Big Day for Big Papa!

Coach Gerber and the Bridgewater-Raritan JV Soccer Team are now County CHAMPIONS! Congratulations!!!!!

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Only 16 more weeks...

Welp... here we are at 24 weeks! Things are moving along nicely. I feel good. Baby is growing. And Chris... is still winning! The mighty Panthers are now 12-1-2 and they play for the Championship on Saturday!

Baby Gerber and I (who are both hopped up on caffine!) just wanted to say that we're VERY proud of our guy -- and we can't wait until the season FINALLY ENDS next week and we get him back!!!

We miss you, Ace! Go Panthers!

Post Script: It's 9 PM. I just surprised Chris with triple chunk chocolate chip cookies and he's jumping up and down like a 4-year-old... it's been a long season ;-)

Uh-oh, Daddy -- You're in Trouble!

Baby Gerber is apparently upset with her absentee father! Last night, after he came home, he shoveled dinner into his tummy (pork roast, perogies, and garlic bread), and, once again, we crawled into bed. Sometime in the middle of the night, I rolled over and snuggled into the nook of Chris' back. Right then, Baby Gerber gave Daddy one swift KICK in the back!

I think she was either trying to say, (a) "Hey Daddy, spend more time with me!" or (b) "Hey Daddy, I'm going to be a great soccer player!"

Either way, I wish she could find a way to punish Daddy without punishing Mommy! I hate being stuck in the middle!!

Groundhog Day

WARNING: Most people read my posts for the humor, or at least daily dose of sarcasm, but this one has a much different feel.

Last night, we got into bed and Chris mentioned that he's beginning to feel like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. Every night he crawls into bed, only to have the alarm go off at 5 AM -- each day a repeat of the one before. Alarm, shower, drive, work, soccer, eat, bed, alarm, shower, drive, work, soccer, eat, bed, alarm, shower... We've been sooooo busy with work, doctors and other misc. baby prep that the dogs are beginning to bark at us when we come in the door -- "Hey! Who are you?!!? Do you belong here? Oh, you're going to feed me... ok. You can stay. But I'm not going to be happy about it (dramatic sigh)"

Baby's not even here yet and Marley and Simon are already starting to get the shaft. I really feel badly. Marley has been there for us with licks and cuddles for almost 10 years now -- and all the sudden we're living like overnight guests in his house. And, Simon... he's about one Groundhog Day away from eating the couch in retaliation. Seriously, those of you who know him, or have heard tales of his rap sheet of destruction, know that Simon does not adapt well to being ignored.

I've decided that we need to take more time to pet and cuddle the four-legged, furry kids before Baby G arrives and shakes up their world even more. The boys have been too good to us not to get the attention they deserve -- and priorities change TODAY!

The Plot to Assassinate Mommy

I think baby girl Gerber is in there planning my demise. Seriously, I think she's in there with blue prints and diagrams of my internal organs!

"Let's see... last night, I woke Mommy up in the middle of the night with nausea and heartburn... today, I'm going to make her so dizzy she walks into the wall of her cubicle! Tomorrow, I'll kick her in the pancreas!"

New Baby Pics...

• Above are the newest pics of the Gerber Baby! We went yesterday for our 21 week visit with both the OB and the Maternal-Fetal Specialist. The reports were FABULOUS! It appears that I'm the healthiest woman in a 2,000,000 mile radius!
• I'm still flying high from my low (ok... normal!) blood pressure report!!! Thanks to the Gerber Baby and the increased blood flow of the second trimester -- my BP has come down from 148 / 95 at my first visit to 110 / 78! Our baby rocks!!! My Dad suggested that I try to stay pregnant forever -- but instead, I'm just going to pop this baby out and take a BP pill for the rest of my life ;-)
• Our little girl took an opportunity during the Ultrasound to wave to her Daddy (who had the day off and therefore the unique opportunity to come to the doctors appointments with me). Again, the Ultrasound tech commented on GB's beautiful hands! She has very long fingers, and aside from her wave to Daddy, also sucked her thumb and gave us the "rock on" sign (see sidebar pic at right).
• Thanks to Aunt Dana who spent countless hours entertaining us in waiting rooms yesterday!!!!
  
  

Worse than Morning Sickness...

Worse than morning sickness... worse than having my gall bladder removed... worse than a lifetime of chronic pancreatitis... is the humiliation of having to wear a Silladelphia Eagles jersey... in public... for eight whole hours!!!

