funny.) After another few contractions, I started pushing. For some reason, I’d always thought this was the worst part of labour and delivery. It isn’t. I had no trouble at all. I pushed when they told me to push during the contraction, and the baby came down. The doctors discussed giving me an episiotomy, cut me open, I pushed, and the baby crowned. With two more pushes, he was out—3:40pm! The doctors told me I had a baby boy, and I started crying.

From then on, everything seemed like an anticlimax. I delivered the placenta, no problem. (A friend of ours had needed hers manually removed, and she’d described the total agony, so I’d been paranoid I’d need that done, too.) The doctors sewed me up, and I got to hold Timothy before they got him all cleaned up. Then they took the baby, weighed him—“3.0 kilograms!” Dad announced—and cleaned him up, then dressed him in a thick knit sweater set I’d been required to provide. (All women here bundle their babies up in these sweater sets, even when it’s 95 degrees F outside!) After I was stitched up, a nurse cleaned me off, and David and I returned to the 2nd stage room to recover a bit.

After a few minutes, they brought me the baby, and the nurses taught me how to nurse him. I didn’t even feel tired or in much pain; I was so exhilarated! We stayed in that room—there were no women in labour—until 8:00 that evening. We’d planned on staying overnight in the hospital, but David asked my doctor if we could go home, and she didn’t see why not, as long as he promised to take my vital signs. In the recovery room we were visited by almost all the residents—after lecture finished—and David’s brother James, plus several others from the hospital. I was just in heaven. We went home to my parents’ house at 8:00, got some dinner (I hadn’t eaten in 24 hours), I took a bath, and then we went home home. What a day it had been!!

So that’s the story of Timothy’s birth. I realise my labour was really fast, and I truly thank God for His grace! I now know that I can endure labour without an epidural, for all you “all-natural” people. It hurt like hell, but it was over pretty quickly. I still would rather have had pain management, but Timothy makes it all worth it. He’s such a darling!!

Photos

2007-11-07T05:35:00.000-08:00

Dad's put up a few photos on Flickr: http://tinyurl.com/ypvxfy. There will be more soon. :) And I'll put some up here, too, when I get a chance!

It's a boy!

2007-11-05T12:06:00.000-08:00

Tune in later this week to read the [leaving-out-the-gruesome] details of Timothy's birth!

Timothy Marc Nege
Born Monday, 5 November 2007 at 3:40pm
Weighs 3kg (6lb, 10oz)

Cute cute cute!!

14 Days to go

2007-10-31T10:54:00.000-07:00

Theoretically, anyway.

I'm going crazy. I mean, really going crazy. What am I supposed to be doing with my time? I can't concentrate on work, and anyway, my maternity leave starts tomorrow. I have trouble sitting or lying still very long to read. My mind just wanders. I've written almost all the thank-you notes I'm aware I need to write. Mom and I have even done 59 birth announcements (minus the details, of course!) since you can't get them here. I've set up a drawer for the baby's bed, put everything away. Now all I need is a baby!

Anxious? Me?? Naw!

Okay, so I'm anxious. That's normal. And I still have two more weeks to go. How am I going to survive this? Maybe I'll have to go to the Hillcrest library and check out all my favourite books to read...again. Or start Harry Potter from the beginning. Or have a Lord of the Rings movie marathon. If I had more yarn I could crochet another blanket or a sweater, but I'm out of yarn. Last week when I couldn't sleep one night I made booties with the yarn leftover from Ethan's blanket. So now the yarn's mostly gone. I need something to do, something fun or at least energizing. Any suggestions?

Things I WON'T miss about being pregnant

2007-10-31T00:51:00.000-07:00

heartburn
back pain
waiting...
urine samples *shudder*
Oh my gosh! Is that really my weight? Thank God I'm measured in kilograms!
waiting...
insomnia
frequent potty trips
motion sickness
waiting...
feeling hot all the time
getting out of breath walking 1/2 a mile
feeling tired all the time
not fitting into my clothes
waiting...
craving foods I can't get here
"eating for two"
constant worrying
waiting...

Things I'll miss about being pregnant

2007-10-30T10:05:00.000-07:00

feeling Kes moving inside
having a good reason to gain weight
positive attention & excitement
no monthly bleeding
no cramps (at least until now)
getting to eat as much Indomie (Ramen noodles) as I want
getting eight hours of sleep at night...oh wait! Eight hours?? That's been awhile.
new clothes
eating Mom's food instead of having to cook for myself
more things I'll think up in the next few weeks

Term

2007-10-24T01:07:00.000-07:00

And so the real countdown begins. Today I'm 37 weeks, which means that if Kes arrived today, he'd be considered "term" and no longer premature. He wouldn't need any special care... But Kes isn't coming today. I keep hoping my water will break (which I guess only happens to 15% of women before they go into labour) or that real contractions will start. These "baby contractions" (as David calls them) are annoying, often keeping me from sleeping. Ugh. I don't want three more weeks of this!

