The Emperor Explodes (3 Weeks, 5 Days :)

Who is the emperor? Cadiem Rey! Bri has already given him a nickname, which started when he decided to "cluster feed" for 14 hours straight (Jeff & I have another name for it... see if you can guess). I'm not kidding--all I did the entire day was change diapers and feed him, while hoping he would fall asleep somewhere along the way. Needless to say, I was in tears by the time Jeff arrived home from work. I have since learned, like any good bartender (or... breastfeeder? haha) to cut him off! Bri has been calling him the emperor since we do as the baby commands! Haha. I had to explain to her what we've read in about everything concerning newborns... "The baby is not trying to manipulate you, the baby does not have an agenda." Hahaha.
A couple days ago, I was changing the emperor's diaper when he decided to start pooing again. It was quite explosive--I caught most of it in a wipe, but somehow liqui-poo ended up on the wall. Plus all over the changing table and my hands. While the poo-plosion was happening, he started peeing as well! I've already been peed on a few times, but this time the baby peed on himself and managed to get it on his face! I was laughing before I realized it was on his face--then we had to have emergency bath time :) gross!
My mom brought us some baby bath soap and body butter from the Body Shop which smells really fresh and baby-like :) It also says on it, "No Nasties!" Haha.
Anyway, my mom (Grandma Shultz!) was here last week visiting as you can see from the above pic... We had to stay in the house the whole time--but I don't think she was too bored ;) She helped us a lot while she was here with house stuff and we didn't have to worry with the zoo creatures, which was really nice. She didn't want to leave the baby when the time came, but don't worry Mom! We'll be out soon!
Speaking of zoo creatures... We've been keeping the house extra warm for the baby... It's not really a zoo anymore. Throw in the lizard, the sauna-like temperature, plus the scary-intimidatingly-beefy-tomato plant in the kitchen(aerogarden)... It's a damn jungle!
That's about it for now...

Can Opener Rant Update: (i'm not lame! you'll thank me when yours breaks!)
My damn can opener broke again. Seriously. Jeff went to the Gourmet Pantry and bought an OXO opener that takes the top of the can completely off--it's pretty cool. No jagged edges! Thus far, it's still in operation... We'll see how long this one lasts! I think I must be death to can openers. :)

Cadiem's Birthday! March 4, 2009

After 15 hours of labor (ugh!) and 3 hours of pushing, Cadiem Rey Mangold has arrived! (old news, right? sorry! i've been busy;) Weighing in at 7 lbs 1 ounce and 20.5 inches long--apparently the average weight for a boy is 8 lbs--but I seriously don't know how he would have fit! So he is longer and skinnier than the average... I bet he'll end up being tall and skinny like Jeff :)
We were in the hospital Tuesday night through Friday morning. Needless to say, we were ready to leave come Friday morning! However, our hospital stay was pretty great, considering. We were in a really nice "birthing suite", which we both stayed in and gave birth in. The birth part was not as scary as the seventies video--but it was no cakewalk! We came pretty close to having to get a c-section, but they ended up using a vacuum to help get him out. Fun stuff, but at least it worked! Jeff was an excellent coach. He even sat next to my bed all night while I tried to sleep in between contractions.
Anyway, more posts to come shortly!

We have water breakage!

and yes... I'm still at home :) I'm about to go pack my hospital bag--because god forbid I do anything ahead of time! Haha. And Jeff is downstairs installing the car seat--at least we're both procrastinators! Wish us luck!

HELLLLLPPPPPP!!!

We watched THE scariest video of a birth--scary seventies style on Netflix. I thought my mom was exaggerating! EWWWW!!! A c-section is looking pretty good right now! We still have the videos that we borrowed from the hospital to watch... I'm hoping that they'll be a little better... Maybe being newer, without the ugly-scary-seventies haircuts they'll be less traumatic. Haha.
Maybe they could just knock me out, and do the whole labor thing without me "present"... Hmm... Let's get some engineers working on improving this scarier-than-hell process!
Anyway, still no contractions yet...
Ari loves to sleep on Jeff, last night they were both in the same position--so I had to take a picture. Jeff got tattooed yesterday--the tree is pretty close to being done. I think he might be participating in a convention that his artist (Shaun Carroll) is doing. Jeff actually has Sunday off this week, I think we might check out the new art museum in Roanoke--they're supposed to have a pretty cool "pens & needles" exhibit that we're going to check out.

