Time to Go to Class

Tomorrow morning marks the first time that Leah and I will attend an "event" of sorts about babies/parenting/etc. Although the Baptist Hospital rep suggested waiting until 2-3 months out to take their classes (lamaze, etc), Babies R Us offers various seminar-esque events to provide info, expert advice, and hopefully free goodies and/or large discounts. Being that they don't publish any kind of schedule (to know how often a particular one is offered), and sometimes they don't offer much notice before hosting one, we're gonna go ahead and participate in one this weekend called Caring For Your Newborn or something like that. Perhaps this is overkill, or way too early, or just a waste of time. But I doubt it. But I think that if we hear one useful tip that we utilize later, or keep from buying one faulty product, or even if it allows a couple of hours more of sleep one night....It'll all be worth the price of admission. Wait, it's free. Never mind.

Much Ado About Nothing

Before we begin the news and analysis of yesterday's events, we'll start with a funny story:

As I've previously blogged about, the Russell side of the family is VERY boy-heavy: My grandparents had two boys, my dad had two boys, and my uncle had one of each. One cousin has two boys, and the other cousin is now expecting a boy in August. So the pressure remains to break the seemingly impervious hold that the Y chromosome has on our family. Yesterday, we're on our way to the doctor. You know what comes on the radio? Daughters by John Mayer. Know what comes on a few minutes later? In My Daughter's Eyes by Martina McBride. After lunch, it's Martina's song again!!! Whether or not this ends up being some meaningless observation or perhaps prophecy/Divine messaging remains to be seen. But we shared a laugh and wondered at the possible meaning.

On to the update. I hate to use the word disappointing or even anti-climactic to describe the doctor's visit. So let's say uneventful. Here's why: We were all set with expectations, mainly because my cousin Kristi uses the same OB/GYN group that Leah does. Different doc, but same group. Kristi had all this stuff done on her initial 'pregnancy' visit--heard the heartbeat, had an ultrasound, etc etc. Some of that probably stemmed from being on a fertility drug and the increased chances, albeit small, of multiple births. Leah was on the same drugs, so we thought our visit would be a carbon copy of theirs. Wrong.

Due date? Nope. Hear the heartbeat? No way. How about an ultrasound? Uh uh. We get all that next time. But the good news is that everything appears to be normal, the doc said her educated guess would be that we only have one baby, and everything is fine and dandy for a 7-week pregnant mother. "Here's your co-pay, we'll see you in a month." I think the doc sensed our slight disappointment, and accused us of being doubters. But given the choice of waiting a month or a fat insurance bill b/c Blue Cross/Blue Shield deemed something unnecessary and undocumented......patience is a virtue, grasshopper!!

So, that's it. We did have a fun, and tiring, day. We showed our moms the baby furniture that I think we've decided on, we had lunch at Bennigan's, and we toured the Baptist Hospital for Women and found the "Frantic Father--Oh my god I'm gonna be a daddy" entrance. They even have a cool little mnemonic device to remember it--Front door, second floor (Yes, mnemonic is a word--look it up).

Next appointment: May 23. Gosh, that's 27 days away.

UPDATE: The appointment has been moved to Thursday, May 26. Gosh, that's 30 days away!! You see, Monday is a REALLY bad day for Leah to be out of the bank. So Thursday it is. 722 hours, 15 minutes and counting. Uggh.

Going to See the Doc

Well, the long awaited days is almost here. Three weeks ago tomorrow, we were staring at two little lines and wondering what in the &%$#@* our future held. Little did we know that we would have to wait three whole weeks to go visit the doctor to get everything confirmed and make sure everything is A-OK. I can honestly say that it has been the longest three weeks of our lives!!

We've got several questions for Dr. Bannister, ranging from stuff like pregnancy diet (Leah has never really been a breakfast person) to the fact that she currently has an apparent sinus issue and coughs so hard until she gags sometimes. Which is frustrating for her. And being in her first trimester, there is a laundry list of medicines and remedies that are off limits (most of them, actually).

We'll also have an ultrasound done to detect how many heartbeats (the good answer here is ONE). It's simply amazing to me how a teeny tiny, 7-week only embryo who weighs only .04 oz has a heartbeat. But bottom line is that if were to be having twins, then we will know Monday. This is standard procedure for anyone taking fertility medicine. And the fact that I will be able to hear my child's heartbeat for the very first time is incredible. So much of this is still a bit surreal....but I'm sure it'll become a lot more real on Monday morning at 10:00AM. After Leah's full exam. : )

So, What's Been Going On?

