Moeskau Sprout

Brian and I attended our first childbirth class last night. Although I am almost positive that if you don’t go to this class the hospital will still allow you to have your baby at their facility and it is almost certain that the actual birth still happens the same way, we were advised to take the class. So, we signed up for classes at the doctor’s office so that we could find out what cruel fate mother nature has in store for me (and for Brian as the supportive partner). Our childbirth class is relatively short (only three classes), very informative (all information, no fluff and/or silly exercises like placing a clothes pin on your ear to simulate labor pain) and not at all touchy feely (tell us what you love most about pregnancy so far or relate your birth story to the class). These things kept our rude comments and scoffing to a minimum. I am very nervous (read completely terrified and close to passing out anytime it is discussed) about the birthing process. So far I have tried to stifle the increasing panic by not finding anything out about what will happen during the labor and delivery (that’s why there are doctors and nurses) and focusing more on infant care. Sadly, my head in the sand approach came to an end last night. I was able to stay up-right during the entire class but the absence of passing out is largely due to the fact that we were not forced to watch the birthing video.

Last night we learned all about effacement, dilation and the station of the baby. During this discussion I thought to myself, “Ok, this isn’t so bad, I can handle this.” Then we get to the labor/delivery part and panic begins to creep in. At this point the instructor begins talking about pushing and breathing (”He He He Who”) and how many people will be in the room (more than I would’ve guessed) and how they will be holding my legs in what sounds like a very embarrassing position and about partners who pass out and then she just tosses out there that some people poop during all of this pushing/breathing/birthing. Yikes. I think I have been told this before but have chosen to block it out. Then she proceeds to tell us that some people do a home enema before going to the hospital to prevent this experience but that practice is not common and not necessarily recommended. While I’m contemplating my home enema, she begins to explain “tearing and episiotomies.” The mere mention of these two words seriously make me want to pass out. She then describes each stage of episiotomy in detail and by the time she gets to stage four I am ready to run for the hills. If you don’t know what a stage four episiotomy entails, good for you. I hope you never find out. The good thing, pooping on the table is the least of my worries at this point.

To all of you mothers out there, I can’t believe you did this and I can’t believe that so many of you chose to do it more than once. There must be something about those babies I am very lucky to have such a supportive spouse but to all of the other partners of pregnant people out there (you know who you are), anytime you get frustrated or annoyed or feel like pregnancy is no big deal and don’t constantly dote on your pregnant partner, I have one word for you “episiotomy.” If you don’t know what it is, look it up (I suggest starting with the stage four definition) and since you don’t have to have one, let the constant praise and doting commence.

After the class I had my worst pregnancy nightmare yet. I typically dream that I give birth to a kitten that thankfully has a genetic defect so it has no claws. Don’t try to analyze it, I know it’s weird. Last night, I dreamed I gave birth to a kitten but instead of it being the kitten part that was terrifying, it was the birth part since now I know what may happen and my subconscious was glad to fill in any detail that isn’t already known.

Our next class is on Thursday and will cover epidurals (sign me up now), c-sections, and a tour of the hospital (or germ-infested death box, as I like to refer to it). We also have our 28-week doctor appointment tomorrow morning. We will have another ultrasound which is great. We were beginning to miss seeing Sprout who judging by all the second and third babies out there is going to be totally worth all this fear and trauma.

We have some new photos! You can see them all on our Flickr page. Of course no baby photos yet (not ’til February) but I did take some nice shots of Kasi down at Shoal Creek, just a block from our house. It was a drizzly, overcast Saturday after Thanksgiving, just perfect for outdoor portraits. Luckily it still isn’t too cold here in Austin.

We had a nice Thanksgiving. We went down to Houston to visit various households of my family and extended family. It made for quite a long day (we didn’t get home until almost midnight) but it’s always nice to see family (especially for those who had yet to see the big ol’ belly we brought with us).

It’s just my opinion (and I know I’m biased) but I think Kasi just keeps looking better and better the farther she gets into pregnancy! Quite a difference a couple of months makes since the last photo I posted (back when Kasi thought she was just huge).

Oh yeah, we had our first child birthing class earlier this evening. I’m sure we’ll write up something a little more about it soon, but suffice to say that the more I learn about this whole pregnancy thing, the more I realize that I owe Kasi big-time. The concept of “10 centimeters dilated” has now taken on a whole new meaning to me.