I've started getting the baby's stuff set up--finally! I went through all of my shower gifts, wrote thank-you notes, and sorted everything. I moved our rocking chair into the master bedroom and set up a little "bed" in a woven basket with pillows, towels, books, and a few blankets. (The books are to keep the baby flat and not let her sink and suffocate.) We don't have a crib, bassinet, or even a portacrib, so we're doing the best we can. (We might switch to using a dresser drawer if we decide the basket situation is still too soft.) I filled my new plastic dresser with diapers, burp cloths, bibs, towels, etc. And I set up a "diaper station" in our room, too. Wow, I feel like I accomplished a lot. Do you suppose this is the "nesting instinct" they talk about? (Did I mention I also put together a blanket project my sister gave me back in December with two pieces of fleece? It'd just been sitting in our house--as two separate blankets--for the past ten months, and now it's a completed throw. Yay!)

Next on my list after putting all the 0-3 month baby clothes in a dresser: Start on birth announcements! Mom's volunteered to help, and we figure if we start now, all we'll have to do is fill in the details when Kes arrives. That would take a load off my shoulders, especially now with Mom and Dad leaving in six weeks. We have some ideas for birth announcements, but we welcome any ideas you might have, too!

Doctor's visit--good news!

2007-10-16T07:12:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm not quite 36 weeks yet, but I saw my doctor today for what will now be a weekly visit. Everything looks great. My blood pressure is still fine (100/70), no warning signs at all. The baby is small--not bad small, just easy small--and has already "lightened" (dropped into the birth canal). Woohoo! I realise I could still be waiting another five weeks for this baby to come, but when the doctor examined me--which wasn't nearly as awful as I'd been prepared for--the signs were all positive. Of course no one is guaranteeing me an early baby, but she said everything indicates an easy birth and probably on time.

Yes! Kes is on her way! Please keep praying. And if you'd like to be notified immediately once Kes arrives, please let me know so I can put you on an email list or phone chain. (I doubt I'll be up for blogging much right after delivery!)

Don't hold your breath. I'm not even "term" yet. But you never know!

Loss of concentration

2007-10-15T01:25:00.000-07:00

I had a hard time deciding whether to post this here in my regular blog or in my baby blog because it fits both. So maybe I'll copy it over.

The problem is that I can no longer keep them separate this way! Obviously, I can still write "only" about the baby, but I can't "only" write about everyday life anymore!! I've finally reached the point of not being able to really concentrate on anything long enough to get much work done. Part of it is just, as I said, lack of concentration. But a lot of it is this enormous fatigue. As soon as I sit down with the computer to work, or even to email or spend some time on Facebook, I want to lie down and take a nap--even if I've just woken up!

I'm told this whole experience is normal and will only increase in severity until delivery. Boy, and then talk about being consumed with Baby! But at least then I'll have a few weeks off and won't have to worry about my work efficiency. Should I quit early, or should I continue to struggle with not getting enough done to warrant my status of "working"?

I'm really going to make people sick of me if all I can think about or talk about is this baby coming. Yesterday I got to eight months, so if I were to deliver this week, my baby would probably be just fine. And I've heard lots of stories of women delivering early! (But most of the stories are about women delivering their first babies significantly late. My nephew Rowan was 12 days late. But David says my doctors won't let me get beyond 10 days post-due before they induce. What a relief!)

Help! How am I going to work in this state??

NEWS: My friend Brandi had her baby on Thursday! This is her first (our weddings were 2 weeks apart), and she had preeclampsia so was delivered by C-section after they tried to induce. Cash Deane was 7lbs, 8oz, 21in long, and is doing fine. Yay!

Just about another month

2007-10-12T09:39:00.000-07:00

Kes and I are 35+ weeks now. We were due for our doctor's appointment today, but--as it turned out--today was a public holiday to celebrate the end of Ramadan, so there was no clinic. (These holidays are never fixed, so it's hard to know ahead of time when to expect to get the day off! I had to work for both holidays, yesterday and today, because that's what was on the schedule!)

Kes is still doing fine as far as I know, still moving around like no man's business. He loves to start wiggling just as I'm falling asleep. I think it must be a game of his. My friend Henrietta came over today to deliver something for my parents--who are on vacation and out of town this week--and asked if Kes was kicking right then so she could feel. I felt bad to have to tell her that Kes was probably asleep, since he hadn't moved in awhile.

I got word this week that some ladies in the mission community are planning me a baby shower, so Kes and I are pretty excited about that. It's not that we actually need anything--at least, nothing that's not a consumable product--but it will be fun to have a bunch of ladies all excited about Kes! I only wish some of my good friends from high school and college could be here to celebrate, too. And my sisters.

I was excited to find out this week that one of my mentors from middle school days will be returning to Nigeria around the time Kes is due. She's an RN, and she's agreed to try and be at Kes' delivery if Kes hasn't come by the time she arrives in town. So now a part of me wants Kes to be late so that this friend can participate in the fun!

