Travelling with Baby--Our First International Trip with August

Well, we made it to Ireland and back in one piece, and now a week later we are headed to NYC. Yes, we are crazy.

Everything went better than we could have hoped for; August slept really well during the day which let Paul and I see the sights, and he slept a lot in the car, which was great as we were able to get in several long car trips.

However, August thought the airplane ride, both going and coming, was just too fascinating to miss and he was mostly awake during the flights (2 hrs. to LAX, 10 hours direct from LAX to Dublin).

At the airport:


Aer Lingus' idea of an in-flight bassinet is a cardboard box with pillows on the bottom of it. I am not exaggerating. So Paul and I wondered: what if you spend $4000 on a business class seat? Do you still get a cardboard box?


K. and E.'s wedding was beautiful and romantic, and August held out from 1:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. (the wedding didn't really wrap up until 3 a.m. but there was no way any of us could have gone that long).






At the Guinness factory:

Stone circle ruins on Sheep's Head Peninsula:


Mizen Head, furthest SW point in Ireland:

Time Flies

Hard to believe August is almost 9 weeks old already!

We are all leaving for Ireland this coming week for 12 days and will have loads of photos to post when we get back.

He is growing really fast and already weighs 13 lbs., much to our surprise (then again, he is consistently hungry so there you have it).

Check back soon for more photos and a report back from our first big trip with him!

We have a boy! I am no longer pregnant! Woohoo!

August Arthur was born at 5:08 a.m on August 12, 2007 after nearly 3 days of being induced. He must have been pretty comfy inside as he just didn't want to come out. Actually, August was in fetal distress, so our birth plan of having a natural labor and water birth went right out the window. The midwives tried every possible method of avoiding a C-section but August was unable to tolerate the induction any longer as his heart rate was dropping with every contraction. Needless to say, we are thrilled to finally meet him and that he is a very healthy baby.

Week 41, also known as Someday I Will See My Toes Again

Well, according to the midwife, all systems are go according to how my body is doing and where the baby is positioned. So why am I still here, you ask? Good question. As my friend who texted back to me put it, "Good Christ, what a lazy baby you have! :)"

This is my last week of keeping all fingers and toes crossed in regards to hoping labor starts on its own as opposed to going in for an induction a week from today. 42 weeks is the longest they (the midwives) feel I should go before the baby is at risk for decreased oxygen and nutrients.

Almost at week 39!

We made it out to Cannon Beach for one last getaway before Pinky arrives. Luck was on our side and we had two days of stunningly beautiful weather. Paul surprised me with getting pretty much the best room in the whole hotel, as you can see from the photo here. We could see the ocean from bed, it was really amazing.

All is well, pregnancy-wise--it continues to be relatively easy, aside from trying to get comfortable while sleeping and experiencing round ligament pain every day. At our last midwife visit this week there was some concern with Pinky's heart rate and we were asked to eat lunch and come back in 30 minutes for fetal monitoring and an ultrasound to measure the amniotic fluid. Luckily all was well above normal so that was a huge relief. The midwife is guessing Pinky weighs about 6 lbs. and that I will go into labor early. Both would be fine by me, especially if the kid has a pin-head and very narrow shoulders :)

The obligatory pregnant-woman-eating-an-ice-cream-cone shot:



The view from below, looking up:



Yes, I am making a doofy face on purpose: