Last Belly Pics at 38 Weeks and 2 Days!

Reflection

Well, we've got about 25 hours left until we start the induction. I'm really excited to finally see lil Ryan, especially the feet that I've felt kicking me for the past several months! I can't wait to see him in all of his cute outfits. I probably over bought, but I wouldn't be me if I didn't. :) I also can't wait to hear him cry for the first time, even though I'll probably get over that pretty fast...hehe. It makes me so happy to think that by the end of the week, he'll be sleeping in the crib that we picked out for him months ago and we'll finally be able to hold him.

On the other hand, I'm really nervous about the whole induction process. Since he's not really ready to come out yet, it increases my chances of a C-section. I keep on telling myself that no matter what way he physically makes his way into the world, we still have a baby in the end and that's all that really matters. It's all means to the same end, right?

The process to get to this end has been quite a journey. There have been so many people who have surprised me by their thoughtful words and actions, I am truly lucky to call them friends.

Thanks to all of you for your phone calls and emails just to check up on me, it really has made this time in my life more special. Thank you to all of those people who offered continual support and always made me feel better about what was going on.

Hopefully we'll be posting baby pics soon!

We Got Pink Slipped Today

"Your induction has been scheduled for _________________.

Please report directly to the Labor & Delivery desk at NAMC (901-2155). You may eat a very light breakfast if you desire (piece of toast, small bowl of cereal). If you are scheduled in the evening, you may eat normally.

Please remember that the hospital must save room for the women who go into labor naturally (aka not you). There is a small possibility your induction will be delayed or rescheduled if the Labor & Delivery unit is too full. The hospital will contact you as soon as possible if this happens.

Good luck with your induction, and congratulations in advance. We will be thinking about you!"

_______________ = Sunday, February 11, 2007.

Carrie Has Officially Moved In

For some reason, Carrie has gotten really bold and has started sneaking into our bedroom and sleeping on our bed! Silly Carrie! Steven caught Carrie in the act and took this picture. Sorry about the mess, we're still in the process of cleaning up, but with such a comfy bed, it's hard to get anything done at all!

Nursery Pics

Here are a few pictures of the nursery. The first picture was taken from the doorway. We have french doors with glass inserts because the room was suppose to be a study. :) We need to figure out a way to make it a little more private, but I do like how it's really easy to look into the room. The dragon rug is from Ikea and you can see the burnt orange glider and crib from USA Baby. Of course, there's the exterior door with the doggie door. :) We've let out the dogs back there a couple of times, but I don't want them to get used to it or else they'll end up running through the nursery every time they want to go outside!

In the second pic, you can see the blanket on the glider and the night stand. On the night stand, we have a cool lamp from Ikea that changes colors and of course the magnetic monkey from Natalie's birthday party. The big picture frame was made by Maria and RJ during the shower and the little elephant frame is from Xin-Xin. The mama and baby stuffed elephants are from Judy who is now back in Austin...yay!!!

The last pic is of Ryan's closet. Hehe...do you think I went overboard on the clothes? Everything is so cute and tiny...I can't wait to dress him up! We've also stashed the other baby stuff in the closet, stuff we figure that we won't need right away. The nursery is really coming together, I'm so excited!

The biggest thing we have left is decorating. We wanted to paint it a baby blue, but with the move being so close to our due date, we decided against it. I was worried that the paint wouldn't have enough time to dry and air out, especially with all of this cold weather we've been having. We still need to hang up a few things which will really liven up the room, but we won't do that until after he comes. I'm excited about hanging up all of the shower stuff!

Baby Blanket

It's finally finished! This blanket has been by far the biggest project that I have undertaken time-wise. I knitted seven strips of seven blocks of colors each and then sewed together the seven strips. Let me just say that my knitting looks a heck of a lot better than my sewing! Each square took me a little over an hour to knit and each strip that I had to sew together also took over an hour. In the book that I got the knitting pattern from, the blanket was under the "less than 10 hour" section...ha! Did I also mention that this was the first time that I knitted with skinny needles (size 6!)? I was joking with Steven that this blanket is just for looks only, Ryan will only take pictures with it, but won't be allowed to actually use it...hehe...

Baby Update

Ryan may be making his debut into the world a little earlier than expected...this coming week! I became officially full-term on Friday at 37 weeks, so he can really come at any time and he'd be alright. It could be as early as Tuesday, February 6th or as late as Friday, February 9th, depending on how my lab results come back on Tuesday morning. I'm getting my blood drawn on Monday morning and the results should be back by Tuesday morning and my doctor's appointment is at 11:30 on Tuesday, so we'll find out then what they recommend. My perinatologist doesn't think that we should go past Wednesday, but I'm hoping that the lab results come back okay and that we can hold off until Friday when I'm 38 weeks. My regular OB initially wanted to wait until I was at least 38 weeks because of the GD, but she said last week that once I show signs of progress, that they'll go ahead and induce me.