One of my best friends asked me this week if I were going to deliver at home. NO! For one thing, I'm not a "natural birth" person at all. Give me an Ob/Gyn if possible, and an epidural (which, sadly, is not possible). For another thing, with no running water in our house--literally--delivery could be a pretty messy process... No, thanks. I'll labour at home if possible, but I plan to deliver at the hospital, thank you very much. Hole-in-the-floor toilets and all! If you think I'm crazy and disapprove, I don't want to hear about it! :)

Lying awake

2007-10-05T06:51:00.000-07:00

34 weeks and no news. Kes should be about 5lbs now (2.4kg) and 18in (46cm). Wow, that's getting big! David says first time babies (at least here) are generally about 3kg, but both my sister and my sister's first baby Naomi were almost 4kg! Good grief. I don't think I could handle a baby that big!

I've reached the point of having trouble sleeping at night. Kes thinks it's her time to play, so she'll nap all evening and then start bouncing around right when I'm ready to try sleeping. So frustrating! It could be like this for the next 18 years, though! Plus I'm finally reaching the point of knowing I can't sleep on my back or my tummy. I've known it in my head for awhile, but now I feel it, too.

And this back pain is just killing me. It's not sharp like there's something wrong, but just always aching as long as I'm sitting up. Ugh.

And the past two evenings I've noticed cramps. David says they're Braxton-Hicks contractions, which are practice contractions. Dude. If it hurts this much during practice, what's labour going to be like? JUST KNOCK ME OUT!

Mom finally let me go through the baby stuff, since she doesn't know now if I'm going to get a shower or not. I guess she was waiting for my friend Sharon to come, but we have no idea now if or when Sharon's coming, so we went aheaad and looked through what I've got. It's wonderful! I can't believe all the cute clothes and blankets Kes will get to enjoy! (Okay, so Kes won't even notice, but we will get to enjoy them!) Seeing all these gifts has definitely made more excited for the baby's arrival--instead of dreading it.

Our neighbour Aunt Dorothy--the unofficial doula around--gave us a 30-minute pep talk on Monday to get us prepared for what to expect in labour. She gave us a list of things to pack in our bags and told us some Nigerian oddities. For instance, after deliver, the new mother is automatically given hot tea to drink. Please, no! I'll be hot enough! The delivery room is piping hot, and no one even considers turning on the fan! Good grief. I have a lot to look forward to.

33+ Weeks

2007-09-28T06:58:00.000-07:00

Saw the doctor again today, and everything's still going well! Kes is facing the right direction now, my BP is still just fine, and everything else is OK too. Yay! What a relief to get some acid-reducer prescribed for me. I've been in agony on and off--mostly on--for months now. Tums just ain't cutting it anymore. When I sit up, my back hurts. When I lie down, my chest is on fire. *sigh* Only seven more weeks.

I'm really excited to be receiving some baby gifts! The problem--or at least, I see it as a problem--is that my mom has put an embargo on my gifts. She's rerouting them into her own stash and not letting me see them yet. I don't know when she'll finally let me have them, but I'm anxious to know what I've gotten! (Kes is anxious, too.) So frustrating!

I still haven't gotten any training on labour and delivery... No lamaz here, or anything else like that. I don't have a coach or anything. It's gonna be pretty weird. At least I'll have Mom.

Boy or girl? What do you think? Vote on my poll! :)

Baby moved!

2007-09-15T03:02:00.000-07:00

I went to see my doctor yesterday for a complaint, and she said she might as well give me my regular antenatal check-up while I was there. So she took my blood pressure (fine), measured my tummy (29cm), and listened for the fetal heartbeat on the Doppler. And after feeling around, she said, "The baby's turning! That's good!"

So Kes is now pointing more the right direction, which is a relief. I hope things keep going okay.

I was told last night that if I don't think I look pregnant, I should look at myself, especially from the side. I thought this was funny after earlier in the evening being asked if I'm only 9 weeks along!! (One friend didn't know I was pregnant at all, which was even funnier.) Maybe now that Kes has repositioned himself, people will be able to tell I'm carrying him!

7 Months!

2007-09-13T03:06:00.000-07:00

No real news on this front. Kes is still lying transverse at 31 wks, and I'm convinced that's why I don't look as pregnant as most women at this stage. I'm not worried about it. I figure Kes will turn in his own good time if he feels like it, and if not, it's up to my doctor to make a decision. I'm certainly not opposed to having a C-section if my doc advises it. But...we'll see. There's still nine weeks for Kes to move her little butt the right direction.

