Out for a Stroll

Daddy's Girl

GO KANSAS! ROCK CHALK JAYHAWKS!





Lily and her dad are now best of buds as they have spent some quality time together now that mom has gone back to work. As you can see from the pictures they both have enjoyed watching some Kansas basketball and playing games on the floor. Lily loves to smile and talk to him. If he comes home and she is asleep she will smile in her sleep when she hears his voice. Jeff seems to have taken a liking to her as well. No doubt she already has him wrapped around her little chubby finger.

Back to Work

This past week was my first week back at the office and leaving my little one. Over the weekend I was very sad that I would not be seeing and holding Lily all day. Luckily, both our moms have volunteered to watch her on the days that I work in the office, which made it a little easier to go back. Monday morning I dropped Lily at my mom's house and I was in such a rush I didn't really have time to be sad. Yes, I was in a rush because getting yourself and a little one packed up takes more time than you can really plan for. Especially, when you are behind on sleep and decide that since the baby went back to sleep at 6:30 a.m. you would as well. So getting up at 8:00 and getting out the door by 8:30 doesn't really happen. I did make it to my mom's by 8:45 and to the office by 9:00. Not bad for the first try. Especially when Lily loves to either spit up, poop, or decide she is hungry just as we get her strapped in and ready to go. I went to my mom's house over lunch and fed and played with Lily. She was doing great and having a lot of fun with her Grandma O'Rourke. Tuesday she was asleep over lunch, so I just watched her and visited with mom and then went back to work. When I got her home and out of the carseat, I held her and realized at that moment how much I had missed her! She is such a little snuggler. I really missed getting my fix of the snuggles over lunch that day. Jeff's mom came down on Thursday night to be here to babysit on Friday. It was so nice to have dinner with her and for her to get to see Lily smiling and talking. On Friday Lily was a very good girl, and Grandma Mavros said that she would continue to come back as long as she stays on her best behavior. We are so happy that she is getting a chance to know both sides of her family so well. She is a pretty spoiled pup!

Daddy got to spend plenty of quality time with Lily this weekend as Mommy got out of the house for a little work and play. On Saturday night I went out with Beni and a few other friends for some drinks (2) and girl time. It was so much fun to get out of the house and even better that we were in smoke-free bars! Then on Sunday I worked my first hockey game back. It went really well and it was fun to see all the regular patrons and part-time staff again. While I was out Jeff and Lily made out fine. They enjoyed watching some tournament basketball and playing with the dogs. Dad reports that she was a perfect angel. Sunday evening we went for our first walk in the stroller. It went alright. Lily was not too happy about it, and it was difficult to take her and the dogs all at once. The trip was made more difficult by the fact that Jay's leash was broken and we had to keep it locked the whole time and Buster wanted to go every direction possible all at once...getting the dogs, stroller, and humans all tangled up! Hopefully, our next adventure won't be quite so wild.

Well that is all we have for now. Lily is smiling and cooing like crazy these days. It is so much fun! She is also sleeping great throughout the night, which makes mom and dad very happy campers.

Grandpa's Birthday

Today (Saturday), the whole Mavros side of the family made the relatively long trip down state to be with Lily and celebrate Grandpa Nick's XXth birthday. A great time was had by all. Lily awoke around 8:30am with a smile, and her pleasant disposition continued throughout the day. After a quick trip to see her Aunt Molly and Uncle Patrick at about 9:00am, she returned home for a brief sponge bath and baby lotion lube in preparation of her visitors' arrival. By noon, Grandma and Grandpa were pulling in the driveway, and Uncle Mike and Aunt Dana were not long after. At 12:15pm, the whole group was assembled and marveling at Lily's new tricks. Much coaxing ultimately resulted in a few broad smiles from the baby and even more from the lookers-on. Having made 12:45pm reservations for lunch at FlatTop Grill, Katie and I soon ushered the group toward the door. There, Lily's happy-go-lucky mood continued. It was a brand new dining experience for both Mike and the birthday boy, and I am pleased to report that both enjoyed seconds...in fact, we all made two trips through the line before we left. Unfortunately, a nasty winter storm of freezing rain and strong winds developed during our time in the restaurant, and it caused the family to depart in a slightly quicker manner than they might have otherwise. Still, we returned to the house and enjoyed brownies and ice cream in honor of Grandpa Nick prior to everyone hitting the road. All in all, it was a great day, filled with the usual teasing, laughing, and loving that defines a Mavros family function. Hopefully, Lily will soon be making her first trip to Elgin to see her Grandparents' house and perhaps meet more of her extended family.

P.S. Lily presented Grandpa with his birthday gift--a digital picture frame that receives pictures through a WiFi connection--at FlatTop Grill, and by all acounts it was a great success. Now Grandpa and Grandma can stay current with Lilian's latest and greatest without even having to consult the blog (though they'll miss these wonderfully entertaining posts).

Lots of Visitors and Pictures

As you can see, Lily has enjoyed many visitors in recent days. From family to friends, adults to children, our little one has done her best to entertain an array of interested parties. And these are just a few of the many, many pictures that have been taken of our little girl. In fact, if it seems that she rarely has her eyes open, we think it's because she knows that as soon as she does she'll be met with camera flashes. It is difficult to know what other events to write about, as Lily has yet to learn how to do much other than cry, eat, poop, and occasionally sleep. However, Katie claims to have been smiled at by Lily on more than one occasion, and we are indeed still amazed at how strong the baby is. Not only can LG hold her head up, but she routinely pushes away her dad's hands during attempted outfit changes, and she bats away potential kisses when not in the mood. When lying on her mom or dad's chest, she loves to crawl, and Katie and I expect to be chasing her around before we know it! For anyone who is still checking the blog, thank you for sticking with us during this recent lull in Lily news, and we plan to keep adding new info...and promise to be better at doing so on a regular basis.

