Week 28 Doctor's Appointment

Another week, another doctor's appointment.  This time I went in to take the glucose test which checks for diabetes.  I had to drink this sugar water concoction one hour prior to my appointment to check how my body breaks down sugar.  It was a quick appointment with a couple of other tests like an HIV test (optional) and a hemoglobin test.  It was at this appointment where the nurses gave me all the information and forms to sign off for hospital pre-registration, pediatrician selection, circumcision (boys only of course), and epidural request.  Time to tour the hospital!

Week 28 - He can now blink his eyes and possibly see light that comes in through the womb.  He now has eyelashes too.  He weighs about 2 1/2 lbs. and is about 15 inches long.

Butterball's American Idol

Baby Butterball's first concert!  Thanks John for the great seats up front and the backstage access!  Being so close, I thought I might need to pad my belly from the sound but the baby was chillin' out and enjoying the music.  It wasn't until the last half hour that he started to really knock around in there.  Either David Cook really made an impression and he was bopping away or he was knocking me telling me that it's time to go.  The show was great!  Hopefully all this music and my guitar playing will provide Baby Butterball with some musical talent.

           

Naked Man Walking

Baby Butterball had an action packed day this week. It was Monday afternoon, about 12:30 pm. Checkout time had come and gone and we were all wondering when room 212 would checkout. The lobby was full of people from the meeting room coming back with lunch and the staff was all at the front desk. All of a sudden, the radio was full of Spanish chatter. Before we could determine what was being said, the front desk agent looked completely spooked and was motioning to us for some help. As we took a glance out into the lobby a naked man about 70 years old was walking by on his way into the meeting room. He paused in the meeting room as a group of 20 stared in disbelief and then he came back out to the lobby. Normally I would immediately take care of the situation, but Baby Butterball's safety is my first concern now and I sent the men out to take him back to his room while I hunkered down behind the front desk and dialed the police for backup. The drunk, disoriented and possibly drugged man ended up being shuttled to the hospital in his boxer shorts. His room was cleared out and now we're just waiting for his return for his belongings.
On the same day another threat emerged, Hurricane Gustav. Will it be coming to South Florida? It's still too early to tell but this one looks like a big one wherever it lands. Hopefully, we won't get a negative turn of events in the next couple of days from naked man or the hurricane.
On a baby's note, I felt my first joint that night. He was kicking up a storm after dinner and when I pressed my belly I felt a small little joint, either a knee or an elbow. As I pushed on it he moved it around and then shifted his weight somewhere else. Now I'm addicted to trying to pinch him. Does that constitute abuse?

27 Weeks Doctor Appointment

I just had another doctor's appointment this past week and they confirmed that I am 27 weeks along.  I have entered into the "3rd Trimester" - the uncomfortable stage.  Baby Butterball's heartbeat was a strong 148.  Next week I go in for the glucose test and then it's back to the doctor every other week until I pop.  The baby is doing well and  I actually had no questions going in this time.  So far I have gained 17 extra pounds from Baby Butterball.  He likes to hang out low so luckily I'm still holding on to my girlish figure (at least for one or two more weeks).     

Tropical Storm Fay

Baby Butterball and I made it through our first tropical storm of the 2008 hurricane season - Tropical Storm Fay.  Luckily, the center of the storm didn't come close to the Stuart area but the rains seemed to hang around all week long flooding the town in certain parts.  I discovered that being a Hotel manager in this area is much different than in Key West.  In Key West, the city would call for an evacuation of all tourist so everyone would leave as you shut down the hotel and have a day off.  Up on the mainland it is a different story and you must stay open because everyone flocks to your hotel as a sanctuary, evacuating from their waterfront homes.  So Tuesday morning, we shoved off to work in torrential rains trying to get to the office with very little sleep from the night before.  The one thing we didn't expect was "Hurricane Scooter" to affect us (our incorrigible cat).  He generally goes out at night and he was fidgety mess, keeping us up all night.  We finally put him in his cat carrier and tucked him in another bedroom which granted us a couple hours of sleep.  When we awoke in the morning and let him out we noticed trails of blood coming out of the carrier.  Scooter had gnawed at the soft bag cat carrier and must have cut his nose leading to a massacre appearance on the plush woolly padding.  I guess we can't lock him up when he's bad now.  We'll have to review our parenting skills and practice on Scooter.

Dreams Through the Night

The trip to Atlanta is over.  I made it through and was able to shave off 3 days by completing all the tests very quickly.  When I found out we could set our own pace through the training my college instincts took over and the idea of "getting through it to get out" was the primary goal.

On the last night in Atlanta I had my first dream about the baby.  It was an unusual one but I woke up laughing.  In the dream the baby was very small only about 6 inches tall and when I picked

 him up it like picking up a paper doll cutout or a gingerbread man.  The baby seemed really delicate and soft like a beanie baby.  During the dream the baby was forgotten on the changing table and left there for some time.  After reviewing the next chapter in my handy baby book it mentioned that dreams might be more common and it specifically stated that a dream in which you forget your baby indicates you have anxiety about the arrival of the baby or caring for the baby.  We'll just have to wait and see if this becomes a reoccurring dream before I get psychological counseling :)

     

Exploring Hotlanta

On Saturday we finally left the 1 mile radius of  the hotel and headed out to explore Atlanta.  We went down and visited the Aquarium and the Coca-Cola factory along with everyone else in Georgia that day.  We had a great time!  