So there's really no point in taking photos because it doesn't look like I'm getting any bigger. :( And my next doctor's appointment is two weeks away, so I don't even have an ultrasound to report on. *sigh*

But Mom's started stocking up on diapers for me, I just found out yesterday. Once we move this weekend, I'll probably start doing the same. You can't always find Pampers--which are the best quality diapers around by a long shot--so it's better to get lots and lots when they are available. (If you have issues with my using disposable diapers, please remember that we have no reliable source of water here, especially once the rainy season stops and we can't collect rainwater.) I also noticed yesterday while shopping that one of the larger stores in town has three cribs for sale! I don't have one yet and won't get one quite yet, but it's nice to know they're available--although probably really expensive. (And Mom says they probably don't meet the safety standards of American cribs, with the distance between bars.)

My friend Brandi may be delivering this week. She's due Oct 6 but has preeclampsia, so they're considering inducing. I haven't heard the latest, but she's 37 weeks, so she's pretty much term. From this distance, it might be weeks before I hear if she's delivered Cash safely.

I also just found out recently that a high school classmate of mine, Sara, delivered recently, at about 34 weeks, because of some complications. They delivered the baby by C-section. I'm still waiting for more information about that, too!

Medium-well

2007-09-05T11:34:00.000-07:00

I figure if Kes were a steak, she'd be medium well-done by now. In more conventional terms, we're 30 weeks along, which means 75% of the way! Yeehaw!

We went to see our doctor yesterday--for a really quick appointment. Since I'm substitute teaching, I didn't get out of school early enough to catch my doctor during her normal clinic hours. So I barely saw her before she left the hospital for the day. We met in the maternity ward this time, instead of in the private clinic, and she did an ultrasound. Kes is still lying transverse (sideways), but she's not worried yet. The placenta is low but not problematic yet either. So we'll just have to keep waiting and see!

David offered to take me for a 3-D scan this week, since he's doing his radiology posting at the teaching hospital. I was flabbergasted that they even have such a thing in our little town. And I turned him down. Can you believe it? I wouldn't mind the scan, but really, the only reason we'd get it is to find out if Kes is a girl or a boy. And...honestly...I think it's more fun to be surprised. So hang in there. Just ten more weeks before we find out! :)

Another week down

2007-08-31T07:43:00.000-07:00

Well, this week hasn't been terribly exciting as far as baby news. Kes and I have completed 29 weeks and so are into our 30th week! He should be about 1.3kg now (2lbs). Wow! So cool. I cannot believe how active she is most of the time. God, please don't give me a child with ADHD! I just don't have the patience!

Yesterday, while I was substitute teaching 10th grade English, my students brought up the subject of overpopulation. They asked my opinion, and I said, "It's a problem." I wanted to avoid getting into a sticky discussion because, remember, this was English class, but they then asked me how I thought the problem should be solved. I said, "Good question. What do you think?" One young man said, "Sterilisation. We should sterilise everyone in North and South America." I laughed. He then asked if I was going to have kids, if I ever got married. I told him that I am married, and that yes, I do plan to have kids. He seemed to think this was the wrong answer. Then he said, "I'm never going to have kids. I'm going to adopt. In fact, I don't even plan to get married. I'll just live with my adopted kids."

I asked him to put it in writing for me and sign it in blood. The guy's a joker.

Okay, so sue me. I'm adding one more life to the world's population. I'm furthering Nigeria's status as the most populous country in Africa. Anyone got a problem with that?

28 weeks down!

2007-08-23T04:01:00.000-07:00

Baby Kes and I went for our check-up this week. We’re 28 weeks now, which means my next appointment is in two weeks instead of four. Everything checked out okay. Kes is growing as she should be, and I’m gaining weight. *sigh* I wish that weren’t part of the deal, but oh well! BP’s fine, fetal heart rate is fine. My doctor says the baby is lying transverse (across the uterus instead of with the head up or down), which isn’t a problem yet. We got an ultrasound just to make sure the placenta’s in the right place. (If the placenta is “low-lying,” it can cause problems during delivery. But mine’s okay.) I was really worried Sunday and Monday because Kes wasn’t moving much (as in, I felt him once ever six hours or so), but he’s back to normal again. Yay!

It’s hard to get up stairs these days, and standing from a sitting position is no longer easy as pie. And I’m afraid I’ll have to limit my sitting on the floor, which I’ve always loved dearly. But it’s just so hard to get up! And I’m not even that big! I ran out of Tums last week, and that hasn’t been fun. You can get some local stuff here (and I got some from India to try), but… it’s not the same. Oh well. Life goes on.

Thanks for your prayers and encouragement!

Your first official letter

2007-08-16T04:06:00.000-07:00

Dear Kes,

How are you today? I haven’t felt you move much today, but you must be tired after all the jumping around you did yesterday! I love feeling you inside me, even now that you’re starting to kick my ribs. It’s worth it to know that you’re all right in there. I wish I could see you. I’m jealous of Brandi’s 3-D scan of her baby, Cash. You and Cash will only be about six weeks apart!