All the little working parts

I thought I better give everyone a quick update before the little one wakes up from her nap. Daddy went back to work this week so Mommy and Lily and the dogs are on our own and doing pretty well. Thankfully, Grandma and Dad have come by to check on their girls and make sure we are taken care of. Grandma brings coffee in the morning and dad comes home over lunch. Lily is settling in to a bit of a routine, if you can call it that, and mom and dad are trying to adapt. The last couple of nights she has slept for 3 to 4 hours in between feedings, which has been wonderful. It sad that one can get so excited about getting 3 hours in a row of sleep. We both feel so refreshed if we get more than 1 1/2 in row! Speaking of feedings, she is eating really well and gaining weight like crazy. Last Monday she was 7lbs. 9 oz and yesterday she was 8 lbs. 3 oz. We think she is going to be a chunker! The Doc gave her a clean bill of health adding that she was surprisingly strong as he held in superman position and she held her neck up the whole time. He also was quick to return her as she has quite the pipes on her as well. The bump on her head and the yellow skin are now completely gone. Another tribute to her super powers as the doctor did not expect that large bump to resolve itself for several weeks! We are so very proud of our little one. She is going to be crawling, walking, and playing soccer in no time!

Pick a Peck of Pics

No Mo' Yellow

Good news for the blog, everyone. Lily has been given the "all clear" on the Jaundice front. We had her bilirubin count taken yesterday at 8:30am at the hospital, and we were at the pediatrician's office by 9:00am for her first doctor's appointment. The nurse at the hospital was great, and Lily bled well and was out the door in about ten minutes flat. Then, at Dr. Boe's office, she was given high marks for her shrunken head (what I mean is, the lump on the back of her head had gotten smaller). The doctor said everything looked great, her weight was good, and the results of her blood test were encouraging. She had gone from a 14.1 the day before to a 12.6 on the Jaundice-O-Meter, and this meant we could return the phototherapy contraption and go about our business. We were relieved, of course, and we spent all of yesterday lounging around and marveling at our newly non-yellow baby. We have decided that she really is great. I mean, all parents think that their kids are great, but we really think that she's great. She's smart, caring, funny, and so down-to-earth that it's hard not to be impressed with her.

Okay. At least she's not yellow. We'll start working on the other stuff.

Good Night and Good Day

Mom here and feeling well and somewhat rested. Last night was our best night yet. Jeff and I received around 6 hours of sleep, and Lily was eager and ready to eat every time she got up. We were very diligent about keeping her on the UV blanket as much as possible yesterday and last night, and it totally paid off. We took her to the hospital this morning, and her count went from a 15.8 down to 14.1. The doctor wants us to keep her on the blanket for one more day, and hopefully tomorrow he will let us be free from the UV.

Today is Lily's one-week anniversary, and she already is looking so much older and cuter (if that is possible). I am having major neck pain from staring at her all the time. It is funny how Jeff and I can stare at her all day and not even realize it. Every little move she makes, noise, or face is amazing to us. Even her cry is cute.

As for me, it is suprising how quickly I recovered from the long labor. The first day after Lily came I felt like a train had hit me and was not sure how long I would feel so terrible. Jeff had to help me out of bed, and I walked around like an elderly woman and waddled a little like E.T. for a few days. Fortunately, by the end of that first day, much of the pain had subsided and each day has been continually better. Along with feeling less labored, my now deflated jelly belly(very weird right after birth) has gone down a lot, and I can see and reach my feet. Yeah! No more hairy legs or slip on shoes! I can't believe I will be able to wear normal non-maternity clothes soon. I never thought the day would come. It is a very weird feeling to have clothes actually hang off you rather than having you hang out of them.

Dad, besides being sleep deprived, has already morphed into a total super dad. The minute Lily is content and resting with me, dad is at work doing laundry, cooking, cleaning up after us, blogging and attending to his girls' needs. I definitely would not have made it through labor or these last couple of nights without him. Late night struggles with Lily on no sleep were very frustrating, and Jeff was able to keep me sane while getting his little stubborn flower to eat. We forged through together and hopefully have turned a corner with our little boxer, as she is eating without the prior 10 minute boxing matches that required dad to hold her hands as mom tried to get her to latch on. Now we only struggle for about 2 minutes at most, and that helps keep mom sane through the night. Dad is also the expert diaper changer. After some very suprising explosive poop that shot across the bed on our first night home, dad has adapted to the many different scenarios that may occur during the change, such as the aforementioned explosive poop, peeing all over herself during the wiping process, and pooping more after the clean diaper has be been securely replaced. All and all, Jeff has taken on the dad position like he does everything else by giving it his all, and Lily has not been dissappointed yet!

We're home!...I think.

It's Saturday morning...well, I think it is. The front page of the paper on the porch reads Saturday, January 27, 2007. The fact that it's morning is a guess on my part, based primarily on the behavior of the dogs, who seem to be hungry. Because of our sleep "schedule," I'm not sure of much anymore, except that "a hemotoma on Lilian's head is constantly breaking down red blood cells and releasing bilirubin through her bloodstream, resulting in jaundice." Of that I am sure. Everything else is a blur. Let me see if I can catch everyone up...