View all the new photos at Flickr, or check out this nifty slideshow:

While we men may not be able to fully comprehend or appreciate everything that you women go through during pregnancy, I certainly came about as close as I ever will on Saturday night. I woke up around 3am to some serious rumbling going on in my plumbing. That was shortly followed by chills and violent shaking. After an hour or so, my stomach was bloated and twisted into a knot. The writing was on the wall. I was in that horrible purgatory where you know exactly what’s coming next, and though you dread it, you can’t wait to just-get-it-over-with-already…

In meteorology, storms are categorized by their severity. 10-year storms drop so much rain that they only occur about once per decade on average. I believe the same applies to throwing up. Sure, we’ve all been sick many times before. Maybe we’ve had a bit too much to drink, or eaten some bad breakfast lasagna. But sometimes, on very rare occasions, you throw up so violently that you purge every molecule of liquid from your body. Your stomach rejects, not just the food you ate, but the very concept of food itself.

In my 36 years, this was my third such vomit. Here, for your enjoyment, is my complete list — as you can see, I’m right on schedule so far:

• 1982: Barbeque chicken
• 1996: Grilled chicken sandwich and fries (from the bowling alley)
• 2008: Conan’s deep pan pepperoni pizza

I pray to all that is holy that I never live long enough to experience a 100-year vomit.

So to all you moms and pregnant women, I realize that this was merely a brief shadow of everything that you go through in 9 months, and that one night of misery cannot compete with month after month of constant nausea, weight gain and all the rest. Just know that in one tiny way, on one special evening, I was right there with you.

You are hereby officially on notice.

You sent one of your brave/dumb little buddies out into the middle of the road the other night to wait for Kasi and me to come home.  Driving around the bend, at night, we saw the little idiot only at the last second.  I slammed on the brakes and brought the car to a halt within a couple of feet of making an instant squirrelcake.  Your little moron buddy sat there the entire time like a little statue, showing no fear and no emotion.  Only after the car had completely stopped did he turn, look me in the eye (I’m pretty sure he smirked) and then ran off into the night.

This is your first and last warning.

From now until February, I’m carrying a pregnant woman in the car, and she did not appreciate the sudden stop.  Seat belts apparently (or so I am told) do not feel very good wrapped around a pregnant belly during rapid deceleration.  After February, we’ll have a little baby in the car, who I’m sure will be even less tolerant of sudden brake-slamming.

The next time one of you little rodents decides to test me like that, I assure you, you will lose. In fact, I would watch your furry little backs from here on out. I might just decide to start driving through yards to make an example out of a few of you…

I’m really going to do something with these three months…I’m gonna read a book. From beginning to end. In that order…This is gonna be my time. Time to taste the fruits and let the juices drip down my chin. I proclaim this: The Summer of George!

—George Costanza

In early 2007, I cofounded the company Ext JS, LLC.  Since then, the company has done very well and expanded quite a bit (and continues to do so).  It’s also been a lot of fun (most of the time), and quite a lot of work.  For the past year or so, my typical daily schedule has gone something like this:

• 11am: Wake up
• 11:01am: Start working
• 6:30pm: Dinner/family time
• 10:30pm: Back to work
• 4am: Bedtime

Before the Sprout came along, this was more or less OK.  I like working at night, Kasi likes having a king-size bed all to herself.

In discussing our plans for 2009, Kasi and I decided that (ideally) we would want to raise the Sprout at home, rather than sending her off to daycare (at least for the first year or two).  Kasi loves her job and has always planned to go back.  In my case, while I do enjoy what I do, I definitely have the most career flexibility, and I can also do everything I need to from home.  Not that I’ll have time to do any work next year, but you know, in theory.

So as of today, I am officially done with Ext and am going to be spending my time working on the house, preparing the Sprout’s living quarters, experimenting with new recipes…Oh, and I just bought Guitar Hero: World Tour this weekend, so I’m sure there will be a little of that going on too.

