Hey!! Something not baby related.

Here's an interesting story that I recently had the pleasure of being a part of. Lori was one of the first matches I made with Big Brothers Big Sisters. Dealing with local media is always a crap shoot from the accuracy standpoint. In this case, however, he did a fairly good job getting the story right [with a few exceptions].

WEST SALEM, Wis. — “Someday, I can live a normal life.” A life with parents who love me. A life far away from the one I’m “stuck in.”

That’s what Lori Groth, sophomore at West Salem High School, remembers thinking as a young girl.

But even she admits to some amazement at how far she has come toward that dream. She has found a stable, loving home after being adopted by Kelly and Todd Groth of West Salem.

Within her adopted home, she has flourished. She’s earning nearly perfect grades and is making college plans.

Groth credits Sara Lassig, who for three years served as her “Big Sister” through Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Coulee Region, with being there for her during her “tumultuous” childhood and providing her the momentum to chase her dreams.

Read more here...

In light of this "heart wrenching" story, Bowl For Kids' Sake is fast approaching [ok, it isn't until the end of March], but it's never to early to start begging. I'll be sending an email out later, since 2 days after Xmas probably isn't the best time to hit people up for money. However, this year we have on-line credit card donations available. Click here to lend your support.

Christmas Video

As promised, here's the video from Christmas. Unfortunately, we failed to shoot any video with Kaye's family. There are a few pics in the album, however.

Apparently, it isn't Christmas unless Matthew is making some sort of vulgar gesture.

First Christmas

First Christmas.2006

Well, we made it through our first Christmas. We spent the 23rd with Kaye's parents, brothers, and their kids. Sunday was the Erickson [my mom's side] in Oxford, WI. Charlotte made the trip splendidly and was able to meet her namesake-my grandmother, Esther. Christmas Day was spent with Kaye's family again. I've added pictures to the album. Charlotte received plenty of gifts although we really have to work on her gratitude. I don't think she said "thank you" once. I'll have video later.

Also, she had her one week [10 days due to the holiday] appointment with her [and our] new doctor today. It looks like everything is going well.

I swear we didn't plan to do this

Yesterday, Kaye and I were doing some last minute Christmas shopping at the mall. As we were pushing Charlotte through the mall, I noticed the "Have Your Picture Taken with Santa" display. I think we both didn't put 2 and 2 together at first. I think it took us a few seconds to realize that we had our child with us and there's some sort of law that, no matter how young they are, you're supposed to have their picture taken with Santa. We debated for a few seconds about how corny the idea was, but couldn't turn down the opportunity. So, we dragged our poor sleeping child out of her cozy car seat to have this picture taken.

In other news, she's finally warming up to her father and she's sleeping for more than 15 minutes. Without going into too much detail, at some point on Tuesday, she finally started getting regular food from Kaye. Apparently, they like to be fed regularly. Huh. I don't remember seeing that in the owners manual. As the nights go on, Kaye is getting more and more sleep...although we aren't where we'd like to be.

Charlotte and Lucy are getting to know each other. Ok, Lucy's getting to know Charlotte. Charlotte isn't terribly interested yet.

I'll have more Christmas pics in the web album as they become available. Also, very off the topic; I just received some pictures from Matthew this weekend from a few of the local festivals that he and I and my cousin Marnie attended this past year.

Lastly, yesterday a friend of mine pointed out that I had put the wrong in date in the mass email I sent out regarding Charlotte's birth and another friend mentioned that I had her length wrong in the original post . Anyone who knows me knows that I suffer from ADD. I can only say that in the days following her birth, my mind wasn't exactly up to the task of typing and "minor" details.

Video, more pix, and first day home..

Well, the video is rough in spots due to lighting [and the guy handling the camera]. The first scene is fairly soon after Charlotte was born. I also have new pics in the album that I forgot I had taken. They're a little grainy because they were taken with the video camera, which apparently isn't the best camera for stills. Unfortunately, the batteries went out later on Saturday night on my digital camera.

Well, we had our first night home and Kaye continues to amaze me. If Charlotte isn't sleeping she wants to be eating. Kaye still isn't getting a lot of sleep and I've been relegated to "cook", "room service", "house keeping", "cheerleader", "diaper changer", and "guy who holds Charlotte when Kaye isn't feeding her"...which isn't very often at this point and let's just say Charlotte isn't thrilled with it. I have faith that she'll soon learn that, even though I don't have the equipment for feeding, I'm not such a bad guy. At times, I'm even a little charming.

Here she is...

Charlotte Esther Michael 12.16.06

Well, I finally have some pictures available [click on pic above]. I'll have video tonight or tomorrow if you check back or subscribe.