They checked me on Friday and the baby isn't exactly ready yet, but he has dropped. The nurse practioner took one look at me on the exam table and said that he'd dropped already! I was surprised because I thought that was one of the things that I'd notice since it means that labor isn't far away. Apparently I'm short-waisted and that's why I didn't notice. Have I failed to mention that I'm so oblivious when it comes to my own body? :) It makes sense though because while I was getting fitted for my wedding dress, the waist was too long, so my seamstress had to basically cut my dress in half in order to raise it up! That has to be one of my most memorable pre-wedding moments...seeing my dress in two pieces! It's also probably why I started showing early. Everyone kept on saying that I showed early because I am petite, but I didn't think that was it because I'm not skinny :), but this short-waisted thing makes more sense. When I think about it, Ryan dropping makes sense, it's probably why I can't go longer than 3 hours without having to go to the bathroom! Yes, it makes the nights extremely fun, but I figured out that the hallway bathroom is actually closer to me than the master bathroom. Fun stuff. :)

We had a great last weekend as a couple. We slept in on Saturday morning and went to Natalie's first birthday party in the afternoon. It was a sneak preview of the future, there were kids everywhere! Then we went out for a nice dinner at Sushi Sake (no sushi for me, but the shrimp tempura was yummy). Today we took the dogs out for their first walk around their new neighborhood and just hung out.

I know we're getting close to the end, which I am getting excited about but I've been having so many mixed emotions. I am really excited about finally meeting little Ryan and seeing what his personality is like, but I am going to miss being pregnant. I know I've had some pregnancy issues, but I'm going to miss feeling him move around when I'm eating or when I'm in the car or just watching my stomach in amazement while he's doing back flips in there! It'd be nice to feel more normal though. I can't seem to stay awake during the day anymore, I'm always napping or sleepy. My pregnancy brain has also gone out of control. When I talk, I feel like it's all verbal diarrhea! I can't seem to hold a conversation because I either get too distracted in my own thoughts, or I can't remember what I wanted to say next! I've literally been in my own world for the past week...just completely out of it. Hopefully things will get back to normal after Ryan comes!

Another thing that I'm looking forward to is my first meal where I don't care about carbs! Here's a list of things that I'm thinking about eating:
~Krispy Kreme donuts
~Extremely sweet beverage from Starbuck's (pumpkin spice lattes still around?)
~Einstein Brothers bagels
~Girl scout cookies (caramel delights!)
~Chocolate cake
~Pappa John's pizza
That's my short list. Let's hope that I don't end up with a C-section, because then I'd have to wait 24 hours before I can start eating again! I told Steven that I'll be the only part partum woman in history who actually gains weight after she gives birth...hehe... :)

Anyways, I've been working on the baby blanket all day. I need to finish...I have less than a week left!

37 Weeks and 2 Days

Yes, we have officially moved in! As you can see, it didn't take Button very long to unpack her mogu and set up shop on our new couch. I don't think that she's moved from that spot since!

We closed on the house on Thursday, and the refrigerator, master bedroom furniture, washer and dryer, and couch were all delivered on Friday. On Saturday, we got the baby furniture and the movers came to move us from the old house to the new house. On Sunday, we went to San Marcos and bought a kitchen table. Phew...that should be all of the furniture that we need right now! We've furnished most of the first floor, except for the dining room where we'll put Steven's parent's dining room set and the living room, which will probably remain empty for awhile until we decide what we want to do in there. As for upstairs, we've got two queen sized beds, a futon and a couple of desks. I'm trying to not have furniture just to have furniture, which was a problem at the old place because you feel bad when you get rid of furniture you haven't even used! Most of our stuff is still in boxes in the dining room and garage. We should get our blinds in by the end of next week, then we can hide all of our stuff better! :)

Also, last Friday, we went to see Dave Barry at the Paramount. We haven't been to a show since 1984, and this one was perfectly timed. We got to evade moving for a few hours and be entertained. He was so funny, me and Steven were cracking up the whole time. It was our last show before the baby comes and we really enjoyed it.

Dinner time...will update baby news after I feed this kid! :)

YOU WON'T BELIEVE THIS!!!

