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Subject: He's Here!

From: Lindsay Hey

Sent: Sat, Feb 20, 2010 10:53 pm
Subject: He's Here!

Jude August Heyer is here!

Day: February 20, 2010

Time: 9:14pm

Length: 21"

Weight: 8lbs 10 oz

Everyone's doing great...only 7 minutes of pushing! He's been nursing for 50 minutes like a champ. We can't wait for him to meet all of our wonderful friends and family.

If we've left someone out, it's totally inadvertant! Please pass this on to anyone we may have forgotten!

All our love,

Lindsay and Liz

The Latest

Liz H

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The Latest
7 messages

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	Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 9:11 AM
No, we're still not at the hospital. We didn't go in last night because they were too busy. They thought they could get me in this morning, but it sounds like they do inductions in the am and they really want me there the night before to get ready for the induction. Sooooooo..... Now they are saying they want me to come in tonight for induction in the morning tomorrow (Friday). I'm supposed to hear from them around 2 this afternoon. Does anyone have 8.4 million dollars to add on to the labor and delivery wing at Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital? Seems like they could use it. At this rate, I'm thinking they won't be able to get me in until at least 2028. At least that means that I'd give birth to an 18 year old. Could this wait be any more agonizing? We'll, of course, keep you all posted. Liz

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Lucinda H	Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 9:15 AM
To: Liz H
This is more agonizing than just waiting to go into labor. At least this must mean that they're not too concerned about your blood pressure. We're thinking of you! Love, Cindy

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Kathryn F	Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 9:18 AM
To: Liz H , Lindsay H
AAAAAHHHHHHH really?!?!?!?!?!? That is agonizing...and crazy! How on earth are you dealing? And, I wanted him to share Yoko's birthday!!! But, I guess if he's born tomorrow he'll share the day with Hillary Duff's sister??? Thinking of you!!! K [Quoted text hidden]

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Kathryn F	Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 9:18 AM
To: Liz Heyer, Lindsay Hey
Oooh, ooooh, and Seal AND Smokey Robinson...musical birthday boys! [Quoted text hidden]

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Kasey L	Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 9:31 AM
To: Liz H, Lindsay H, Ap
That SUCKS! I'm sorry. Now here is annoying cheerleader Kasey.... 1. This is what it is like for those who don't get induced....you have to wait. Not fun but part of the journey. Though I know that the plan was made and then changed I suggest you think of it as not getting induced...or just that the getting induced part is something you have no control over (just as you wouldn't if you weren't going to). I dunno maybe it could help. You are so close and I know it must be hard to wait, but Jude will be here with you soon....SOON YAY!!! 2. DISTRACT yourself - movies, rent some full seasons of something...go to our house and watch movies or watch modern family (PUSH!)....Aaron can VNC in and all you need to do it get the TV on and he can run it for you! (hehe Aaron like how I'm volunteering you for things!) 3. At least you get to hang out in your own house and you aren't hanging out at the hospital waiting 4. Your bags are packed. You aren't at work. You have no dog. You have no baby. You have EVERYTHING planned. You have no company. You have NO RESPONSIBILITY right now. That doesn't happen much and certainly won't happen in the coming months. So I realize that it sucks but let's try to change the cylce of thinking to something positive. hehehehe (K i'm in Social Work mode right now). Love you ladies!

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Dean L	Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 2:22 PM
Reply-To: Dean L To: Liz H Aiiiiggghhhh!!! Fingers crossed that you don't get this email because you're on your way...

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Karen G	Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 3:14 PM
To: Liz H
Thanks so much for the update! And sorry you weren’t able to go in last night- I hope tonight works! I am sure you guys are so excited (and ready not to be pregnant)- it must be nearly unbearable. We will keep the positive vibes flowing- for an opening tonight and Jude to join us tomorrow! Karen

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Such an agonizing wait...

My due date is one week from today, but after an ever-increasing blood pressure read on Tuesday, Dr. Witzke wanted me induced today with cervical ripening happening Wednesday night. So Wednesday night at 7 the hospital still hadn't called to tell me when they wanted me to come in. I finally called them and learned it's because they are so crowded that they couldn't fit me in. They were going to try again this morning (Thursday), but still full, and then again this evening but...... still no room.