We got word early yesterday morning that Lily's bilirubin count had decreased to 14.5, down from 15.6 the night before. These numbers indicated a drop from her previous personal bests of 17 and 16.6. When I first heard that her score was going down, I prepared a little speech about maintaining a commitment to excellence and following through, but then the doctors went on to say that this lower score was a good thing, and I put it on the back burner (check back with the blog in about four years). What it all meant was that at 14.5, Lily, Katie, and I were cleared to pack up and go home. Well, it meant that we could go home. We had been packed up for two days, seeing as I have a slight case of what those in the psychological community call OCD, and I had been crawling the walls, finding new ways to organize and reorganize our few possessions in the two bags we brought with us.

After we were read our slightly jaundiced baby Miranda rights, entitled "Your Yellow Baby and You," the nurse discharged us, and we began hastily dressing Lily in what her mom had selected as her "coming home outfit" (I do believe Katie and Grandma O'Rourke are going to have an outfit in mind for every occasion in life, by the way). Then it was time to get the little one into her car seat, which I thought the three of us managed with minimal fuss, and the nurse escorted us to the front door. Freedom! Again, it should be noted that the staff at OSF was incredibly kind, patient, and caring, but I couldn't wait to get back to my own bed for a change (though location has proven to be the only real change in our nighttime routine).

Lily seemed to love the car seat and the ride, so Katie and I made a game time decision to drive through Steak 'n Shake for a celebratory brunch of sorts. Two steakburgers and large fries and ten minutes later, we arrived at home to find that Grandma O was already waiting for us. This turned out to be a great help, as the dogs needed to be kept at bay while Katie and I ate our food. Buster was overjoyed at the prospect of having a new friend/enemy, and true to form, Jay was far more interested in the Steak 'n Shake and waited until we finished eating to introduce himself to his new sister. All in all, the dogs were very gentle and extremely pleased to make her acquaintance. Katie and I were relieved.

Chapter II: To Sleep or Not to Sleep
Lily is mandated to stay on a "bili blanket" between feedings. The hospital called a local medical supply company to have one delivered to our door not long after we arrived home. The bili blanket administers the same UV light phototherapy that she received in the hospital, just in smaller quantities. In essence, a UV-emitting strip is placed on the mattress of her bassinet, and she is laid down on top of it, so that her bare back is directly against the strip. To insure that she does not roll or stray from the strip, she is strapped in at the chest by a paper harness. While this is not nearly as barbaric as it sounds, it's safe to say she'd rather not be strapped in. Thus, we have enjoyed relatively little sleep, and Katie and I would just as soon have her unfettered, as well. As it is, Lily doesn't usually take to breastfeeding immediately, and often the first twenty minutes after she makes it known that she's hungry is spent calming her down enough to actually keep her mouth on Katie's breast. Once this is accomplished, she typically eats ravenously...a good reason why her bilirubin count is going down and she's back to putting on weight instead of losing it. However, unlike the usual newborn sleep situation, we can't simply rock her back to sleep following a feeding. Instead, we are obligated to strap her back in her tanning bed. This almost always makes her cranky, and it takes a few more minutes to calm her back down so that she will sleep. Between coaxing her into eating, rocking her to relaxation, strapping her down, calming her again, changing diapers, and falling asleep ourselves, Katie and I are dreaming (if you can get to REM in our allotted time) of the feedings-every-three-hours schedule that we hear so much about.

So that's our current situation, and we love it. Lily is our beautiful little girl, and we think we can take anything she can dish out. Of course, stay tuned to the blog to find out if we're right...

Jaundice, anyone?

Disclaimer: this post has been submitted by a non-scientific, sleep-deprived novice. Any misspellings of pharmaceuticals, medical conditions, or other biological phenomena are therein expected and should be considered with a leniency appropriate to the material and situation.

So it's Wednesday, January 24th at 4:00pm, and we're still in the hospital. Why? Our little angel (and she is) has a bout of what I like to call The J.

About halfway through the day on Monday, in the midst of entertaining numerous visitors (thank you for your kindness, visitors), Katie and I noticed that our Lily was of the yellow variety and not the pink Lily we had ordered. We asked the nurse about this, and our suspicions were confirmed: Lily had The J. What did this mean? We wanted to know...

Lily, it seems, had developed a large hemotoma (a bruise, for anyone who hasn't taken biology since eighth grade) on her head during the fantastically wild ride that was her birth. This bruise, coupled with the breastmilk she was receiving from her mom, was increasing her bilirubin level and resulting in The J (on a side note, if Lily were a boy, Katie and I had narrowed the names down to Billy or Ruben). Medically, I am to understand, the recession of her bruise causes the red blood cells to break down and release bilirubin throughout her body. To cleanse her body of this material, our baby must eat enough to rid her body of waste...waste that includes our friends Billy and Ruben.

For anyone who has yet to become a parent, the initial newborn stools consist of a blackish tar called miconium, the stuff that so dutifully protects them in the womb, and it takes a few days for this tar-like substance to be passed fully. Then a yellowish, seedy-looking poop makes its debut, and it signals the processing of breastmilk by the baby. This is where we need to get. Lily has been eating, Katie has been pumping, and I have been doing anything I can to help with these two tasks. As it is, Lily is looking better and could potentially spend her last night in the hospital tonight. Her levels of Billy and Ruben will be checked at 6:00pm tonight and again at 6:00am tomorrow. If everything looks okay and her case of The J is lessening in severity, we should be on our way home tomorrow. Can't wait. I should say that all of the staff here at OSF in Bloomington have been tremendously helpful and kind, and we couldn't have asked for a better hospital stay (maybe that's where the word hospitality comes from), but we are ready to spend a night (albeit two hours at a time) in our own bed. And I know that Jay and Buster are looking forward to having the family back...even if it's slightly bigger than the last time they saw it!