We actually closed on our house today! Woohoo! Will try to post some pics once we get up and running at the new house...should be by early next week. Cross your fingers that Ryan won't come early! :)

Getting Close

I went to the doctor yesterday (35 weeks and 3 days) and because of all of the pregnancy issues I've had, she said that I won't go full term to 40 weeks, which does make sense. Full term is 37 weeks which is 1.5 weeks away, but she said that it'd be better if I was at least 38 weeks (February 9th). At 38 weeks, if I'm dilated, then we'll induce. If I'm not dilated, then we'll probably wait until I am dilated to determine when to induce, if it doesn't happen naturally, but the baby is definitely coming before February 23rd. I will be 38 weeks pregnant in ONLY 2.5 weeks. It's so soon! I'm super excited to finally see our little one, but I'm really nervous about the whole process of actually getting him out!!! Well, let's hope that we get to move in this week, so I'll have at least 2 weeks in the new house before the baby comes!

That reminds me, we've tentatively decided on a name...Ryan Yi-zen Tang. I will try my best to refer to him now as Ryan and not the baby or him. :) We're still working out how we want to spell his middle name, but it'll be something along those lines. Yi-zen kind of sounds like Ethan, so I'm thinking about calling him Ethan instead of Ryan. I figure that once we see him, he'll look like a Ryan or an Ethan and we'll figure out what to call him then. Yes, I procrastinate on everything.

Baby, It's Cold Outside

From Monday, January 15th, to Wednesday, January 17th, the whole city of Austin shut down and this is the reason why. Look at all of that ice! Our deck was a solid piece of ice along with our driveway and my car! Steven got to stay home from work on both Tuesday and Wednesday. It was fun having him around for those couple of days, but there was some serious cabin fever by Thursday!

Because of the ice, we had to postpone closing on the house...again. We postponed it by one week, hopefully this will be it...it's the 4th close date that we've set! Let's hope that on Thursday, January 25th, we will be owners on a new home!

More Shower Pics

Here are more shower pics. Kathy and Arthur are busily working away at putting together the gecko. Maria is showcasing her and RJ's mosaic talents in their picture frame. There's Emili working away on her fish.

The last picture is one of my favs and it goes to show how self-centered I am. This is a pic of the hostess (l-r): Cindy, Kathy and Maria. As a thank you gift for hosting our baby shower, we got each of them an "adult" gift from Victoria's Secret. I realize that may seem odd as a thank you gift for a baby shower (it's a little bachelorette party-esque), but I figure that was the fastest way for my baby to get friends...hehe...I'm telling you, it's all about me!

Working Away

More shower pics. The first is B and Neha. Maria thought that they were a couple, especially since Neha is sporting that gorgeous e-ring these days, but no, they're just friends. Not to pimp out a friend or anything, but he's single if anyone's interested. ;)

The next pic is of Melissa and Alice. They did such a great job of drawing those elephants! I had to use a stencil and even then both of my parents commented on two separate occasions that my elephant didn't look like an elephant. Oh well...

The next pic is of Jessica and Ken showing off their car mosaic. It kind of reminds me of the blue Chevy nova that we had as a car growing up. I remember that the car had blue vinyl seats, those were the days!

The last pic is of my parents working away on the turtle mosaic. Not sure if you can tell in the picture or not, but the turtle is sporting an anatomically correct black eye, black feet and red lips. I've heard of snapping turtles, but is there such a thing as a kissing turtle?

Baby Shower on 1/6/2007

Here are some pictures from the shower. We all got to sit together on one long table. It felt like we were all back in kindergarten working on an art project!

I really like the pic of the hands on my belly. He was very wiggly that night, he was probably just excited that everyone was there because of him. :) It's no wonder first borns are the way they are! Usually when people ask to feel him kick, he doesn't kick. For awhile, I was thinking that he'd have some kind of performance anxiety! That definitely wasn't true during the shower. He was moving and grooving!

I really like this last pic of me and Steven. Looking at this picture, I just think to myself that this kid has no chance of showing his eyes when he smiles...all I see is slits where eyes are suppose to be!

Baby Shower Art

Maria, Cindy and Kathy threw us a couples baby shower on January 6th at The Mad Potter. We had such a fun time!! Each couple or individual person got to paint a star tile or square tile or do a mosaic and we'll use the pieces that everyone made as artwork for the nursery! RJ mentioned wanting to put all of the pieces onto a toy box, which I think is a great idea, but I'm worried about it being too heavy! What if he can't open his own toy box? Wouldn't that be sad?