Here's the story. Kaye started feeling labor pains at approximately 1 or 1:30 AM Saturday morning. At about 3 AM we called the hospital and were told that they needed to be consistently closer together. So, since I was so helpful, Kaye sent me back to bed at about 4 AM. At about 6 AM she woke me up [don't ask me how I managed to sleep...probably in denial] and told me that they were 3-5 minutes apart. So, we sat around for a few minutes and tried to decide what to do. At about 6:30 her labor pains got pretty intense so we decided to go in to the hospital.

After arriving at about 7 AM, they discovered that she was 6-7 cm dilated and informed us that we were staying. After a little over an hour, the contractions started getting pretty intense, so Kaye asked for a little something to "take the edge off", which she got. Shortly after that, she decided that she needed a little more than the edge taken off. She asked for the epidural. Of course, they don't pressure you into not getting the epidural [at least that's what they tell you up front], but the nurse informed Kaye she wasn't giving herself enough credit. Kaye said she'd think about it a few more minutes [probably until the next contraction]. In the nurses defense, Kaye was pretty quiet throughout this entire experience, so it probably did appear as though Kaye wasn't in that much pain. Nonetheless, having been warned about the "whoops, now it's to late for the epidural" scenario, I asked what kind of a window we had to make this decision. The nurse informed me we had plenty of time. Apparently, "plenty of time" is about 10 minutes because in that amount of time, Kaye again, asked for the epidural. The nurse agreed and informed her that she'd have to check to see how far along she was. During her examination the nurse said, "Hmmmm, I can't find your cervix." So, everyone agreed that it was too late and it was almost time to start pushing.

I'll spare you the details of the pushing, but let's just say that Kaye and I were essentially mute during the entire thing; Kaye, because she was trying to stay focused [and possibly the drugs]. Me, because I think I was a little shell shocked. I'll also spare you all the typical stories about how amazing it was [and it was]. However, I was able to watch Charlotte enter this world at 10:43 AM, Saturday, December 16th 2006. I'll only say that Kaye was unbelievable and Charlotte is beautiful...loud, like her daddy, but beautiful, like her mommy.

Lastly, Charlotte is Kaye's late grandmother's name [maternal]. Esther is my grandmother's name [maternal].

Again, I will try to get some video up tonight or tomorrow morning.

Charlotte Esther Michael...

Charlotte joined us Saturday, December 16th @ 10:43 AM. She weighed in at 7 lbs 7 oz and is 20 1/4 inches long.

Pictues, video and other details to follow...when I get home to my computer.

Nothing to see here...

Kaye had an appointment with the Midwife today. She is 1-2 cm dilated and 75% effaced. So could come any time. Kaye was given the window of tomorrow to 3 weeks. And who said they didn't have this stuff down to a science?

FAQ #1 revisited

How's Kaye doing? She's a trooper. I'd be a much bigger whiner if I was her. She is, however, uncomfortable and ready to have this baby. This morning, she explained to me that tonight we're going to find the sheet that has all the pressure points on it and work the ones that induce labor...nothing weird, I think they're on her hands and shoulders.

My latest moment of utter confusion.

The video is pretty boring. Just a little of Kaye nesting and one more sign that, soon, we will be responsible for another human being. Again, who's in charge here?

So we had an appointment with the Midwife today. Everything's coming along nicely...except...She mentioned that Kaye is 35 1/2 weeks along...which is funny, because all along I've thought she was 36 1/2 weeks along. Doesn't that seem like something I should know? I've been pretty honest about my complete cluelessness [word?] throughout this process, but I'm fairly sure that's not something I should have been confused about. After all, it's pretty important.

Well, apparently, while the ultrasound gave the 12/24/06 date, the midwife calculated a 12/31/06 due date for reasons I'm not prepared to explain here-probably because I don't completely understand them. Maybe I just liked the earlier date better, or maybe I'm that A.D.D....I don't know. In the long run, I guess it confirms what we already know...about my mental capacity.

Baby's room remodel re-revisited

Well, the room is almost done. You'll notice the curtains [although I'm not sure that's what they're actually called], shelves in the closet [surprisingly installed by me], dresser, book shelf, and other actual decorations. The quilt hanging on the wall was made by Kaye's sister-in-law, Kerry. Also, the baby's name [TBA] will also be spelled out above the crib in wooden letters.

...and don't let your newborn use a fork.

The final in our series of baby classes was "Basics of Baby Care". It was nice to find out that I'm not the only one who has this bizarre sense of humor. Apparently the gentleman behind me also wondered why the bulb on the rectal thermometer was bigger than it's oral counterpart. That didn't seem right to us. Although, neither of us was brave enough to raise our hands and ask why.

On Wednesday we'll be making one last trip to my mom's house for Thanksgiving. Kaye is thoroughly looking forward to the 2 1/2 hour ride in the car. We did, unfortunately, have to eliminate the extra drive to have Thanksgiving dinner with my dad's family on Thursday. I thought that might be pushing it a bit.

