Fingernails of Death

Apparently babies are born with fingernails. Long ones. And boy are little Soro/roso/froglette's fingernails long and sharp.


She hasn't started gouging herself with them yet, so we will wait before we trim them down too much. And apparently, it's real easy to cut the actual baby while trimming the baby's nails. Hopefully our hands aren't too shaky from a lack of sleep.


Also, the little one seems to really enjoy this whole swaddling thing - basically, we wrap her up like a burrito inside some blankets. Who would have ever guessed that working at a burrito shop during college would have paid off so handsomely.

It's A Girl

6 lbs 12 oz

1:52 am, central time

19.5 inches

she's a brunette

mom and baby are happy healthy

and baby is currently nursing

we're looking for a good psuedonym for her, so if you have one, let us know. right now, we're leaning towards Soro

Gratitude

to some amazing men.

First to Mike and Doug, our super awesome handy men. They're not only amazingly responsive, but showed up with a new front door yesterday! We've been hoping for one for over a year, and they've been working some special magic to make it happen before Tadpole arrives. They're also trying to get us a new window! Yay for no ice inside the house this winter.

And to PEter, for rubbing my back and swollen feet. I've been whining a lot the past week as everything gets more and more uncomfortable. I'm lucky to have such a wonderful partner.

Happy Birthday

Grandmama turns 93 today. She's a special woman. Although I can't talk to her any more - she doesn't really do the phone and doesn't really remember who we are often, I hold on to the memories I have of special times we spent together.

Happy birthday Grandmama

Due date count down

We're down to single digits today. 9 days until our estimated due date. Come on baby!!!

The craziest museum we've ever been to

Now that we're pregnant, it seems time to discuss the very strange museum we visited during our trip to Italy in the summer of 2007. A post has been pending about this museum almost since we walked out of the door, that's how memorable it was. But life has gotten in the way and then everyone started getting pregnant. Given the theme of the museum (we call it The Uterus Museum), it seemed slightly inappropriate to inflict it on pregnant women. But, now that I'm pregnant, I've decided that it's time to share the wonders of this special place.

The museum is officially called the Museo Ostertical aka the Obstetrical Museum (and you can find the official museum page in English here). It's not large, just a few rooms, but it carefully documents the training and practice of obstetrics in Italy from the past. Note that this museum makes me super grateful to be living in the 21st century!! A great review of the museum from the journal Nature can be found here (see review).

We don't seem to have any pictures from this museum, it must have been one where they strictly monitored photography or else I was just too distracted by the amazingness of the museum.

The bulk of the exhibits in the museum are various models of the birth process as well as how birth can become complicated. There were models of breech positions as well as techniques to help women manage these types of births. Models showed how to use forceps and other assistance to extract problematic babies.

photo from the Nature.com article

In addition to the birthing models, there were also displays that documented various problems including conjoined twins, internal injuries, as well as models of various deformities that can occur. We found the exhibits just fascinating, particularly considering the era of the museum's displays. It was also an interesting contrast to all of the artwork and church exhibits that are so readily available in Italy. By the time that we reached Bologna, we were ready for other, different things to add to our sightseeing list. Bologna turned out to be a wonderful city for us at this point in our visit as it was full of strange and bizarre museums as well as wonderful food.

Takin' it easy

Peter and Cole - spending quality time together.