Star tiles, top to bottom: The fish tile was painted by Steven. Doesn't the orange fish look like Nemo? The "Is Born" tile was painted by my Aunt and Uncle visiting from the Philippines. Basically, the jist is that "A Star Is Born." The Harry Potter tile was painted by B and Neha. They definitely win the most original award! The T tile was painted by the newly engaged Cindy and John. I know the T stands for Tang, but I also see it as Thi, Cindy's real name...hehe, she's leaving her mark on the nursery!

Square tiles, clockwise from top, center last: The We Love You Tile was painted by Auntie Alice and Auntie Melissa. The elephants were inspired by our nursery's theme and the card they got us, notice how the baby elephant is holding onto the Mama elephant by the tail...it's the cutest! The baby tile was painted by Lizette. Lizette is definitely the person you want to call when you go painting at a pottery place, she has her own brushes! The quadrant tile was painted by Josephine. I liked the patterns that she picked for each quadrant, I had a hard enough time thinking of only one thing to paint! The stenciled elephant tile was painted by me. Yes, I am jealous that Melissa and Alice's elephant tile came out better than mine! The smiley face tile was painted by Carolyn. This tile just makes you want to smile back at it.

Mosaics, clockwise starting at fish, center last: Emili did the fish mosaic. She was the last one to finish and when she did, everyone started clapping! The turtle was made by my parents. There's an RT on it, I guess that means that he have to name the baby Ryan, if not, then this turtle is meant for me! Jessica and Ken did the car mosaic. I'd like to point out the chrome rims, I'm sure that was Ken's idea. The gecko (not geico) was made by Kathy and Arthur. Hopefully he'll be the only lizard in the nursery. Maria and RJ did the picture frame. Should we put a picture of Maria and RJ in it or the baby? ;)

Don't all of the pieces look great? I think that everyone did such a great job on them and I love how everything is so personalized. Thanks everyone for coming and spending time with us!!!

Me at 34 Weeks and 6 Days

I am almost 35 weeks in this picture...I still can't believe that it's been 35 weeks! I don't think that I've gotten that much bigger, but definitely rounder! I really do like this sweater, but it barely covers my belly nowadays. You can see it riding up in the picture. :) Only 5 more weeks left and then hopefully I don't have to worry about exposing my belly (and stretch marks) anymore!

It's funny because a lot of people have said that I don't look that big, but sometimes when I walk by a mirror, I'm surprised at how big I am! I guess it's all relative. :)

33 Weeks and 5 Days

This pic was taken at our most recent growth scan (we get them monthly). He's measuring 5.5 pounds, still one week ahead of schedule, like last time, which is great because that means that my GD hasn't gotten totally out of control making him a huge baby! It's kind of crazy that he's 5.5 pounds. At least that's 5.5 pounds that I lose immediately once he is delivered. :)

Again, this pic is kind of hard to see just because he really is running out of room in there! You can kind of see his face, eyes and mouth.

We ended up doing a non-stress test when we were at the doctor's office because when we were doing the ultrasound, he was asleep and wasn't moving much. Basically, they hooked me up to a fetal monitor and whenever I felt him move, I pressed a button and the movement was recorded along with his heartbeat. They were only looking for 2 movements within an hour, but he was up and kicking within 10 minutes, so we finished pretty quickly. :)

All of my other labs turned out good too, so things are looking good. My blood pressure is doing well and my gestational diabetes is doing even better (I'm down to only taking it one day a week). Yay! A little more than 6 weeks left!

32 Weeks and 5 Days

Here are a couple of face pictures. You can kind of see his arm and hand up by his face, almost like he's waving hi. He's head down (not breeched or butt first...yay!) and he's got his hands also down by his face. The weird thing is that his feet are also down there, I think it's like a really bendy fetal position! So whenever I feel a lump going into my chest/ribs, I think that's his butt. It's just amazing how he's fitting inside me!

Week 32

This is not the best picture, but you can kind of see his face toward you and the left side of his face is being squeezed...he's running out of room in there!

31 Weeks

Here is baby Tangy at 31 weeks. Whenever we get an ultrasound, they always ask us if we know the "flavor" of the baby and we always say, "Yes, it's a boy, unless you tell us otherwise," because you just never know! In the first pic, the doc wrote "Still A Boy." One issue we haven't run into is him being shy...he's always ready to strut his stuff! He is definitely not a shy baby!

The second pic is of them measuring his heart rate. This time around, it was 141 bpm which is in the normal range. He's been ranging between ~130 bpm to ~150 bpm.

The third picture is a profile of his face. If you use your imagination enough, you can see that he has his hand up to his mouth. He was probably sucking on his hand. Isn't he the cutest?