Monday, August 30, 2010

7 Month Ultrasound

Today we went in for the last, we hope, ultrasound for Sugar. The next one (not scheduled) would be during week 41...Um. I don't think so!!

I don't have a scanner, so I can't show you the picture yet, but you're not missing much. Sugar is in the head down position (that's good, but not definitive yet), so it wasn't easy to get a close-up of her face (as it was, the doctor was pushing down really hard on my pubic bone just to get the measurement of the cranium), plus she was moving a lot (hyper like her parents, perhaps?). She is definitely a thumb sucker, by the way, and you could see her lips moving up and down, it was too cute.

She seems to have settled into her nose now, which makes me think that maybe it's actually MY schnoz, and NOT Cristian's... also, there is an overbite there (another generation of braces?!UGH!).

The good news is the FEMUR!! Long and in the gazillionth percentile (really, those other measurements, head, bladder, abdomen etc. totally overrated. Everyone knows it's the long femurs that bring home the bacon)! The doctor said she had "BEAUTIFUL LEGS" (definitely mine).

All in all, Sugar is growing normally. Although we don't understand the little graphs and percentages they print up and give us, we trust what the doctor said (especially the beautiful legs part!!) and are cool with that.

Also, the doctor today said that she could see the gender but did her best to hide it from us. To me, this means that it is definitely a boy. To Cristian this means that it is definitely a girl.

We go to our regular doctor next Tuesday. He will explain the blood test results that I got back today. I have no idea what the hell they mean, except that I still don't have toxoplasmosis (which is good, but if I get pregnant again, let's hope I've had it in the interim).

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Pre-Natal Class Starting a Week from Monday

I signed up for it about a month ago. It's offered through the city- you tell them your address and they figure out what district you're in and send you to the nearest center around your 32nd week of pregnancy (they called me this morning to tell me where mine is. I was at the bus stop and had to ask her to hold on so I could find a scrap of paper and a pen to write it on-- so much for the convenience of cell phones). Mine starts on September 7 at 9am (I thought she was joking of course-- what about work?? I thought for sure they did these things after like 6pm...WRONG!). 

Here are the rules:

1. Wear something comfortable. I have a mu-mu from Senegal that I sleep in, but I'm not wearing that. I'm going to have to get creative here, as NOTHING to me is particularly comfortable other than my skivvies right now, and even those aren't THAT comfortable. 

2. Wear non-stick socks. Where do you get THOSE? I thought only babies wore them, and maybe hospital patients? I'm going to have to use my networking skills AND thinking cap for this one! 

3. Meetings are once a week for 8 weeks. That will bring me up to 40. How cruel. If Sugar comes early, I might miss one. I don't like that idea. I want to get the most out of my (40%) taxes!! 

4. Men are included in ONE session (doesn't that seem like not enough?? I mean, what's that all about? Maybe you're supposed to have more time with other soon-to-be moms so you can get down to the nitty gritty? I don't get it).

I'll let you know how it goes. For now, here is my prayer that I will repeat many times in the meantime. 

Dear God, 

Please don't make us watch a video of a birth like Alessandra said she had to in her prenatal class. 
Please don't make us watch a video of a birth like Alessandra said she had to in her prenatal class. Please don't make us watch a video of a birth like Alessandra said she had to in her prenatal class. Please don't make us watch a video of a birth like Alessandra said she had to in her prenatal class. Please don't make us watch a video of a birth like Alessandra said she had to in her prenatal class. Please don't make us watch a video of a birth like Alessandra said she had to in her prenatal class. Please don't make us watch a video of a birth like Alessandra said she had to in her prenatal class. Please don't make us watch a video of a birth like Alessandra said she had to in her prenatal class. 

I just don't think I could handle that. 

AMEN. 

Donating the Umbilical Cord

This morning when Cristian was donating blood at Burlo children's hospital, where Sugar will eventually be born, he spent a(nother) half hour talking to the person who is in charge of umbilical cord donation for Trieste. Italy has only had this program for a short amount of time. The deal is, you can opt to donate the cord, which gets put in an international database so that in the event there is a match with someone who needs those yummy cells, they can have at them. If we should happen to need those yummy cells, we would also be eligible for them, but only if the cord hasn't been used for anyone else. If we want to keep them just for ourselves, we could do that too, but that would be called Umbilical Cord storage, many Italians do this in Switzerland, where they have been doing this type of thing for a long time. You tell them when you're due, when you're going into labor, they come and get the cord, and you pay them to keep it cold until baby turns 18.