I’m guessing that after February I’ll have a lot more to say on the subject of being a stay-at-home-dad, but for now, here’s a short video that perfectly sums up my current feelings:

Brian summed up the first trimester in his post. I was exhausted and nauseous pretty much 24/7 but that is thankfully over and now we are on to the second trimester. So far so good. I’m not exhausted anymore but more tired than I was pre-pregnancy. I still have the super sniffer which has caused some unpleasantness. For example, if I smell anything that comes out of our dogs’ or cats’ bodies, it will send me running to the nearest sink, toilet, garbage can, bush in our yard (or someone else’s yard) to dry heave for several minutes. As sweet as he is, Brian thinks this is hilarious. I could do without it. I have some aches and pains and sleeping is becoming more difficult since my belly is growing. Speaking of growing, we all know that things get bigger during pregnancy. I’m talking about the obvious stuff. What has been alarming for me is the rate at which my butt is growing. (Ok, I’ve said it and now it is out there. It should go without saying but no one else can comment on this, got it? Brian has taught me how to delete comments.) I had no idea this was among the categories of things that would grow. I am truly alarmed by this phenomenon. What purpose could a huge butt serve for the birthing process? I see lots of very pregnant women and I have never thought to myself “Wow, her butt is huge.” So am I the only one?

The best thing about the second trimester has been that I have been able to feel Sprout kicking. At first I wasn’t sure what it was and then I could only feel little kicks and such but now I feel all kinds of moving around. It is incredible. Brian can also feel some of the harder kicks/punches. Truly amazing.

Ok, that’s all for now. Tune in for more later. I’m sure I will have something to complain about or freak out about in the coming weeks.

Our first official blog post! Exciting! As you may know, Kasi and I are expecting a li’l sprout, due around February 20th, 2009. As of today, that puts us right around the halfway point, 4.5 months or so to go. A lot has happened so far, so let’s get caught up-to-date, shall we?

We started talking about becoming parents last fall and decided we’d start trying to get serious about the whole “kid thing” at the start of the year. A few months went by with some effort in that area, but nothing was happening. Kasi decided to get all scientific on us, and sure enough after another month or so we hit pay dirt in May. In all seriousness, if you are considering pregnancy, you should check that site out. It’s basically “Getting Knocked Up for Dummies” — can’t miss. Anyhoo…

After several extremely vociferous (and independent) recommendations, we made an appointment with Dr. Marco Uribe at Austin Area OBGYN. We had heard stories like a woman who lived out of state, but traveled back to Austin JUST to have her babies delivered by Dr. Uribe. After our first appointment, we were sold (we’ve now met with him several times, and have enjoyed each meeting). He really is a fantastic doctor — impeccable bedside manner, extremely patient, very nice guy. And just as important is the office staff. We’ve been told that over the course of the pregnancy you’ll deal with the nurse practitioner and other staff more than the doc, and they are also an excellent crew. Friendliest medical office staff I’ve ever dealt with for sure. Highly recommended.

I guess Kasi can add more detail if she wants, but from everything I’ve heard, I don’t think her first trimester was all that bad. She was definitely wiped out a lot and certain smells started triggering a nauseous reflex, but she never had morning sickness or any of the nastier first trimester symptoms many people describe.

After the 16 week check-up they were pretty confident that the sprout was a girl, but it was officially confirmed this week at the 20 week check-up. Baby Girl Moeskau! Kasi and I went today and picked out some baby clothes and a bassinet so that we can start getting into the baby mood.

At this point, Kasi is feeling pretty good. Still tired at times, and of course she’s a lot hungrier than she ever used to be since she’s feeding an extra mouth. But all in all, everything’s going great. I know, easy for me to say. I have the easy job at this point.

Oh, and before you ask, let me tell you the answer. No, we do not have a name picked out yet. But trust me, you’ll be the first to know. Right around February 20th.

There will be much more to come. Please use the “subscribe” link at the top-right if you’d like to stay updated as we make new posts. We also have a photostream on Flickr that you can follow as we post new photos. Flickr also has RSS subscription options at the bottom of the page if you’d like to be notified when we post new photos there. We’ll of course let you know here on the blog when photos are posted, or when anything else that’s interesting happens.

If you have any words of wisdom for us on making it through the last 4 months of pregnancy, please comment below. Luckily we have many friends who’ve been there and done that, so we’re trying to soak up as much advice as we can.