Wow....uh, yeah...wow.

Well, she's here. Yep, Lily made it....but it wasn't easy.

On Saturday night (1/20), Katie and I went to bed around 11:00pm, only to have the mother-to-be awakened a little over an hour later by a fairly intense contraction. This in itself was not alarming to either of us, as we had grown accustomed in previous weeks to just such a wake-up call. However, what followed was both new and very exciting. Whereas previous contractions had been equally strong, few had been followed closely by another. On this night, Katie's second contraction arrived no more than four minutes after the first subsided. By the time the fifth and sixth contractions had convinced us that this pattern was indeed very real, we knew our restful nights were coming to an end.

Just after 2:00am, still sitting in bed and timing her contractions, Katie felt her water break. I must give her credit....she was out of the bed and sitting on the toilet in about 4.4 seconds. After a quick analysis of the situation (remember it was 2:00am), I concluded that indeed her water had broken, and we were off to the hospital.

We had pre-registered at OSF just after the New Year so that the process of checking in at the hospital on The Night could be expedited. As it turned out, so many people thought that having a baby on January 21st was a good idea that we waited for about 15-20 minutes before being ushered up to the maternity ward. Once there, a nice, veteran nurse named Sally got us situated and informed us that Katie was only one centimeter dilated, approximately 60% effaced, and not likely to deliver for a long time. We settled in for the long haul.

Because Katie had lost her water, she was not allowed to walk unless it was to and from the bathroom. This meant that the bed was her home. As we learned in our birthing class, changing positions can help a laboring mom with the discomfort of contractions (Oops..I know several of you moms just read that and thought "Discomfort? How about pain? He's obviously never been pregnant!"). Therefore, we tried moving Katie around in the bed, but nothing felt as good (again, sorry, nothing was as pain-relieving) as just sitting up with pillows stacked behind her. It was my job to constantly rub her lower back during contractions, and this upright position made my job difficult, as I was pushing and pulling my arm from between Katie's back and the pillows we had placed behind her. Making this more difficult was the fact that Katie had been getting too warm, so I had placed a cold, wet washcloth up against her back. This meant I was trying to force my arm between her back and heavy, wet linens, while her weight rested against these very same linens. Now, granted, a sore shoulder and fatigued forearm are a far cry from the physical challenge of labor, but for all you guys reading this blog (and I know there must be dozens), I wanted to give a shout out to the supportive father.

Okay, moving right along...we went on this way for about 9 hours, at the end of which Katie was fed up, fully effaced, and three centimeters dilated...and I was...well, who cares? We decided we needed a change if she were going to go the whole way unmedicated (did I mention I had been taking codeine for my shoulder by now?), so we asked about getting Preggo in the birthing tub. We were unsure whether this would be an option since Katie had lost her water, and the nurse deferred to Katie's OB. Dr. Thornton okayed the tub, and soon we were lowering my beautiful and rather bloated wife into the contraption that would turn the tide (pun intended) on this whole laboring ordeal.

Katie immediately found relief in the tub, and the contractions, which were getting stronger all the time, were becoming relatively easier (less difficult) to manage. A little before 10:00am, we placed a call to Beni, our pre-arranged labor assistant, in hopes that she might spell me for a spell and then accompany us for as long as it might take to get Katie the rest of the way. With Beni soon at Katie's side, and after I took 10 minutes to eat a bag of Cheetohs and two granola bars (probably not the preferred amount of time for ingesting such a meal), the team was assembled for the big push. Katie progressed from three centimeters to six in a matter of about two hours, then from six to 10 in another two hours. At 2:00pm, Katie was given the green light to get Lily the heck out of her belly. This is when things got fun.

Still without medication, Katie began pushing Lily down the birth canal to the waiting arms of the doctor...and ultimately about 438 family members. There was a slight issue with this, however, as our little Lily was turned in such a way that she couldn't make it out. Dr. Thornton attempted to reach in and manually turn her, but remember that Katie was not on drugs, and this became too painful to work. Katie was then left with a decision to make: get an epidural that would allow the doctor to reach in and turn the baby, or have a C section. Right. Anyway, once Katie had the epidural, we were at it again, and the doctor was turning Lily with her hand in a medical procedure that can only be filed under "wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it." Lily, unfortunately, had the umbilical cord wrapped around her wrist, and this turning caused her heart rate to plummet, leaving the doctor no choice but to let go. Back to square one with a baby sitting in a bad position for vaginal birth. Then came decision number two: try taking pitocin to increase the frequency of the contractions in hopes that it might flip the baby and move her naturally down the birth canal...or have a C section. Right. Anyway, after Katie had been administered pitocin for about an hour and a half, it was time to push again. This time, fortunately, Lily's head appeared after only about three rounds of pushing, and soon she was landing in Dr. Thornton's able and gloved hands. Touchdown. Oh, did I mention that the Bears won right about this same time?

After much ado, and much pain (though Katie was UNBELIEVABLY strong throughout the whole ordeal, and I couldn't be more proud of her), we welcomed Lily: January 21, 2007 at 6:08pm...7 lbs, 13 oz...21 inches long.

Am I in Labor Yet?