Lindsay and I have been just waiting on hold for over 24 hours now eating every meal out since we haven't kept anything in the house and haven't wanted to create any dishes. We've been having more "this is the last [fill in the blank] as a childless couple" false alarms than I can count. I know that waiting for labor or early labor can be just as agonizing, but I just needed to share with all of you! HOPEFULLY there will be room at the hospital tomororw morning, but at this point, I'm not holding my breath. Maybe that baby will come out on his own yet!

World Invitation

Dear Baby

I am officially inviting you to join us out here in the world. You're done cooking and I'm ready to go back to sleeping on my stomach. My Dr. has officially put me on bedrest so now all I have to do is watch the Olympics and wait for you. Don't get me wrong. I'm enjoying the medically mandated couch-sitting. But there are so many fun things we could be doing if you were here. Ok. Maybe things won't be so "fun" at first, but as great as bedrest+Olympics are, having you here would be waaaaaay better. So I just wanted to let you know that everything is all ready for you to come, we just need you.

Love,

One of Your Moms.

Here are some pictures of me waiting for you:

35 weeks - waiting for you in my pajamas

36 weeks - waiting for you in different pajamas

37 weeks - now you're done cooking, so I'm REALLY waiting for you (see how bored Sully is with waiting for you?)

38 weeks - waiting for you in the same outfit I was waiting for you in last week. Don't judge.

Due Together

Our Minnesota friends threw us a fabulous shower last weekend. It was so great to have so many of our friends together (and even some family!!). Our friend Amber was there, who's due just two days later than me! It's super fun to be so close in pregnancy with a friend. We will be delivering at the same hospitals and inadvertently signed up for the same Baby Care Basics class this week. I love that our little ones will always have the connection of being so close in age! Plus, who doesn't love to compare notes???

Year End Good Times

We ended 2009 like Californians living in Minnesota - West Coast Style. It felt so good to escape the cold of the frozen tundra (not to mention the 20 inches of snow that fell while we were away) and spend time with family and friends back in the motherland. Best of all, can you believe we will have had FOUR showers to welcome Jude to the world?!?!?

First, there was a shower at Lindsay's work. My favorite part? The shower was in a 6th floor conference room downtown. As Grandma would say, "How cosmopolitan!"


We started our California trip in Sacramento and a shower with lots of family that we hadn't seen in a long time, and some we were just meeting for the first time (our niece, Aubrey, better known as "Oblong").


We then headed down to LA. We were thrown a Christmas Eve brunch shower with so many wonderful things to eat (coconut cupcakes!) and people to make sure Jude is WELL prepared for life on the outside (seriously, people. Does the word "overboard" mean anything to you?).



How lucky are we? So many people in so many places who already love this baby!

And while the showers were so wonderful, we also got to visit with friends we hadn't seen in way too many years. Owen made me a birthday card and we got to relive a little bit of Bay Area days gone by.


We hope we made the most of our last trip for a LONG TIME. The trip was great and we LOVED seeing everyone. We arrived back in Minnesota to -10 degrees, a BROKEN FURNACE, and two cats that were nearly catsicles. Yup. There we were at midnight watching Aaron the furnace repair guy install a new auto ignitor (and though it was a $450 Christmas gift we didn't expect to spend, Aaron couldn't have been nicer!).

But it's all done now. We're now in the home stretch of waiting for Jude to arrive! I can't wait for him to get here, but like a good lasagna, he needs to cook a little longer in order to get all warm and golden and crispy around the edges. Stay tuned for shower number 4 (Minnesota style), hospital visits, and birthing classes!

Good News!