It’s exciting to think that every day, you’re becoming more and more able to live on your own. (Someday, that will terrify me rather than excite me!) I read a website that says your chances of survival if you were born in the U.S. today would be 85%! I can’t imagine your being born now. You must be so tiny! My tummy barely sticks out at all. But in only a few months, you’ll be ready to come out. Wow!

I’m so eager to meet you! I want to find out if you’re a girl or a boy. I just hate waiting. But your Baba doesn’t want to know yet, so we’ll wait. We will love you just as much either way, so it doesn’t matter to us if you’re Lydia or Timothy. (You’re going to wear blue regardless; I just don’t believe in baby girls only wearing pink.) We’re so excited to be your parents and to hold you, to watch you grow! We love you oodles and oodles, little one.

Love, Mom

Godparents

2007-08-12T04:09:00.000-07:00

I admit: Godparents are something I hardly ever thought about when growing up. I wasn’t raised in a Catholic family, so I really had no exposure to the concept. All I could have told you was that Cinderella had a fairy godmother, who helped her get to the ball… But if you’d asked me the role of a godparent, I could never have answered.

And then I joined an Anglican church in college and learned a tiny bit more about godparents. I started to think it was a pretty neat idea. I missed out by not having godparents. At the same time, there is a couple who are good friends of my parents, and I might call them my “godparents.” When I was growing up, they sent me frequent postcards and notes, and they always sent a birthday card with a special reminder of my uniqueness. Maybe they count as godparents.

In any case, my baby is going to have godparents. I’ve found them, and they’ve agreed. Yes! Neither of them is Catholic, and they’re not a couple. But they’re both wonderful people, and we’re thrilled to have them on board. I thank God for close friends who can become a part of our extended family on behalf of our coming baby!

Home stretch

2007-08-10T05:17:00.000-07:00

I entered the third trimester this week.

Wow.

Nothing feels different, obviously, but I know this is the trimester in which everything will change. My feet will swell up. My tummy will really start to protrude. I won’t be comfortable sleeping at night. My bladder will seem tinier and tinier. Oh, and no one told me that my lung capacity would decrease, and somehow it never occurred to me. I was reading David a humourous memoir written by an adult MK from Nigeria, and I discovered I was getting horribly out-of-breath. What gives? And I can no longer sing songs in church without gasping for breath. That’s the worst. I was hoping I could join the Jos Community Choir this year in their annual performance of Handel’s Messiah, but at this rate, I won’t be able to sing a single measure without feeling light-headed. Not fair! I guess there’s always next year…sigh.
But Kes and I are doing well. She is such a kicker! Definitely going to be a footballer. Sometimes my tummy gets really tight, and I can feel the hard lump where I think her head is. It’s so strange!

Last week I was delighted to get a whole boxful of baby items from my sweet sister-in-law. I just couldn’t believe it! She really went all out! I also received-in utter astonishment-two gifts from one of you!! I don’t think I have ever met you (and you know who you are), but I am so touched by your thoughtfulness!

Mom had been setting aside a few baby things for me over the past few months (she is a foster mom and has taken care of over 20 babies), but when she got a call a week ago to take in a newborn girl, she had to raid my basket for baby stuff!

One of my dearest friends has consented to be Kes’ godmother, and we’re delighted. She lives far away, but she is perfect for the job. I’m still working on getting him a godfather. I’m having trouble deciding between two young men. Shall I just toss a coin? There’s still plenty of time, I suppose.

So that’s the news from here-and hopefully I will actually be able to post this soon, if Blogger lets me!

Viability

2007-07-26T04:09:00.000-07:00

It's strange to think that in the U.S., Kes would have more than a 50% chance of surviving if he were born today. Wow! Here in Nigeria, his chances of survival would be pretty slim. So it's a good thing I'm not going into labour!

We went to see the doctor on Tuesday, and everything still checks out fine. Kes is growing well, and he had a strong heartbeat on the Doppler. I've gained another few pounds (surprise, surprise), and my blood pressure was fine again. The doctor prescribed me some iron tablets just because, and she recommended I start taking daily vitamins. Yuck. Oh well. I do have some, so we're good to go.

Dad said the other day, "Well, you're definitely looking pregnant now." Yay! I guess that means I'm finally showing. It's about time.

Kes is just jumping around like crazy these days. David and I both joke about her being a footballer. David'll be a good coach. (He's been teaching my brother Luke to dribble.) Maybe she'll go to the Olympics someday. :)

Susan, thanks for the hat! Kes will look so cute in it!

"Necessary Requirements for Delivery"

2007-07-23T04:49:00.000-07:00

Mom and I just went over the list the hospital gives its expectant mothers of things to bring to the hospital when they're in labour. I copied down the list and then my own translation because I thought it was great! (My favourite is the "For the Father" at the end!)