As we near Lily's wonderful due date, I wake up each morning wondering if today will be the day she decides she wants to come out and meet the world. Many times these feelings are preceded by a strong contraction that passes and in turn fills me with excitement. Unfortunately, neither my excitement nor the contractions last very long, leading me to conclude that today is not the day. I know that having these contractions are a good thing, as they are practice and help me prepare for the big day, but I am just so anxious to get her here that not knowing exactly when she is coming or what it will be like is somewhat discouraging. The pregnancy book is really of no help in trying to figure out if and when labor is going to start, either. My water may break or it may not. My contractions may be really strong and send me straight into labor, or I may have pre-labor contractions for days, weeks, or even a month before I deliver. Nothing is set in stone with pregnancy, and every woman's experience is so different. It makes it really hard to know if what I am feeling is pre-labor or false labor. I had one woman tell me that when she went into labor her contractions felt as if she just had gas. Other moms tell me that I will know when I am in labor because the contractions will be stronger than any I have had before. Well, I had a really strong contraction this morning and it hurt more than any of the others, but I didn't have anymore after that. Does that mean that they will continue to get stronger and more consistent or is what a felt today the strongest I will feel? The answer is... there is no way to know. Luckily, besides the contractions that come here and there and the constant questioning of whether I may be in labor, I am feeling pretty good! My back and hips hurt at night in bed and my ankles swell on days when I work all day and then have a game. Other than that, Jeff and I are just looking forward to the arrival of our little one. Tonight we are going to go walk at Shirk and see if we can give Lily a little push. We went on Monday night and walked about 3 miles and that obviously didn't get me anywhere, but it feels good to get out of the house and exercise. About a week and half left and we hopefully will have a little one here for everyone to meet!

In work-related news, my boss has approved my proposal to work from home two days a week! I will work from home on Mondays and Wednesdays and be in the office the other days. I will continue to work events at night as needed as well, which works out fine since Jeff can be at home with the baby during those times. Jeff's mom has kindly volunteered to watch Lily every Friday, and I think that my mom will be willing to help out at least one day a week as well. It is so nice to know that our little one will be looked after by people that really love her! It will definitely make going back to work a little easier.

Working at the Coliseum has been such a great experience. Having our company manage all three entities and the food and beverage service has given me a chance to learn about so many different aspects of this business. Most buildings, such as the Peoria Civic Center, have a different management team for the building, each sports team, and food and beverage, which would not afford the experience that I have had to this point. Not only have I learned a lot by working closey with the sports teams, I have been able to learn a lot about shows and concerts as well. It is really neat to learn about all the behind-the-scenes workings of shows and concerts. Many times I have been able to listen to sound checks and watch practices. I even have been backstage and helped work "meet and greets" with the artists. I was, of course, very quick to volunteer to work the John Mayer "meet and greet" in February. Not only does my job offer me fun and exciting work experiences, but it also means that Jeff and I always have something fun to look forward to, whether it be hockey games, football games, concerts, or shows. There is always something for us to do...and do for free. We certainly have a pretty sweet set-up here!

In related news, the PrairieThunder have really started to improve, and the starting line up that we have now is really fun to watch. Hockey seems to be catching on here as our attendance has continually increased from game to game. We even got my dad hooked. Working the hockey games is a lot better than working football games because I actually have time to sit and watch. As an employee, I have season tickets so Jeff comes to all the games and I go and sit with him when I have time. The nice thing is that he likes the game so much that he doesn't mind sitting by himself for awhile if I have to go take care of something. Soon we will have to make Lily a fan as well, so Dad will always have someone to sit with him.

Stay tuned....Lily could be making her appearance any day now!

Soo Close!

This week my belly has finally dropped and I am feeling enormous. My appointment on Monday was fine and the doctor said that her head is very very low and that she will just pop out when I go into labor. Let's hope that is the case! Our digital camera decided to poop out on us this week so I haven't taken a picture of my belly yet. Hopefully, we will have that situation resolved before she gets here.

In other pregnancy news, the girls at work decided to throw me a surprise baby shower. I had no idea and was totally shocked when I opened the door and saw all of them waiting for me. It was so nice and fun. They had decorated the party suite and even had a chocolate fountain going for me. It was so thoughtful and fun! Lily was given a bunch of cute outfits that I can't wait to put on her. Mom was given a gift certificate to Fox and Hounds that I am looking forward to using after she gets here!

Pregnancy's ups and downs

I always get the question" how has your pregnancy been?" or " how are you feeling?," and when I say pretty well, without fail, whomever has asked me the question gives me The Look. Let me explain The Look: it's something like "are you sure you feel ok?" or "you really can't feel that well." The truth is that for being this far along in my pregnancy and comparing myself to the symptoms that other women feel, I feel really good. The first trimester, I was plagued with terrible morning, noon, and night sickness. I lived on bagels, bread, cereal, and water. At the Coliseum the closest bathroom is in the concourse outside our office, so I would have to anticipate my next bout of vomiting so that I could make it to the bathroom in time. Additionally, I carried a plastic bag in my purse for emergency situations, such as driving in the car, or anywhere I might be too removed from the luxury of indoor plumbing. Everything made me feel nauseated, from the smell of peanut butter-filled pretzels to Jeff's hair goop. The first trimester was not a fun time. It was hard to be excited when I had to be ready to run to the bathroom at all times. Luckily, around my 12th week the stickness suddenly stopped and I was able to eat again. I had very few weird cravings and mostly developed food aversions. Unforutnately, my aversions were to the healthy green vegetables that I needed to be eating for Lily. I have tried really hard throughout my pregnancy to be healthy and eat the best things for her. I love fruit and have been really diligent about getting plenty into my diet. Vegetables, however, which I loved pre-pregnancy, have been a struggle and have mostly consisted of french fries and chips (both in the potato family), carrots (sometimes), salad (sometimes), and asparagus when Jeff makes me eat it. At this point, I have been craving La Bamba's, Bennigan's Chicken Tenders, and Steak 'n' Shake steakburgers--really healthy! In the past week I have been able to eat more than I ever have in my life, and my hunger is almost insatiable. I could eat all day, no problem.