Because I don't want to leave any of you hanging, I had a blood pressure check yesterday morning and it had actually come down! I'm still in the "your blood pressure is kind of high" range, but not in the "we're worried about you having preeclampsia" range. Yay!
I keep reminding myself that this DOES NOT mean that I can go back to all my old ways of going until I am exhausted and eating whatever I want - paying really close attention to those things is probably what got my bp down in the first place. But at least I know that there's a way to control it.
Which brings me to a question for all of you.... do any of you know of any quick and easy recipes/meals that don't use canned or majorly processed foods (in other words, low in sodium) that you can pass my way? I'm finding that cooking at home without canned or processed elements is the easiest way to eat low-sodium, but I'm also trying to rest, so running around like a crazy chef isn't exactly what I'm looking for, either! If you have any good ideas, I'd love to hear them!

A Complication....

We knew things couldn't be so perfect the whole time! I went to the Dr. last Tuesday for my glucose check and a routine check and my blood pressure came back high. They asked me to pee in a cup, which turned up some protein in my urine. These two things together indicated that I'm at a high risk for preeclampsia. It's apparently pretty common in first pregnancies and if I was at 37 weeks or later, they'd just induce. But at 27 weeks, I'm much to early for that. They took some blood tests and those came back normal.

So I was sent home from work for the rest of the week (though it was Thanksgiving week, so I was already going to be out Thursday and Friday). I was told to do lots of resting and avoid salty foods (Thanksgiving week!). Lindsay did all the driving down to her aunt's in Illinois for the holiday and everyone was so great about keeping me at rest. It certainly wasn't fun to avoid salt during Thanksgiving, but I did it.

Today I went in for another check and.... my blood pressure is still high. I'm told that I don't *have* preeclampsia at this point, but I'm so close that there's concern I could go down that path. I'm back at work, but doing everything I can to be mellow. I go back on Friday for another blood pressure check and we'll go from there. Right now, we're taking it week by week to see how things go. As much as I'd *like* to not have to go to work, I'm not ready for that. Mostly, I want to ensure I can still travel to California for the holidays!

Oh, and by the way, I passed my glucose test! I thought for sure I'd have to worry about having gestational diabetes, but looks like I'm ok with that!

I'm doing ok right now... just trying to take it easy. I'll keep you updated!

Major Purchase #1: Stroller

Today we went to Baby on Grand (a great store with staff people that are so knowledgable and understanding that not everyone is an expert on strollers) and picked up our stroller! We have probably logged about 10 hours of internet research on strollers, so by the time we went to the store today, we knew exactly what we wanted. It was a present from my mom, so we wanted to make sure that we were getting something perfect!

We started our stroller search with an intense discussion of our stroller needs. Yes, when you are having a baby, these are the kind of sexy conversations that you have on a regular basis with your partner. We decided that our stroller needs were:

1. All-in-one. We didn't want to have to buy a stroller for when he is a newborn, for when it is a toddler, for when we are at the park, etc. You'd be surprised how many frigging strollers some people have.

2. No Winnie the Pooh. In fact, no licensed characters is kind of a theme for us.

3. Comes with a "boot." Now, you people who don't live in the frozen tundra with children may not know what this is. It is a little foot cover that you can latch onto the stroller's belly bar to keep baby feet and legs warm.

4. Folds up small. It has to fit in the "trunk" of the Scion, which is not really a trunk at all, but more of an oversized shoebox.

We began our research on a fabulous website, BabyGizmo. In fact, I should just go ahead and set Baby Gizmo as my home page, that's how often I look at it. And I actually get irritated if they haven't reviewed a product. I know, right! The best feature about BabyGizmo are their YouTube videos, and they had one for the stroller we had our eye on. May I present to you, the Inglesina Zippy!

She had us from the "one-handed fold" and the fact that it can stand up on end after it is folded up. We also love the light-weight factor and the super small fold is a breeze to fit into the Scion. We even fit it into the regular sized trunk of our other car today with 4 bags of groceries! I know, it's the little things that get me excited.

Here are some photos of us with the stroller in our living room. Although it was very tempting, we didn't put Sully in it.

The head-on view.

We call this the "no paparazzi please" setup with the winter boot and the large canopy.

Liz making some tight turns around the living room!

Close up view!

I am not sure if we'll be this happy when we are pushing a baby around in it and it's -15 degrees outside...