For Baby

Sweater [knit hat, sweater, leggings, booties] - 2 sets
Nappies [cloth diapers] - 6
Vest [onesie or undershirt] - 2
Shawl [crocheted baby blanket] - 2
Rubber pants [plastic pants] - 2
Towel - 1
Soap
Vaseline
Baby sponge [washcloth]
Comb - set
Cotton bud
Olive oil
Baby oil
Baby powder

For Mother

Sanitary pads (Trust) - 3
Razor blade - 1
Towel - 1
Set of Wrappers [wraparound skirts made from 2yd of cloth] - 2
Nursing brassier - 1
Flask hot water
Glucose [sweet powder in a tin...no idea really what it is...sugar?]
Sponge [washcloth] & Cream [lotion]
Tea Ingredients
Jik [bleach]

For the Father

Moral Support
Ready to settle the Bill on Dishcarge [sic]

A new meaning of "belly dance"

2007-07-18T06:49:00.000-07:00

It was crazy last night. I was lying down on my side watching Meet Joe Black with David, and Kes all of a sudden started jumping all over the place! She must have been using fist, head, and legs because I felt her all over my tummy, just going going going! I don't remember having eaten any more sugar to make her hyper, or anything like that, but it was the strangest thing!! I'm just glad that David can now feel her move; it makes the sweet moments even sweeter.

We got our first official gift for Kes two weeks ago, so I'll have to take a photo and put it up. (Our Internet has been down, so I'm doing this somewhere else for now.) It's a cute knit green cap from our friend Susan. (THANKS!) We're excited...obviously. We're at 23 weeks and counting!

What does amniotic fluid taste like?

2007-07-11T04:59:00.000-07:00

Kes can taste now! I can't imagine the amniotic fluid tastes very good, though. Poor thing. Mommy's milk will sure taste better. And just wait until he can eat chocolate and bananas! Yum yum!!

So I'm about five months along now and still not showing very much. My one relief is that I haven't gained a whole lot of weight yet. But I definitely feel hungry more often. Oh well.

Kes is about 1lb now (around 450g) and is about 8" long (crown to rump--20cm).

I'm hoping to get some more maternity clothes this week or weekend... We'll see.

Questions? Comments? Dire, pressing concerns?

This is my first pregnancy snap. Not very exciting, is it??

Acrobatics

2007-07-04T10:51:00.000-07:00

I've got a gymnast inside me!!

(And I don't mean my alternate personality.)

Kes is moving a lot. She's still not nearly big enough for David to be able to feel the movement, but I can feel it, and boy can it be distracting! Not bad, you understand. It's a joy and pleasure to feel the little bumps and prods. That's why it's distracting: it's so much fun to just pay attention to Kes that it can be hard to pay attention to my work!

Going to the used clothes market (Katako) tomorrow to look for maternity clothes. Woohoo!

Halfway Home!

2007-06-27T11:08:00.000-07:00

Woohoo! Today marks 20 weeks, which means Kes and I are halfway to delivery! Boy, am I glad.

David and I went for our second monthly antenatal appointment yesterday, and things look good. My blood pressure was fine (100/60), and I've gained 1 kg since last visit. We heard Kes' heartbeat again, and it sounded good. My doctor said I should be feeling the baby move now.

...Well, I hadn't. But then, when we got home, I lay really still, and pop! Either I have a wild imagination--which is probably true--or I felt Kes move! It was just a light bump on my tummy. No one had told me what to expect, so maybe that's why I hadn't felt Kes move. I haven't been very still since then, so I can't say I've felt her move again, but I'm sure I will when I concentrate!

David is glad we're halfway already. (I've sure been a pain to him. Poor guy!) In 16 more weeks, he says, you can deliver, and the baby will be matured enough. (Yay!) I think it has been an unusual experience for me. So far things have gone well. He's such an optimist! If I threw a fit every day, he'd say, "Oh well. I think you're being reasonable, considering..." Haha. I'm lucky my baby will have such a great and loving daddy...er...baba.

Our 2nd Scan

2007-06-25T08:30:00.000-07:00

We saw Kes again yesterday! David took me down for another ultrasound, and Kes looks like she’s doing well. The resolution on the machine is terrible (another reason we won’t know Kes’s sex before his birth). I wanted to take a photo, but I knew no one (including me) would be able to interpret it! So I just contented myself with looking at the screen. The most exciting thing—which wouldn’t have been captured on my camera anyway—was the fetal heart activity. Yep, we could see her heart beating! How cool is that?! And David saw her head moving. (I strained my eyes but didn’t see what he saw. I guess I’m not trained enough.) Now that Kes is getting bigger, we can’t look at his whole body in one scan shot; David has to move the thing around so we can see the whole body. When he measured the head circumference, the machine calculated that I was 19 weeks, 5 days (give or take a week, David said). In my estimation, I was 19 weeks, 4 days, so I guess Kes is just the right size!

I’ve been scolded for not showing yet—as though I can help it! I guess if I were thinner, my belly would look bigger, but because I’ve always been on the larger side, my tummy’s not too prominent. Be patient, Sara. I’ll send a snap when I get bigger!