We are very excited about donating and are happy you can finally do it here in Italy!

Friday, August 20, 2010

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Google forever

Grazie ad Heather & Nate per il fantastico regalo

I want one of these!


A HUGGABLE Pacifier?? Wow! And here's info on the lady who created it and the idea behind it. My friend Tamara is using them with her baby and she says they rock, by the way...

Cute, no? I'd never seen anything like this before. I'm sure there's loads of baby stuff that I know nothing about, but this grabbed my attention...

Monday, August 16, 2010

Read Read Read

Luna (the dog) put up some pictures on Facebook of our trip that you may want to check out here . Hope you can see them. She is a very technological dog. 

Today Sugar recieved her very first book in the mail. And to my surprise and delight, it is a Little Golden Book (brings back memories!) and stars Grover!! It's called The Monster at the End of this Book. I love it! I read it to the belly (I feel like I'm a little late with the trying to create a genius while pregnant and I can still control most things. I only started reading out loud yesterday, and we're almost at 7 months!!). So thank you Sarah! Mwah!

Reading has been on my mind lately, and tops the list as far as differences that I can tell as far as bringing up kids in Italy (I'm going to generalize here. Please forgive me) as opposed to the States. I am not the first stupid American living in Italy to notice it, but kids here just don't seem to have a bed time.* 

Well some do, I'm sure, but I can only think of one friend with kids who imposes one and the fact that only he, Federico, comes to mind, tells me that he may be the exception rather than the rule. I would have loved living in Italy when I was a kid. It's like every night is New Year's Eve! In fact, this has happened a bunch of times at friends' houses: kids are playing under the table or running around or whatever even as late as 10 and 11 at night (wee ones are no exception) and then all of a sudden they will just up and decide it's time for bed, and that's it. They disappear. Gone. 

Which is fine. Good even. There are no "it's bedtime" battles (a certain amount of grumpiness usually ensues before the big decision, however, which is interestingly almost never linked to just plain being tired, even when it's accompanied by rubbing of the eyes), no parents who disappear for a half hour to put anyone "down," either. It's all very peculiar and adult-like.

But I don't care. I like me a good ritual. Like bath-time, a couple of Richard Scarry Books (Scattoompa anyone??), some tickling (not to the point of torture, MAG!) and/or singing, and then lights out. And all at a ridiculously early hour (TBD). But that's just me. Maybe those same kids who stay up late also let you sleep in. I doubt it, though. I think all kids are just programmed to wake up as early as possible so that you have to too. 

So bring on the books is what I say, because that bedtime ritual is one of the things I am looking forward to most for when Sugar gets here! 

Yeah!



*It's a favorite topic in the cultural complaints department for Anglo-saxons travelling and/or living in Italy and writing about it, too. (ex: "We're in a pizzeria at 11pm and there are little kids out there still playing! When is their bed time?!")

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Our vacation in Dalmatia (Croatia) totally Rocked.


Sweetie helped bring home the brain food for Sugar. Our friend, Nedo, grilled it all up. YUM!

Luna was a total hit at the beach. 

I know pregnant people can't wear these in the States but we're in Dalmatia, man.

Visiting the Zidarich winery with Mom and Gramma

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Sugar-breaky

Well the Divas have been wonderful house guests, and now they're in bed because they have to get up at 4am (so do I, so what the heck am I still doing up??) so they can catch their 6:50am flight tomorrow morning. They arrive in Rome at 8:05, it's almost INDECENT to arrive ANYWHERE that early. Yikes.

I will definitely get to posting more, but for now Sugar, Sweetie and I are taking a little vacation. We're off to Dalmatia (that's 6 hours from here down the coast of Croatia) for a relaxing ten days or so. I plan on floating (call me Buoy) in my new blow-up intertube (Big Bertha Watch Out, that's for you, Cousins!!) with a fat book the entire time.

Can't wait! I'll tell you all about it when I get back.
Hope you are having a great summer!

I already miss the Divas!!
Sigh!
CIAO!