From what I understand, I need to be thankful for more than my steel trap of a tummy, too. I feel very fortunate that the wieght I have put on has mostly been in my belly. I am all baby, which makes balancing a little more difficult, and the girls in my office are afraid I am going to plunge forward at any moment, but I hear about horror stories from other women and the weight they added to their pre-pregnancy frames. Fortunately, I still feel okay, and I can attribute that to the fact that I have been able to continue with pilates. I have really enjoyed keeping up with it, and I believe it is the reason why I have felt so good throughout. My back pains have been very minor, and without pilates I think I would be a mess in that area. I just started to get a little swelling in my ankles, but nothing extremely noticeableto others (I don't think). There are definitely days that I feel frustrated and tired of pregnancy, but those have been few and far between. It is so weird and funny how one moment you can be so happy and excited and then you find yourself stressed and tired and hopeless when you are having trouble with something as minor as getting up off the couch. Thankfully, for Jeff's sake if not my own, my emotions throughout pregnancy have been pretty steady. Like I have said before, I have had my moments, but no major ups or downs. That probably means he has it in store for him when I go into labor or shortly following. Speaking of Jeff, my husband, strength, rock, coach, chearleader, and best friend. I couldn't do any of this without him. He has made my life as stress-free as possible. He walks and feeds the dogs, does the laundry, cleans the house, takes out the trash, and pretty much does anything and everything for me. He has been so wonderful this entire time, and seeing how excited he is about Lily makes anything I have endured all worthwhile. I couldn't ask for a better husband and soon-to-be father of my child. I don't even have to ask for back rubs anymore, he just seems to know when I need them. I am sure my sitting forward or touching my back is not much of an indicator to him or anything.... I love him so much and can't wait to see him hold Lily for the first time. We have both been waiting for this for so long, and now it is so close! She could come any day now, and we are really looking forward to this new and exciting chapter in our lives to start.

Almost There

Today I had my 36-week appointment, and Lily and I are still doing well and remain on schedule. The doctor said I looked great. I am still feeling pretty good, but I am very anxious for her to be here at the same time. I have minor aches and pains, but nothing too bad to complain about. We have been very lucky that my pregnancy has gone as smooth as it has. Only a few weeks left and she will be here! Her room is finished and we installed her car seat yesterday. Jeff and I are going to go to the hospital this afternoon to pre-register so that when I do go into labor we won't have to wait. Never too early to be prepared. Work is going very well, and I am almost done with all my club seat renewals for next year. Since Jeff is so on top of things, there is not much "nesting" for me to do at home, so instinct has really kicked in at work and I have created a binder with way too much information for the person that is taking over for me while I am on maternity leave. She probably thinks I am a nut. Either way it makes me feel good to have it done and ready.

We had wonderful Christmas and were spoiled to the max--or should I say Lily was very spoiled. Grandma and Grandpa O'Rourke gave us the curtains, curtain rods, curtain holdbacks, and bed skirt for Lily's room. It looks so cute! Aunt Molly gave Lily a smocked Polo plaid dress and a blue and white polo dress. Of course very cute. Uncle Mike gave us the Baby Bjorn to carry Lily around in, and he gave Lily a cute pink sweater that will go perfect with her smocked dress. Grandma and Grandpa Mavros gave us a camcorder so that we can document Lily as she grows. Jeff has already taped her moving around in my belly! Finally, Aunt Dana built us a cradle with her very own two hands. It is pretty amazing, and I am sure Lily will get a ton of use out it! We are so thankful to have such a loving and excited family. Lily is a lucky baby!!! And she's almost here...

Christmas Spirit

Jeff and I have had a lot of fun decorating the house for Christmas. This is our best tree to date and we love having it all lit up while we sit by the fire and listen to Christmas music.

A Little Behind on the Blogging

It has been a quick and crazy past two weeks, and I apologize for not updating the blog sooner. Everything with the baby and me is still going well. My belly is enormous, and I think Lily is really ready to get out of there. Her room is coming together and looking cute. We hung the mobile that Melissa and Ryan gave us, and her rug came in last week. Now we are just waiting on her dresser, which should be here right after Christmas. Grandma O'Rourke is putting the finishing touches on the room as our gift for Christmas. She purchased the curtain rods, curtains, and crib skirt for Little Lily. I can't wait to get it all up and see the finished product.

In other Mavros news, Jeff and I were models for OSF St. Joseph Hospital last week. Poor Jeff, neither of us had any idea what we were getting into when I agreed to do this. OSF owns a suite at the Coliseum and their suite contact, Mickey, called me and said he needed a favor. He said that they needed a pregnant woman for some photos, and it would be great if I could lend my belly and convince my husband to join me...otherwise they were willing to find me a substitute husband, which I've only considered once or twice before this anyway. So I called Jeff, and he agreed to do it and figured that it would be a good opportunity to receive a tour of the labor/delivery unit while we were there. I called Mickey to tell him we were in, and he said that he would have the tour set up for us when we got done with the photos. We arrived at St. Joe's around 3:00 p.m. and met Mickey and the photographers. As they started to describe what they wanted to capture, I realized that this was going to be more than just photos of Jeff and I sitting around talking to doctors. I guess I should have asked before I agreed. They had me get into a hospital gown and lay in bed while Jeff stood next to me and gazed lovingly into my eyes. It was very professional with lots of lights and even some props (flowers, cards, and bears by the window). They had us set up in the dorkiest poses. Jeff had to hold my hand and kiss it or put his hands on my belly as we both looked at my bump. My favorite was when they had him make an amazed looking face like the baby was kicking and he had just felt it. Jeff, as you know, is a great actor and pulled it off very well. I had a hard time because I couldn't stop laughing. We both felt so stupid. We finished up and got our tour, and we were out the door around 5:15 or so, just in time to run a few errands. Jeff and I reveled in our grocery shopping that night, as we knew it would one of the last times we could make a trip to the store without being mobbed for our autographs.