Photo 1: Wendy, Rhoda, Veronica, Misty, Renee 

Photo 2: Two Beluga whales - one is laughing at me

Photo 3: Wendy in front of the Coke truck

Photo 4: The fish tunnel (this reminded me of the movie Jaws)

 

Rude Awakening

It was Friday night at 4:00am and all of sudden the hotel's fire alarm system goes off.  The sound was so piercing that I immediately jumped out of bed.  I waited ten seconds to see if they were going to silence the alarm and when it kept on going I realized it was time to get dressed and head for the stairs.  Baby Butterball and I were out the door, running for our lives.  It took the fire department 30 minutes to clear the place as safe and the alarms were finally turned off.  As I laid in bed trying to go back to sleep all I could think of was 3 things:

1.  I forgot to take my valuables with me in case the building burnt down

2. Thank God I'm not the GM of this hotel tomorrow morning

3.  I better start getting used to waking up in the middle of the night for the next 18+ years

Southern Hospitality?

I have been in Atlanta for about one week and I have yet to witness this "southern hospitality".  The world outside the Fairfield Inn seems harsh and the staff here have been so great that you don't even feel like leaving the comforts of the hotel.  When I first arrived to the Atlanta airport I was hoping to witness some "southern hospitality" when my bag came out onto the baggage claim area.  With the hustle and bustle of that airport, I realized that no one was going to lend a hand to this pregnant one.   I had to fight off the crowd, run halfway around the baggage claim for an opening and struggle to get the bag off the belt.  As a business traveler, it was a tough job packing for 2 weeks and trying to keep the bag under 30 lbs. but luckily I managed it without toppling over.   

The traffic here is unbelievable and the stories that the locals tell are endless.  I feel like I'm in a real life game of Frogger trying to get across the street to get something to eat around here. This weekend some of my colleagues and I are going to tour around Atlanta.  Maybe the weekend activities will shed some new light on this crazy city.

Baby Butterball has been quite content this week.  There is very little stress since I'm not in the daily grind and I have an endless supply of goodies to eat.  Usually I am running around the hotel putting out fires that I don't notice how active he is.  Sitting in the boardroom all day trying to soak in as much information as I can is difficult when my belly is going up and down.  I have been sleeping great here up until last night when I experienced another dreaded leg cramp.  It's been a couple of weeks since I've had one that I forgot the best way to get out of them.  All this information that I've been taking in during the conference has clouded my memory.  As I tried to get out of it, the pain doubled, I jumped up awake and forgot where I was for the moment.  Another pitfall of business travel...waking up and not recalling where you are.  

  

Mile High Adventure

I have been called to Atlanta, GA for a two week training for Marriott's Fairfield Inns.  I am now at 24 weeks and although flying in your 2nd trimester is fine, many people still warned me that I should not be flying at all.  Thanks for everyone's concerns but sometimes you have to take a little risk or simply choose the doctors opinion.  So we took to the skies this afternoon for a 4:00pm flight.  I forgot to plan the flight around Florida's daily thunderstorms.  The flight was only delayed for about 30 minutes but the ride up to Atlanta was a bumpy one.  The baby definitely started kicking once they announced the drink cart wasn't coming out (for our safety) and I could only score one bag of peanuts.  I tried to pack some snacks to take on the plane - note to future Moms...SSA will confiscate that jar of peanut butter.  Ultimately, I made it to my destination and ravished the cookies at the front desk on display.  

The big challenges I'm about to face over the next 2 weeks - eating healthy when you're eating out everyday and staying awake through 2 weeks of classes without a large amount of coffee.  

Business travel can get a little lonely but it's nice to know that I'm not completely alone this time.  Baby Butterball Conway keeps reminding me that he's there about every two hours. Anybody visiting Atlanta this week?

Bargains for Baby

Last weekend was a busy one for us as we are still trying to finish up with our renovations.  The baby room has taken a back seat to getting the house completed and furnished.  Hopefully we'll get a chance to work on the baby room in September as long as Baby Butterball Conway does not make a surprise appearance a couple of months early.  

Saturday morning our friend Jenny called from a yard sale - aka: a baby shopper's paradise.  She had found a changing table for us and was quoted a price of $2.00!  I went down and picked it up along with a few $.25 books.  It is a beautiful wooden changing table that just needs a fresh coat of paint.  Thanks Jenny and little Henry for finding this treasure!

I tried to do some landscaping around the house but as the temperatures started to rise over 90 degrees with above normal Florida humidity the baby was not happy.  At 24 weeks I am starting to feel the baby being more active.  I can feel him turning around more and although his kicks aren't as sharp as they used to be, the pressure of his growing body is definitely felt.  

Luckily, I escaped this week with no nose bleeds or leg cramps in the middle of the night.  The only thing I'm feeling in the middle of the night is the baby at about 4am.  I think he's trying to tell me tht he's hungry because I'm getting a little food craving, but it's not enough to get me out of bed.  Pretty soon I'll be raiding the fridge all night long.