Hairy little Kes

2007-06-20T05:26:00.000-07:00

At 19 weeks, Kes now has a layer of funny little hair, and on top of that, a coating to keep her skin protected from the amniotic fluid. So I have a hairy little one!

Every day I hope that I'll feel Kes moving, but it hasn't happened yet. David said to wait until 20 weeks before I expect it, but I can't help hoping it will be sooner. Without a regular ultrasound or even Doppler check, feeling Kes move will be the only way I know he's doing okay. Sure, I'm anxious! What new mom isn't? I mean, come on!

Mom's filled a whole big basket with baby clothes and blankets for me. I feel very well taken care of, but I still wish I had access to some of those nifty American things, like a boppy. Or a front-pack. But hey, I'll manage, just like every woman here. Who needs a stroller? I can just put Kes on my back like all the locals. A carseat on the other hand is definitely an essential, so once I figure out the Danish instructions in the manual, we can get ours all set up!

We'll be moving in August/September, and I'm eager to set up a room for Kes. We probably won't have a crib yet, or even a portacrib/playpen, but she can sleep in a basket or a dresser drawer. I don't want to go crazy decorating, since we've got a very limited budget, but I hope I can at least put something on the walls and put up cute curtains. Still, that's several months away. I have to gather ideas first!

A friend told me that I should wash up my old stuffed lion, TJ, who has always been my favourite stuffed friend. Sadly, though, I lent out TJ on a long-term loan seven years ago and don't know if I'll be able to get him returned in time for Kes' arrival. I'll work on it, though! Babies here are terrified of stuffed animals. It's really sad! But Kes will be American in that way. I want him to always have a stuffed toy or three.

Still fitting into my skirts but not for very long. Even my shirts are getting a bit tight these days. But I'm still not big enough to take photos of--at least, not interesting ones. :) Be patient. I'm sure I'll blow up like a blimp after 24 weeks.

I'm still happily collecting advice and suggestions. (Thanks so much to you who've already contributed!!) So keep 'em coming! No, I don't want advice on parenting, just on the pregnancy itself for now, and anything I might need to start out with. THANKS!

image from National Right to Life site, http://www.nrlc.org/abortion/facts/fetaldevelopment.html

Kes can hear!

2007-06-13T03:55:00.000-07:00

I wrote a great post on Wednesday, but Blogger wasn't working, so I couldn't post it! Only the title! And now I just don't have the energy to write much.

Yes, at 18 weeks, Kes can hear! Not only music and speaking, but digestion, too! Haha. The poor baby! The good thing is I can sing to her now, and she'll hear. I'll have to teach her some folk songs and hymns before she arrives.

Thanks for all your suggestions regarding what I'll need for Kes. I really appreciate your input!

Ok, all for now. Keep checking!

The fat one

2007-06-06T07:07:00.000-07:00

According to my handy-dandy fetal development site, Kes is now getting some fat on her body! Yay! I must be, too, as I have gained six pounds since I discovered I was pregnant (not counting the 10 lbs or so I lost my first week or morning sickness). I got some new dresses last week that have plenty of room for me to grow. It hasn't been easy for me to tell that I'm getting bigger (except in a few certain skirts I wear), but I looked in the mirror sideways last night, and I'm definitely growing!

People have started asking me if I need anything, and the truth is, I have no idea what I need! Any can't-d0-withouts to recommend to a first-time mom? Obviously my baby needs clothes, diapers (I'm NOT going the cloth route if I can help it), toys... But other than that? Not a clue.

And no, we've decided not to find out if it's a boy or a girl until the birth. So you'll all just have to be patient with us and anticipate a surprise! It's more fun that way anyway, isn't it?

No movement yet, but hopefullypretty soon. I'll write when I feel the first kick, I promise. :)

First check-up

2007-05-26T04:42:00.000-07:00

We heard Kes' heartbeat yesterday! David and I went to see my doctor (and neighbour) for the first official time yesterday. My weight (70.5 kg) and blood pressure (100/50) were both normal. The doc said I'm "right where [I] should be" in terms of my tummy. And she found Kes' heartbeat without too much trouble. Yay! It's nice to know Kes is alive and growing in there somewhere.

(Our neighbour doctor's relation--whom we've known forever--recently lost her baby. She was about a week ahead of me and started bleeding. So she went on bedrest, only to discover that the baby had already died... Makes me nervous all over again.)

The doctor says I should start feeling movement within the next few weeks. Cool! I'm already getting uncomfortable lying on my tummy for too long. And my waist is disappearing a bit every day. Disturbing! And I'm gaining weight. *sigh* The annoying thing is I'm still unable to cook for myself (and eat it). So we're having to figure something out between eating with my parents and having our househelp Ladi fix Nigerian food once or twice a week. Hopefully that'll work out. The good news (for me) is that the family who usually employs Ladi, who has been home on furlough for a year, is delayed in returning, so I can keep Ladi working for me until January! This would be a real blessing!

