Baby Update

Well, our induction has been scheduled for Thursday, 1/28 if Baby does not come before then on his/her own. My doctor advised me to 'think contraction thoughts' this week, as I still have no progression at all toward labor. We'll induce even without any dilation, but that does increase the possibility of a c-section. I must admit that I was a little frazzled as I left the doctor's office yesterday afternoon. I think like most expectant moms, I want to go into labor on my own, but the risk of waiting for that is too high not to induce. The baby is measuring between 8-9 pounds, and waiting just means he/she will get bigger : ) I probably should have taken some time to settle my thoughts after the appointment, but I immediately called out of town relatives who have planned to come in for the birth to let them know about Thursday, give them directions to the hospital, etc.

I skipped out on the Christian Life Conference at church this morning to sleep as late as I wanted to and to avoid all of the 'when is that baby coming' questions that inevitably come every two steps as I walk down the halls of church. Jonathan is out volunteering with Youth Leadership Memphis, and I have some quiet time to myself at home. I am going to use this time to settle, pray, and relax : )

Beyond Babyland

"Memphis has one of the highest rates of infant mortality in the country. A new documentary and panel discussion looks at this problem and how the community is responding.BEYOND BABYLAND Premieres Monday, January 18, @ 8:00 p.m. on WKNO.Production funding by The University of Memphis and The Urban Child Institute. Additional airdates throughout the week. For schedule information, visit wkno.org."

Jonathan and I watched this special documentary on WKNO last night. Granted, it's pretty depressing, but it definitely highlights the reality of infant mortality in Memphis. It touches on institutionalized oppression vs. personal responsibility, abortion, education, the cycle of poverty, and many other important concepts. I was disappointed that there was no mention of adoption in the film. The only options given to the young mothers was either abort the baby or keep it and continue the cycle of poverty. If you can make it through the majority of the panel discussion, I think some of the most important points are made at the end of the discussion. These points include that the faith-based community must take more initiative with sex education with young people, instead of ignoring the fact that two-thirds of teens are engaging in pre-marital sex, and that in order to make progress in our fight against infant mortality, we are going to have to fund evidence-based practices, which will mean higher taxes.

I am currently participating in a faith-based program called One-by-One, which is similar to the Nurse-Family Partnership, but with a gospel message. I will be a mentor for a new mother from her pregnancy through the birth of her baby. Since the leading cause of infant mortality in Memphis is preterm birth, a big focus of this program is educating mom on how to take care of herself and baby before birth. The program partners mentors and proteges through the first 2 years of the baby's life. Despite the fact that I will probably be leaving Memphis during the summer, I am still going to give as much as I can to this program while I am here, and hopefully continue working with One-by-One wherever we end up living.

I will need a prayer partner as I take on mentoring responsibilities. If you are interested in being a prayer partner for me, let me know : ) There is an actual application, and you will need to meet with Carey Moore to get specific info on your duties as a prayer partner.

All this said, I encourage you to watch Beyond Babyland this week while it is still being aired. My hope is that as you watch it, your heart will be touched and you will have a desire to help. I am a firm believer in the phrase "If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem." Ignoring infant mortality in Memphis because it affects "them" instead of "us" is being part of the problem.

iPhone

Yes, yes, I have joined the cult, and I am now an iPhone owner. I have had this phone for just under 24 hours, and I love it already. Have I made a single call on it? No. But I have downloaded a few apps (including Epicurious and Contraction Monitor), checked my email, sent an email, gone to a website from a link in an email, updated my outlook calendar, used it as an alarm clock, and checked the weather before I got out of bed and decided what I would wear to work. The main problems I had with my blackberry were that I could not get my work email from it, I could not sync my outlook calendar directly to it, web browsing was a pit of a pain, and - oh yes - lately the thing would just randomly turn off.

The guy at the AT&T store last night must have thought I was an idiot, though. I walk in semi-sweaty, wearing clothes I had just taken a walk in, VERY pregnant, and when he asks me what phone I want, I turn to my husband and say "what phone do I want?" Jonathan says, "the iPhone 3G with blahblahblahblah..." Then the guy tries to sell me a very expensive cover just in case I drop my phone a lot. I assure him that I do not drop my phone a lot - although with the way I looked in the store, I suppose he could have assumed I am the type of person who drops my phone a lot.

