He's here!

Introducing Conor!

Conor Wells Olson made his grand debut on 3/28/10 at 6:13 AM. He weighed in at a whopping 7 pounds, 9 ounces and measured 20 1/2 inches long. He surprised everyone with a rather speedy arrival (the doctors and nurses had to step up their prep time a bit because Conor was going to wait for no one!). He sports a very full head of dark hair, which is the topic of many conversations and comments.

We came home from the hospital on the 29th, which was Eric's birthday (talk about a birthday to remember) and, while grateful for the amazing care we received at the hospital, were very glad to come home and learn what our new "normal" entails.

Conor has already proven himself to be a very sweet baby; he loves to curl up with whoever is holding him. Big sister Annika is quite impressed with her little brother and wants to help Mommy and Daddy do things like feed and burp the baby, as well as soothe him when he cries.

We are working out a few kinks in terms of Annika's willingness to share Mommy and Daddy, but fully expected this time of adjustment for all of us.

Fortunately, Conor has proven himself to be a good sleeper thus far (knock on wood), so we're all at least somewhat rested and ready for what each day has for us.

Mommy & Conor

Daddy & Conor

Annika and Conor meeting each other

Annika checking out her baby "brudder"

Still Not Boiling

No news on the baby front. Apparently, this little guy is QUITE happy to remain in his current living quarters. Eviction may be our only option.

This morning, I came up with a theory about why the baby hasn't arrived yet. It goes a little something like this: One of my brothers is on a business trip in Europe and will return Saturday. I'm beginning to wonder if my brother somehow bribed the baby to stay put until he's back in the good ol' U.S.A. Hmmm.... conspiracy? I'm starting to think so! (Troy - if you offer to get bumped or stay an extra day in Europe and actually HAVE bribed this child to wait until you get home, there will be hell to pay!) ;)

The watched pot

Last night, I told Eric that I feel like a watched pot that people are waiting to boil. Our family members and close friends are well aware of the fact that Thursdays are my doctor appointment days. Our phone is generally quiet in the evenings, but last night, we had a variety of family members call to see if there was any news on the baby front. Nope. According to my doctor, there were no changes between last week's visit and this weeks visit, aside from the expected weight gain (which my OB was quite happy about). The baby appears to be doing great and I even had a contraction while at the office. (I felt a little dopey when my OB pointed it out to me and I said, "Oh, I thought that was just him stretching." Apparently, I've been having contractions and attributed them to the baby needing more room instead of the real cause.)

Annika traveled to this appointment with me, due to the fact her day care room experienced a broken pipe and "school" was canceled for the day. She was amazingly wonderful (dodged a bullet there). She happily sat next to me on the exam bed while I had my non-stress test and even got to wear the pulse-ox finger clip after my test was complete; the look of pride and intrigue on her face because of that was priceless! The only "issue" was she kept wanting to pat my belly (aka "baby brudder") while sitting next to me, which would register on the NST - oops! ;)

Full house

We have had one busy household lately! We've had house guests galore over the past three weeks, birthday celebrations two of the past three weekends, and are trying to rearrange the use of a few rooms in order to convert our existing computer/craft room into a nursery for the baby. WHEW! Fortunately, our full schedule has been a lot of fun, albeit a bit hectic at times.

Today, our niece (Emily) and her friend (Amy) will head back to college. They decided to spend part of their spring break at Chez Olson. While we were at work, they did some fun activities, including taking a ferry to Pt. Townsend, visiting Pike Place Market, and going up the Space Needle. Annika loved having the girls stay with us - especially when they let her play with their computers and proved to be very willing audience members for her "aren't I cute and funny" antics. Eric and I have decided they need to transfer to UW so they can be closer. All in favor? AYE!

Last weekend, our niece (Kat) was admitted to Children's due to pneumonia. Fortunately, she is now on the road to recovery and was discharged yesterday. In order to free up my brother and sister-in-law, our nephew (Ian) and their dog (Kirby) also stayed with us over the weekend. Ian LOVES Eric's Legos and playing with Annika, so he fit right in and was quite easy to incorporate into our weekend. Annika idolizes Ian, so I was actually able to get a few things done that I might have otherwise not finished because she was shadowing Ian in his every activity. Gotta like that! :)



Tonight, we'll be back to the Olson Trio. I think the house is going to feel a little empty, but that'll probably help us focus on our "need to get done before the baby gets here" to do list, which is probably a good thing. Vacuuming, dishes, and laundry, here I come!

Baby Update

I had a VERY full day at UWMC yesterday. The a.m.'s non-stress test (NST) went very well. The baby showed no heart decels (always a good thing) and showed off with his many, many, many flips and kicks. The nurse actually asked if he ever stops moving ... nope! I had an ultrasound early in the afternoon to get an estimate on the baby's weight/size. They estimate he currently weighs 5 pounds 12 ounces, which is 3 ounces more than Annika's birth weight. There is a margin of error when estimating weight with ultrasound, but it is nice to know he is growing based off of the last estimated weight! It was wonderful to see his sweet face; it look a lot of self restraint to keep from reaching out to touch his image on the ultrasound screen. The ultrasound was followed up with my weekly OB appointment. My doctor likes what she saw and said she expects I'll go into labor within the next 2 weeks. If I don't, she'll induce me at 39 weeks because while the baby is growing, he is slipping in terms of his size percentile. The big question remains.... when will this little guy decide to make his grand debut?