The baby's room is coming along nicely [more video later]. I even stained the door on Sunday night. Of course, I spilled some stain. Luckily, it was in a rather inconspicuous place...and my shirt. This weekend we'll continue furnishing and decorating, hopefully. We bought some rather "girly" decorations for the room this weekend at a craft fair. I threatened to hunt the owners of the booth down if she isn't a girl. Oh, and yea, I went to a craft fair and it makes me no less a man.

FAQ #2: Are you breastfeeding?

So, next on the list of baby classes was "Breastfeeding 101". I don't know the actual title of the class, but that's what I'm calling it. All went well, other than walking in and noticing no men in the room. Luckily, a few guys showed up right before class started. Let's just say, I had a moment of unrest. The instructor was talking about the first 3 questions people ask when they find out you're pregnant. If I recall, they were, "Is it a boy or a girl", "When are you due?", and "Are you breast feeding?". I don't think I've ever asked anyone that question. I'm not sure if I'm a prude or I just wasn't that interested.

I've learned that people have a lot of questions about the pregnancy. Every time I'm asked a question, I'm reminded how clueless I am. One friend of mine asked where Kaye was carrying the baby. I replied, "In her uterus, I hope". She followed with, "Well, where is the placenta attached?". "I don't know. Is it supposed to be?". Either, I'm not asking the right questions, or I'm on a "need to know" basis with Kaye, the baby, and our Midwife. So far, I'm ok with that.

Next up...Baby Care Basics. Wish us luck...

Waupaca baby shower pics

Waupaca Baby Shower

Thanks to my cousin Sue, we have pics available from the Waupaca baby shower at my mom's home.

Still a work in progress...

Like I mentioned in the last video, it's nice to have family who have carpentry skills. Ok, it's nice to know anyone with skills since I have none. Regardless, you can see that we've actually made some progress. There's a little more painting and stenciling to be done, but we're nearly ready to go.

Photos of the Peterson Baby Shower and Other "News"

Peterson Baby Shower

So, we finally have some new info to post. Kaye's family threw us a Baby Shower on Saturday night. Much fun was had, much food was eaten, and the baby recieved some cool gifts. My mom had a shower a couple weeks ago at her home. Unfortunately, no pics were taken with our camera. If anyone has any, we'd love to post them.

I hope to post some new exciting video of the baby's room tomorrow night. Kaye can finally start nesting in that room...rather than resorting to moving furniture around in the living room.

We had our Baby Birth class this weekend. What did I learn? Other than the obvious stuff, I'm even more convinced that at some point during labor, Kaye will want to kill me. I'm fairly sure that if I'm as encouraging as those guys in the videos were, Kaye will remove one of my limbs. Also, they asked us what traits we'd like our child to inherit from our spouse. I think it took Kaye about 20 minutes to come up with something.

We've been getting a lot of questions about names. We pretty much have it figured out, but we've been keeping it to ourselves. I think that's going to be the policy at this point. I don't want to jinx anything, for fear that she'll turn out to be a "he". Not that there's anything wrong with that. Other than the truckload of pink/pastels we've got in the house at this point.

A long time ago Kaye was told not to let me touch a paint brush. She didn't listen. Somehow, I managed to do a whole lot of painting with minimal mess. Life was so much better when I could claim incompetence.

Actually, I wanted to put this up so I could prove that I do contribute. If you look at the top one and switch to the bottom one real quick, you can actually see progress. In the words of Ron Burgundy, "Don't act like you're not impressed!"

The Baby's first Badger Game...

9.16.06 Wisconsin v. San Diego State

Sep 16, 2006 - 4 Photos

Kaye's a real trooper. It was a little on the warm side, cramped as usual, but she sat through the whole game...not to mention the tailgating.

A Work in Progress. Part Deux

The room is progressing nicely. I snapped a few pictures of Kaye doing some of the painting. Against my mother's advice, Kaye allowed me to actually handle a paint brush. Although the pics don't show it, trust me I did some painting. Not much, but some.

FAQ #1: How’s Kaye doing?

Kaye’s doing well. In the last several weeks she’s been feeling a lot better. The first trimester wasn’t a lot of fun for her, but it’s gotten a lot better. She can feel quite a bit of movement and claims that she can feel it on the outside. I have yet to witness this, so I’m convinced she’s just messing with me. It wouldn’t be the first time and I’m sure it won’t be the last.

Oh, and I don't think I've mentioned this, but she's due December 24th.

A Work in Progress

I have absolutely no carpentry skills. Luckily Kaye's brother, Mark, does. There's still work to be done, but it's coming together.

Update: There were problems with the video [my fault]. I've fixed them.

It's a girl!

Luckily she has Kaye's nose.
Kaye's hoping she doesn't have my head.
The Tech said she was 95% sure it's a girl...although with my genetics, one can never be sure.

Who's in charge here?!!

I'm not really sure who allowed this to happen. Let's face it, we can barely handle the dog, let alone another human being.

We do have more recent pictures. I'll post them later.