"Go into labor already!"

Said my doctor at my appointment yesterday... I still haven't felt any contractions yet--but I'm feeling very whale-ish! So next week Cadiem is due, and if he decides to be late (like his parents ;), they'll do a thorough check on his health--and decide whether to induce from those results.
Apparently, the placenta has a life span, which I was not aware of and this is the reason they no longer allow pregnancies to pass 42 weeks. Crazy! That's the first thing that hasn't in the book Bri got me! :)

I finally have more pictures of the nursery to post, even though it's not totally finished... I'm still working on a painting with his name that I'll hang above his dresser. I also still need to label the bins that I used to organize Cadiem's random stuff--I'm a freak, I know. I think it's all of that 5S training :)

Cadiem has been gifted some really cute items, I thought I'd post a couple things--I'll have to take more pics. Anita (my stepmom) is a sewing wiz--she made these really cute burp cloths. It's going to be sad when the baby spits up on them. Haha. Darlene & Terri (Marty's mom and sister) also make afghans, quilts and apparently blankies :) I posted pics of those from the shower.

And thanks to my mom and her friend Jennie (and Bri;), Cadiem's feet will be stylin. The "Robeez" are supposed to be really great because they don't have hard soles which are really bad for developing baby feet. How cute are those booties!? Bri actually had dibs on them from when my mom used to sell baby shoes--but she didn't want Cade's little feet to get cold :)

"Look! I Frankensteined that shit!"

Said Jeff, after he had torn up our dessert (chocolate, coconut & peanut butter--oh yeah!) and pieced it back together into "perfect bites". Ha ha ha, I told him I would be quoting that on the blog! We had the yummiest dinner at Poor Billy's last night.
I ordered salmon and we both agreed it was the best we've ever had. Jeff has been craving steak for a good week--and their fillet mignon is always awesome. We also had their baked Brie appetizer (Cheddar is never better when Bri's in the cheese! hahaha). Needless to say, we were stuffed!
This morning we finally got to pick up our chair :) Jeff hauled it up our three flights of stairs--luckily it was in two pieces. And now our nursery is about ready for Cadiem! I have a few finishing touches to add, but we've got the major stuff done. We also had our "pre-registration" appointment today--so when I'm in labor and freaking out, I don't have to answer a bunch of questions. Random comment: We got Flava-Flav some crickets yesterday, and I feel like I'm camping in the living room...

37.9 Weeks... And an exciting evening in...

My evening is encompassed above... Do you have any idea how difficult it is to paint your toenails with a giant baby belly in the way? But, sexy toes are a must when you're a whale (as Ethan likes to call me). Gotta have it goin' on somewhere! While we're on the subject of the whale belly--Jenni gave me some Burt's Bees Belly Butter--it's pretty awesome, and works great on my scaly legs :)
Ari found a long lost bone under the couch tonight--and she and Luci have been stealing it from each other for the last several hours. Somehow, it never gets old (for them that is). Ari likes to camp out under my legs while Luci stalks her, waiting for an opportunity to dive for the bone.
Poor Jeff has been working nonstop since Thursday. I miss him! I told him I'm starting to speak dog--Ah! At least he has Wednesday off, and we're excited to go pick up our new chair in Roanoke.
Last night, I decided to make mushu again--my own recipe. Which I actually liked much better than Emeril's recipe :) However, I couldn't find the Chinese pancakes anywhere (big surprise, right?), so I decided to make my own. Flour, water, and sesame seed oil--how hard could it be, right? WRONG! First off, I haven't used a rolling pin since the last time I made an apple pie, which was about five years ago. No likey the silicon roller! I'd rather use wood. Anyway, I made the pancakes but they were nothing like the ones in the restaurant. I think you definitely need a double sided griddle and some kind of crazy steamer to make them work. Ugh, two hours of work and a kitchen (and belly) full of flour. Never again! Jeff was nice enough to eat the entire tough pancake--and even thanked me for my cooking efforts several times. Isn't he the best!? :)