Last week I worked on club seat renewals (everyday all day), and I am still chugging away at those. Thankfully, many people have enjoyed their club seats and have decided to renew for next year, which means I have less to try to sell before the football season begins. At this point I am in my nesting phase at work. I am trying to get everything set up for when I am on maternity leave. As long as she doesn't come too early I think I will have plenty of time to have the club members settled and organized and train one of our other staff members on the ins and outs of premium seating.

I have my 34-week appointment tomorrow, and we have a few holiday parties to attend this week and Christmas stuff all weekend. Soon it will be January and time for Lily to meet everyone!

First Showering of Lilian

This past weekend we had our first baby shower up in Elgin. All Jeff's mom's favorite lady friends were there to shower Lily with wonderful gifts. It was so much fun to see all of them, and the shower was so beautiful and perfect. Lily received many cute things, including lots of darling outfits, a yellow cozy blanket made with love by grandma, an amazing rocking horse made by Uncle Dave, and a tea cup from Lily's great grandma Mavros. Lily's mom also received a fun gift from Aunt Dana. Dana found a chic maternity shirt that says, " Does this baby make me look fat?" It is super cute, and I can't wait to wear it. After the shower, grandma O'Rourke, great grandma Williams, Jeff and I returned to Bloomington where we unpacked everything and looked at it all over again. Jeff even put together the swing that grandma O'Rourke and Aunt Molly bought for her. We can't wait for her to be here and dress her up in all the cute clothes, read her the books she has received, and play with her. Not too much longer!!!

Today I had my 32-week check-up, and thankfully everything still looked great! I am still measuring right on my due date, and little Lily's heartbeat was loud and strong! Luckily, I am still feeling (for the most part) pretty well. I am definitely a lot bigger, which makes moving around and getting comfortable a little more difficult. Jeff has been great at hoisting me up off the couch and bed. Soon we will need a crane. Other than that there is not much to report on the baby front. She is still frequently wiggling and rolling around and sometimes kicking me a little too hard. I have two more appointments on the 2-week-between-appointment schedule, and then I will start going every week!

It is getting very exciting!!!

Silly Dogs

The perfect look for our little stinker

Buster's new do

Mohawk boy

Jay Sleeping on dad's lap as we drive up to Elgin for Thanksgiving

31 Weeks and Growing

Today marks Katie's 31st week of pregnancy. It also marks the first day of my new life. That's right, good people, Jeff changed his first diaper last night.....well, sort of. During our weekly birth class last night, our instructor asked me to get off my posterior (harder than you'd think right now, following a Thanksgiving weekend game of football), sit on the floor, and change the diaper of one "Pebbles the doll." I must say, while this exercise was undoubtedly easier (and cleaner) than the real thing will be, I received high marks from both of my teachers. Jennifer evaluated me on my technique, including minding the baby's head at all times during the change, while Katie weighed just how soon she might hand over all poopy diaper responsibilities. Had I known my efforts were to be met with such praise, I might have sandbagged just a bit to potentially delay my participation in this most illustrious component of child rearing. As it is, however, I'm sure to be in the thick of it when Lily arrives.

By the end of the night, Katie and I had been introduced to all things post-partum. From the good to the bad to the ugly, we now know that we can expect lots of fun even after the baby is delivered. Yikes! It's amazing the things people don't tell you! Nonetheless, we are even more excited now for our baby girl to get here. Katie is still feeling about as well as can be expected, and we are making sure she's eating right and drinking lots of water, staying somewhat active, and doing her prenatal exercises. We both know that she is going to experience increasing discomfort over these last two months, but so far she has taken everything in stride, and I'm very proud of her.

The last bit of information to share is the dogs' reaction to having Baby Pebbles in the house last night. As soon as Jennifer walked in with the doll in her car seat (to teach us about car seat safety), both Jay and Buster were immediately interested. They of course mobbed Jennifer as usual, their Shih Tzu guard dog training evident in the number of debilitating kisses they landed, but they soon forgot her and focused on the baby. In fact, after Jennifer got settled and the initial interest in our visitors had seemingly passed, Katie and I glanced over to find Buster, not sitting quietly as we had believed, but rather inside the car seat itself, sitting on Baby Pebbles' chest and sniffing her plastic face. Needless to say, we hope not to recreate this scene upon Lily's arrival at home. While we know the dogs will both be excited and somewhat threatened by the impending addition, we are hopeful that their curiosity will soon give way to love for their new little sister.