So that's the latest. I'm 15-1/2 weeks. Starting to think about maternity clothes...not to mention what am I going to do for baby clothes and stuff??

We saw Kes today!!

2007-05-13T11:10:00.000-07:00

David took me down today for my first scan, and we got to see Kes for the first time! It was so incredible. I've seen dozens of ultrasounds in my lifetime, including my sister's ultrasound of Josiah. But it was completely different lying there with the jelly on my tummy, watching the shapes on the screen. They were hard to make out; the resolution on our machine's pretty poor. But we saw the head, a limb, and cardiac activity, which means Kes is alive and well. Woohoo!! This was just an unofficial scan, "for fun," so to speak, so we'll probably have an official one in a few weeks. But I'm excited. Kes is really real in my mind now. Wow!

One-third down! Two-thirds to go!

2007-05-11T02:41:00.000-07:00

Yes! I reached 13 weeks this week, so my first trimester is officially over. Yay! It's about time! And truly, I am feeling better. Now I only feel yucky about 10% of the time instead of the majority of every day. And in a week or two I can start taking certain meds that you're not supposed to take in the first trimester. Phew.

David and I decided on names last night, we think, but there's still six months left for us to change our minds. He didn't really mind what the names would be, so I forced him to choose between my two favourite girl names. (No contest for the boy name.)

I've reduced my working hours as of this week, which has been nice. It's allowed me time to nap during the day occasionally. (I found out yesterday that the word "nap" is not common here; instead they use the Spanish word "siesta." Isn't that weird?) Plus it gives me a little time to do things like blog and write emails to all those people who've been neglected the past few weeks. (Sorry, friends and family. It's hard to do email without the Internet in my house!)

But as far as I know, Kes is doing fine. No warning signs at all. In a few weeks I'll have my first ultrasound to confirm there really is a baby inside, and it's not just a ball of tissue or something gross. I'm going to have to stop wearing elastic around my waist from now on. Not that I'm showing at all that I'm pregnant, but my tummy just feels tighter.

I don't think I mentioned earlier that my friend Brandi is due October 6 and is having a boy! And my good friend Linda is also due in October. It'll be fun to compare notes! :)

No one told me... (12 weeks)

2007-05-01T01:57:00.000-07:00

So a friend of mine just told me yesterday that actually, morning sickness commonly lasts the whole duration of the pregnancy. You mean I could feel this yucky for another six months?!? No wonder no one had told me; it's one of the most depressing thoughts I've had in a long time.

Kes and I are getting by. I'm still struggling with nausea on and off, still taking the medication David gave me. I've pretty much settled on names in my mind, but I won't make them public until it's closer. People have asked if I want to know whether Kes is a girl or a boy before the birth. Good question. David and I haven't talked about it; knowing David, he won't care at all either way. In any case, my ultrasound, if I have one, is still at least four weeks away, so I don't have to decide yet. And besides, what if the scan is hard to read? What if the doctor can't tell? Or what if he's wrong? It happens.

My back is starting to hurt... I don't think it's supposed to yet. Oh well. And I'm starting to crave milkshakes and curly fries. Oh dear. I'm in for a long haul. I'm still considering godparents. Is it weird, do you think, to have singles as godparents? For example, if I asked one of my girl friends from college to be godmother, and an unrelated guy friend of mine to be godfather? Need advice.

Paranoia

2007-04-18T13:22:00.000-07:00

Ten weeks today!!

And I'm getting paranoid. There's not exactly any reason for my paranoia. I'm experiencing no danger signs. I'm not particularly high-risk, apart from this being my first pregnancy. So there's nothing to worry about. Right?

A missionary friend has had complications with her pregnancy and has returned to the States. She's on bed-rest until she delivers in late July or early August.
Nine years ago, a missionary neighbour delivered a still-born in her eighth month. The cord was wrapped around the baby's neck.
One of my friends from college has just had her second miscarriage.
A good friend's sister-in-law had a miscarriage with her first pregnancy in November and has another threatened miscarriage now. (She's two weeks ahead of me.)
Plus I just watched an ER episode two nights ago in which a woman in her first pregnancy suffers from eclampsia and dies while they're doing an emergency C-section.

So yeah, I guess I'm a little nervous. With good reason? Probably not. But have I ever been reasonable?

But really, Kes and I are both doing okay. No cause for alarm. I've entered the weird cravings stage, which is kind of comical. The other night I was hungry, and the only thing I wanted to eat was pears. You can't get fresh pears here; they're simply not a tropical fruit. So I ate a whole can of pear halves. Crazy! I just wish I could pop out to Burger King to get a vanilla shake. Or some chicken fries. Mmm.

Anyway, we're holding on. Nothing new to report. Just hanging in there, waiting for the second trimester and the period of feeling really good physically. Will it ever come?