But, a bet's a bet, and the itty-bitty-iggles clearly bested the mighty black & gold last Sunday. Perhaps a better title for this post would be "Oh, how the mighty have fallen." Just look at me in this horrible puke-green jersey.

With all the sarcasm I can muster, I'd like to thank Coach Mike Tomlin, Offensive Coordinator Bruce Arians, and the entire Offensive Line for this humbling experience. You've taught me that stadiums full of fans and glittery Superbowl rings are simply irrelevant on "any given Sunday." Perhaps the only person hurting more than me is Big Ben who is probably still pulling grass clippings out of his ear!

Coach Cowher... Coach Whisenhunt... you are missed. Help save my baby from a lifetime of misery... return to Pittsburgh!

It's a... PART 2

It's official! Chris and I are expecting a healthy little girl! She has 10 fingers and 10 toes and is otherwise happy and healthy as she tumbles and plays in Mommy's tummy. According to Dr. Principe, "this kid has beautiful hands. Absolutely beautiful!" So her Daddy and I are hoping that she's a hand model like George Castanza!!

Her heartbeat was 150 beats per minute and she weighed a healthy 11 ounces.

I'm feeling strong and healthy as well. My blood pressure is "good" (for me -- not for the average bear -- but for me it is lower than its been in about a year). The nurse still felt that it should be lower considering the blood flow and circulation during the "average" second trimester, but who wants to be average? As my Dad put it this morning -- "I'm above average!!"

Special thanks to my Mom and Dad who came to visit us yesterday. My Mom went to the doctor with me while Mr. Fix It installed a new ceiling fan and fixed the window in the baby's room.

Two Words...

TWO WORDS... guided meditation! These two words may save my life -- certainly my sanity.

I spent 1.5 hours at a prenatal yoga / guided meditation class last night... WOW! I left the yoga center completely calm and relaxed -- feeling stronger and more centered than I've felt in years. A testament to the skill of Alicia, my instructor -- I watched the Steelers/Pumpkin Heads game in a dark room with a cup of herbal tea -- and didn't scream at the TV once! Anyone who has watched football with me knows how upset I get during a game -- especially when the Steelers should be kicking Pumpkin butt -- but I didn't yell or get tense once. I just trusted the universe to deliver a black and gold win.

I drove to work this AM, again feeling strong, centered and connected to my baby and the universe. I didn't scream at any of my fellow motorists. And, when I got to the office and discovered that the AC Adapter for my lap top has "gone missing" -- I didn't even take anyone's head off. My friend/co-worker, Randi, almost didn't recognize her new and improved, calm, centered friend.

GUIDED MEDITATION, people.

GB a Sleeper!

The Gerber Baby's a sleeper -- just like his/her Dad! How do I know?

I got to feel him/her move last night (for the first time). It was only a flutter, but s/he was apparently pissed off when Chris woke me up off the couch to move upstairs. I woke up, walked up the stairs and started to wash my face when I felt a little flutter in my tummy. I think s/he was saying "Geez! Go back to bed, Mom!"

We have a level 2 ultrasound scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, so we should be able to confirm his/her sex at that point! Grandma and Grandpaw are driving up from the farm so that G-ma can go with me. G-paw will be playing with Dumb and Dumber (a.k.a. Mar and Simon) and playing Mr. Fix It. Coach Gerber will be stuck on turf with a whistle -- hoping his son or daughter is a soccer player!

Go Panthers!!

It occurred to me that too much of this page has been about me and baby -- not enough about "baby daddy" -- so I'd like to say how proud baby and I are of the man in our lives -- or the man currently absent from our lives -- Coach Gerber!

That's right -- soccer has started -- forcing me to face my first days as a single Mom. I have to rush home after work to take the dogs out, cook for myself, wash my own clothes -- I may even have to figure out how to use the Dyson -- GOD FORBID! Chris used to do these things for me -- before 26 boys took over his life! But I digress -- I said this was going to be about Chris, didn't I???

Chris took a new position this year as Coach of the JV soccer team at Bridgwater-Raritan High School (last year he was assistant varsity) -- but this way he has his own team. He's loving it! The team has had two scrimmages so far -- and won both -- which is good, because in our house the only rule is "win or don't come home!"

If you're local -- feel free to come see the Panthers beat more of their opponents -- click here for a link to the schedule.

And, Ace... Baby, Brothers and I are VERY proud of you ;-)