30 week check-up

This morning Jeff and I went in for my 30-week appointment and sonogram. Lily is getting bigger! The nurse said everything still looked great, and we got to see her little face again. She even blew us a kiss. She was positioned on her side with her head down, her bottom up, and her hands and feet all together on my side, which confirmed why I was having so much side pain last night and this morning. What a stinker. Everything looked to be functioning properly, and we were even able to see the lens of her eye and some hair on the back of her head. Technology is so amazing! The sonogram showed me to be right on target for my due date and projected her birth weight to be between 7 1/2 and 8 1/2 pounds. After the sonogram we met with Dr. Thorton, and she said that I was looking good and that I seem to be in great health. We have been very lucky with how smooth this pregnancy has been to this point...knock on wood. This past weekend Jeff and I went to the Shirk Center and walked two miles so I could get some exercise. I am still going to pilates once a week and enjoying that, even though it is getting much harder. I bought a pilates ball on Saturday for exercise purposes both before and after the birth. The pilates ball will also come in handy during labor, allowing me to lie down on it so that Jeff can massage my back and anything else that is aching. I should mention that I already used it for that purpose last night, and it was great! I will try and keep all the massaging to a minimum prior to labor because I think Jeff will be doing plenty of that then. Jeff is still being a wonderful supporter, husband, and birthing coach. He is already practicing keeping me calm for labor by not freaking out now whenever I freak out about any wierd ache or pain. He is very good at reading me and my emotions ( a little too good at times), so I think that will really help during labor when I need him to take care of me and know what I need even if I am not able to communicate it. Time is still flying by, and we can't wait for her to get here! Jeff has so many plans for her, inlcuding things that we will not be able to do with her until she is quite a bit older, but it is fun to think about the future. She is going to be a total daddy's girl and she will have him wrapped around her finger. He is already totally in love with her, and she isn't even here yet!
We have some fun sonogram pictures to show to everyone, including the one of her blowing a kiss, which Jeff would rather not share because he swears he can make out a moustache and buck teeth. I guess we'll find out in two months!

29 Weeks

* 29 weeks of belly

Lily and I are still doing well and feeling pretty good. I have had some lower back pain, but nothing too debilitating. Lily still loves to kick and stretch and roll around all day long. She is getting better at going to bed when I go to sleep, but unfortunately, I don't think there is necessarily any correlation between her current schedule and the schedule she will keep outside of the womb. Jeff is now almost done with his basketball league and will soon start indoor soccer (aahhh!). Luckily, the season is fairly short, and he will only have games once a week. So hopefully, we will keep the injuries to a minimum. Work has been pretty busy with all the hockey games, concerts, and trying to get stuff in place before the baby comes. Thankfully, although I have been busy, I have not been too stressed out. At this point, all the clients I work with have the routine down and really require very little of my time at the events, which has been a nice change. Also the Game Time (food & beverage) staff has figured out their role, and they are handling everything really well. Knowing all of this makes it a lot easier for me to relax at the games and not wear myself out. It also is a relief to know that everything should work smoothly while I am at home with baby. I will probably work a little from home while I am on leave to help with all the Club Seat renewals, but hopefully they'll be mostly completed before I'm out of the office. Nonetheless, if I need to process renewals from home, I now have a nice new desk for when I am at home with little Lily. Just two and half months away now...and most likely time will keep flying by. Lots of little milestones to reach between now and then, what with the holiday season and all...and Monday is our 30-week sonogram. Look for news on Lily's 30-week development soon!

Jingle Bell Run/Walk

Lily's First Charity Experience. Of course we had to have brunch at our house beforehand. We needed to have strength for the long race and all.
ready for our ...walk.

Preggo girls finish! We weren't sure if we were going to make it, but we pulled through.
A littly chilly, but feeling good.
Relaxing inside after our awesome race!

Getting Ready for Lily

Not only are we getting the nursery ready for Lily's arrival we are also spiffing up the rest of the house with the addition of new furniture in the living room and the finishing of the basement. We purchased a new T.V. stand, coffee tables, cubby unit, and a desk for mom to work from home on when she is on maternity leave. Jeff also refinished the french doors that are original to the house and put those up between the dining room and living room. I will get some pics up of the basement later. Jeff and his dad worked really hard on tiling, painting, putting up the ceiling, and finishing off the bathroom down there. It looks great and it is so nice to have another full bathroom in the house!

Braxton Hicks

We had our second birthing class with Jennifer last night, and we learned about all the stages of labor and the different contractions that go along with them. She asked me if I had any Braxton Hicks contractions (a.k.a. false contractions) yet. I told her I didn't think so, but I wasn't sure because I didn't know what they felt like. She explained that during one of these contractions my tummy would get really hard and knotted--but not in a painful way--and then relax. It occurred to me that I actually had felt this before, but I had always believed it to be Lily just coming up to the surface of my belly. It is nice to know now what I am looking for and to have an idea of what the real contractions will feel like. So far the ones I have had don't hurt and mostly just take my breath away for a split second and make my belly feel really heavy. I even had one during our lesson last night and asked Jennifer to feel it to confirm. Pretty cool stuff! In addition to the stages of labor, we learned about different coping techniques, including massage, focusing, and visualization. After Jeff found a massage technique he was comfortable with, we moved on to thinking about helping me cope, too (just kidding)! Jennifer tried to illustrate for Jeff all the possible moods and emotions I may or may not have throughout the labor process, which ended up being pretty humorous. She said that some women are loud and hate their husbands and don't want to be touched, while others are weepy and emotional, and some are a mixture of everything rolled into a rollercoaster of emotions. While Jeff and I can see me reacting in any and all of those ways, it will be very interesting to see how I really handle the whole thing. I hope I can surprise him and hold it together and be really strong, but neither of us are holding are breath for that one. Thanks goodness we learned how I can help Jeff cope!