How we show love

I find myself pondering the various ways we show love to those in our lives - a hug, a kiss, a thoughtful note, a phone call just to touch base, a gift, a wink, a smile (ok - now I have Harry Connick. Jr.'s song in my head!), a special meal just because, and on, and on, and on.

How have I most recently shown my family that I love them more than the air in my lungs and the blood in my veins? I made them banana bread. Yup, I whipped up a batch of stinky, makes me wanna gag banana bread for my husband and daughter. If that isn't love, I don't know what is!!

(For those of you who don't realize by this point, I truly do find bananas to be the worlds most nasty fruit!!)

Oh, Pioneer Woman, I Adore You

I've been singing the praises of the Pioneer Woman for a few months now. Simply put, the woman rocks (if you question that statement - try her pork tenderloin and doughnut recipes. I DARE you to disagree with me after doing that!!). No, I don't know her personally, but her recipe blog has proven to be a fantastic resource more than once ... and her personal blog is also quite a read and really speaks to my inner country girl.

A few weeks ago, we had a brown sugar emergency in the Olson home. I tend to keep our pantry well stocked and rarely run out of the baking basics. Well, mid-recipe for I can't remember what, I realized I was short on the required amount of brown sugar and went to our stockpile of food for the spare bag. We were completely out of brown sugar. I fruitlessly searched high and low to no avail. ACK! Because I had already started the other ingredients, I couldn't simply abandon ship, so I decided to make a "quick trip out" for more sugar. Easier said than done. I went to one store - out. (REALLY??) I went to a second store - none. I went to a THIRD store and the only brown sugar they had was rock hard. I was desperate, so I bought it, brought it home, and then nuked it to soften it so I could actually get the sugar out of the box and into my measuring cup.

Today, I noticed that the Pioneer Woman has a recipe for homemade brown sugar. Who knew you could make your own?? Never again will I drop to the level of rock hard brown sugar (or spending the time for an unneeded run to the store mid-recipe). YIPPEE!

36 weeks today

Our baby boy's official due date is 4 weeks from today. The question on quite a few people's minds is, "will he really arrive then?" Most people seem to think he'll be here before then. In fact, I don't recall hearing anyone say they think he'll be here after his due date.

I have a non-stress test on Thursday, in addition to an ultrasound and OB appointment. I'm quite curious to learn if the NST show any contractions. I've had some pains, but am not quite sure if the baby is just playing with my nerves or if they're actually contractions. Hmmm....

Show-and-Tell Day

Today, Annika's day care class had show-and-tell time. There was no doubt that Annika's favorite toy, her stuffed bunny, would be the item of choice. Annika rarely goes anywhere without bunny... hence, we have two of them, just in case one goes into the laundry or simply goes missing temporarily! (Fortunately, bunny took a recent trip to the washing machine, so he wasn't as "loved" looking as he can be.)

Annika during show-and-tell time:

Annika and her dancing bunny!

Make sure you have speakers or headphones for the full effect. Enjoy!

Feeling A Bit Guilty

When I was pregnant with Annika, I loved just about every second of pregnancy. I felt good, barely had morning sickness, slept well (aside from the frequent trips to the bathroom) and didn't have an ache or a pain until labor started. This time around, I basically ache or hurt a good chunk of the time. I simply feel older this time around (with Eric very kindly points out truly is the case ... thanks, dear!). My back has been unhappy for months (God bless my doctor for giving me a Rx for prenatal massage and God bless my massage therapist!!), but that isn't even as bad as the fact our little guy has somehow figured out how to go to town on the nerves that magically make it feel like my tummy and upper legs are getting electrocuted from time to time. Not fun during the day ... REALLY not fun at night. Speaking of nights - last night, I'm pretty sure he taught himself how to do the hokey pokey while I was trying to sleep. This boy is active and has no qualms about pointing out that his current living conditions are feeling a bit cramped.

On an up note, my most recent ultrasound (thanks, Nicole - you rock!!) estimates that our little guy is over the 5 pound mark and is growing just like he should. Woo hoo! (How did women manage not knowing things about their unborn babies and still sleep at night back in the days before ultrasound exams??)

Sometimes it is the little things that just make my day

Some days are crazier than others. Some days are more maddening than others. On those days, I try to remember the little things that make me happy. One of the things I rely on is the website that Annika's day care maintains. They post pictures of the kids and little updates. Seeing our little girl having fun at "school" and playing with her friends gives my heart a lift .... especially when I feel guilty/sad for not being the one who takes care of her all day while I'm at the office. Her daycare teachers frequently capture her sweet smile and it gives my heart such joy to see it appear on the website ... just when I need it most. It makes gray days sunnier and good days even better.