And more on the news front - I am officially starting my maternity leave on 1/25! At first I was just going to work up until I literally went into labor, but I cannot focus on my job in this state and would be much better off at home. Even if I'm home for a full week before being induced, I think I will be less crazy than if I try to work for another full week. I'm going to take the next few days to hopefully tie up all of the loose ends that need to be tied prior to leaving for 2 months.

Walking will commence Sunday...

Well, still no progression toward delivery of Baby H. My dr assures me this is typical for first time moms, and a handful of friends have also told me they had little to no dilation prior to being induced. Jonathan returns home Sunday afternoon, and I will start walking a little more to try to start something on my own. Hopefully the weather will stay pleasant!

Less than three weeks...

Now that we have an induction date, I'm starting to really get excited about having our little baby here with us! I would prefer not to be induced, but at least I know that Baby H should be here by at least February 2nd. Even though I've had a due date for the past 8 months, there is a different feeling knowing that if my body doesn't start things on its own, chemicals will start the labor process on a certain date.

We had a sweet shower given by members of our church on Saturday night, and then a small shower at work on Monday. I think I look terrible, so I intentionally have not taken any pictures (sorry for those who like documentation). Despite not having pictures, the showers were wonderful and I am so overwhelmed by the generosity of our friends. I honestly feel like we have everything we need to get started with the baby. We also have a stack of gift cards for anything we have forgotten or realize we need along the way.

My mom is here in town this week while Jonathan is at a conference in San Francisco, and I think we are going to prep some more meals to stock the freezer. I feel bad leaving her at home all day while I am at work, but she just called a little while ago to let me know she is doing laundry - what a blessing!! Our laundry room is in the basement of our apartment building, and I can no longer physically walk down and up the steps while carrying a laundry basket. Jonathan does the laundry usually, and I wasn't sure what I was going to do this week while he was gone.

We would definitely appreciate prayer for Jonathan's job search. I don't need to tell you that this is possibly one of the worst times to try to find a job. Academia is not immune to the troubles of the economy. Marketplace, a radio news program, recently had a story about the decline in hiring for liberal arts faculty, and it made so much sense. The liberal arts degree has taken a hit in the past year, so colleges and universities are either shrinking or maintaining their current programs as opposed to expanding them. This affects Jonathan's job prospects especially since he works with theoretical math instead of applied math. He has one interview this week at the AMS conference, although he is hoping to possibly be able to jump into a few open interview slots if there are any available.

Okay, rambling blog post over!

Another reason I am glad I do not have cable...

"I am thrilled to be joining the great talent and management team at Fox News," Palin said in a statement posted on the network's Web site. "It's wonderful to be part of a place that so values fair and balanced news."

*Please excuse me while I bang my head against my desk....

Another year!

I am now 28, although I still don't feel all that much like an adult! For my birthday yesterday, I got to go to work (yay!), then Jonathan took me out to Bosco's for a nice birthday dinner, and we ended the evening playing Beatles Rock Band with Becky. I actually did pretty well on the bass set at 'medium,' so I am proud of myself! Becky took on the drums, and I am sure that Ringo never did anything as complex as she had to do. Jonathan played the guitar on expert, because his brain just works in a way that allows him to do that!!

Jonathan gave me a cookie and cupcake decorating kit from Williams-Sonoma that I had asked for. I already have a piping set, but this one was super cute and looked like a lot of fun! It is technically a WS Kids set, but I think I will have a lot of fun using it as an adult : )

We might have a February baby...ugggh! At my dr appt this morning, I learned that I have not progressed at all. Baby is head down, which is always good. Due to the size of the baby, the dr will only wait one week past my due date to induce if nothing has happened naturally. So, I definitely should have a baby by February 2nd.

Ready (?)

Crib put together? Check
Clothes washed? Check
Swing put together? Check
Diapers? Check
Food in freezer? Check
Nursing gear? Check
Car seat installed? Check
Parents mildly emotionally prepared to care for an infant? Check

Now we just need the baby!