So by now you've probably thought this whole thing through, and come to the realization that we've know for a couple of weeks (at least) about this whole pregnancy thing. You would be correct. The first home pregnancy test that we took that we actually felt like the results sorta looked positive was, ironically enough, April 1--April Fool's Day. Two days later the same 2nd line returned (one line--No, two lines--Yes), so it was then that we told the grandparents-to-be that it looked like their prayers were answered (which I'm gonna remind them of when it comes time to babysit).

The last few weeks have been really about information-gathering. We've been to Babies R Us twice (Leah, a 3rd time with her mom, I think), and we've begun trying to find out all we can about crossing the river of parenthood into a land called "Dependents & Tax Deductions." And poverty. Leah has already found a couple of nursery patterns that she likes, but at this point in the game they are the "neutral" designs. I think we'd both like to get started painting the nursery and slapping wallpaper border up, but it just isn't practical to force ourselves to choose a neutral pattern, since about 13 weeks from now we hope to know for sure if my X or Y chromosome won the race for the egg.

We're both looking forward to the doctor's appointment on Monday. I will finally get to meet Dr. Bannister, and I think Leah and I both have a few questions about everything from what to eat to who will be delivering our child at 3:00AM on a Sunday morning. I think Kristi said it best--Not only will we make sure that everything is OK, "it makes it seem that much more real." Because all we have now is two lines on a stick. And lots of plans. And a ton of love waiting to be unloaded.

Confessions of a Liar

OK, I must confess. That earlier post about "third time's a charm" was a lie. You see, I usually don't subscribe to the "the end justifies the means" theory, but then again, before I was allowed to blog about our happy news, paternity tests from the UPS man had to be conducted. Just kidding. So now the proverbial cat is out of the bag. And the bun is in the oven.

The last few weeks have been tough. Initially we were gonna hold off on the grand celebration and euphoric activity until the doctor's appointment confirmed everything looked great. But the utter ecstasy of accomplishing what we have trumped all caution. Although Leah and I are "cautiously optimistic," there has been NO reason whatsoever to believe that everything is anything other than OK. But 7 days from now, Dr. Bannister will hopefully confirm that very thing, give us an "official" due date, and check for the existence of more than one heartbeat--standard procedure for someone on fertility medicine.

Welcome to the ride of our lives. Leah and I are honored that you've chosen to come along. We welcome any and all comments, and just appreciate the love and support that we've gotten over the last several months.

I've already experience so many emotions, from elation to worry and everything in between. Hopefully this blog will not only help me work through the emotions of a father-to-be, but give you a window into our lives at this special time. Again, welcome--let's make this trip a fun one.

OOPS.......Kristi's Results

For those of you NOT in our family circle (Faith Baptist Connection group, for example) or who might've stumbled upon our blog with a Google search for "poor, pathetic dude who's hoping to be a dad" who might still be awaiting the news about my cousin Kristi,

IT'S A BOY!!

Yep, it appears that we have yet another boy and the girls have been denied. Now the pressure is REALLY on Leah and me!! Of course, I'd rather pay for a rehearsal dinner than a wedding, golf clubs instead of ballerina shoes, but I won't go there. Yet.

Micah Shaun (or Shawn, I dunno--I'm sure Kristi will set me straight) is due in mid-August. If you wanna see the ultrasound, you can check out his Uncle Steve's website or blog. The name Micah is a derivative of Michael (i.e., Kristi's late father, and my uncle Mike) and Shaun/Shawn is Joe's middle name. Shaun/Shawn is Celtic, and means I'm cursed because my dad is from Mississippi. Or something like that. : D

Third Time's a Charm...We Hope

Well, time for round 3. Being that Leah's hormone level met (and exceeded) the target goal last month, April finds us taking round 3 of the fertility medicine. There won't be an increase in dosage, as last month's 100 mg dose will maintain the current level.

The next step will be a doctor's appointment later this month....Probably around the 25th. Bloodwork will once again be drawn just to verify that levels still are what they should be. Should we be able to get pregnant this month, it would not show up at that time (it would only be a few days removed from conception), and Leah probably wouldn't know until a week or so after that (unless she picked up on some of the occasional, "not in every case" pregnancy signs). Thinking optimistically, that would mean that the baby would arrive in early January--somewhere around Leah's birthday (How cool would THAT be?!). We could go crazy with this calendar of "what ifs"--the kid would start kindergarten in fall of 2011 and graduate in 2024. But let's not get the cart before the horse.

So that's where things are at for now. I hate to blog about this with so little regularity, but I didn't really think you wanted a "still nothing" report every other day. Hopefully we'll be pregnant soon and things will pick up. Cause there will be a TON to blog about when that happens!! In the meantime, thanks for the thoughts, prayers, and concern!!