so, what’s your story? i’m a writer, a reader, a tattooed liberal, a wino. married to a navy pilot who had to take an office job at the naval academy in order for our son who doesn’t eat to receive proper pediatric care. jackson has cyclic vomiting; and after being allergic to my breast milk and having horrible reflux, he taught himself not to eat.

and the title? ah yes, “mybottlesup” came from my husband. brilliant in my mind since our son a) refused my boob and then his bottle, and b) drove me to a more intimate relationship with my wine bottle. “mybottlesup” also stands for how my time is up, i am fed up, and i’ve had it up (to here).

are you a raging alcoholic? raging? maybe. alcoholic? nope… and i am not condoning alcoholism as a way to cope with life once you have a baby. i’m just saying that some days i find that it helps to turn the wine bottle up and pour myself a glass.

CHEERS!!!

we’re at the final countdown!!! 10 days until the little man joins us and we are beside ourselves with excitement these days. as much as this seems unreal to think that paul and i are so close to becoming parents, the reality of things creeps in here and there. i found myself marking days off my calendar this week, and on saturday and sunday of next week i wrote “LAST BABY-LESS WEEKEND EVER” in big bold letters. that certainly gave us a reality check. i find myself asking paul, “well, what should we do?? i feel like we need to go do something that we won’t be able to do once the baby arrives.” then of course reality creeps back in and paul does landscaping for the majority of the day. ha!!! it’s great though… the moments of sheer excitement (mixed with a little bit of panic i think) and the moments of logic and reality hitting us, saying, “it won’t be long now…”

i have gotten a burst of energy within the last week that has been absolutely wonderful. a few weeks ago, i found myself having 1 good day (filled with errand running and spontaneous energy) followed by 2 days of couch-recooperation. this past week i have felt so great though, very energized, somewhat rested (though i’m hardly sleeping), and really able to enjoy each day to the fullest. yesterday in target, the cashier asked me when i was due, and when i told her “in 11 days,” she said “ohmygosh, you need to get out of here and get in bed before that baby falls out in the parking lot!!!” i cracked up but then realized that she was serious and thinking that i really needed to be bed-ridden at this point in time. this final burst of energy when i am absolutely enormous has been nice though. let’s hope it continues through next week too.

the little man had an estimated fetal weight check this week… incase you haven’t yet heard, this porker of our’s weighed in at 8 lbs 11 oz on wednesday. ha!!!! no wonder his japanese ninja kicks hurt me so much. once paul and i got over the initial shock of how big this baby will be, we decided to have some fun and started a pool with each of our families to see what the birth weight will be. there are some great guesses from low-ballers coming in with a little over 9 lbs (which he could very well be right now) to high-ballers at well over 10 lbs. i can’t help but wonder if paul’s son will beat him out, since paul was 10 lb 5 oz at birth. we’ll know soon enough, i suppose.

paul is doing well and has one week of class left. yay!!! i know the alarm clock has become his sworn enemy over the last 2 weeks, going off every morning at 4:45. selfishly, i have been so glad to have him home in the early afternoons though. it’s really allowed us some down-time together that we don’t get with his regular work schedule. he’s been such a help to me especially lately… whether it’s been fork-lifting me off the couch, emptying the dishwasher because i can’t bend that far anymore, taking care of the dog, grabbing my cell phone when it rings in the other room and i can’t get to it in time… he’s been great. i was just asking him if he thought he would rub my belly out of habit once the baby is born. he said “nah, i’ll have the little man to hold and rub on.” i thought that was cute.

we see dr. thomas on tuesday afternoon and hope to get through one last week of no action. i’ll be sure to post after that visit and let everyone know what’s going on. until then, here’s a pic of me today at 38 weeks, sporting a new haircut, ready to enjoy the summer with our baby!!!

alrighty, we had our doctor’s appointment today, complete with my first internal exam and i am pleased to report that i have next to nothing to report. ha!!! since we told you our definitive news about the c-section being scheduled, people have asked “what if you go into labor before the 22nd?” well today’s internal exam confirmed that “the gate is still closed” (to borrow my cousin kim’s words) and the little man is still cookin’. i have not begun to dilate, which was good and reassuring for me to hear. the baby has started to drop in the last few days, but is not what my doctor considers to be “fully engaged” in the pelvis. my interpretation of this is that the little man is slowly on the move, as i am now technically “full term” in the pregnancy, but in no rush (he takes after his daddy already). hahaha…. all jokes aside, my blood pressure was good, my weight has leveled out leaving me at 22 lbs gained, and the baby’s heart rate was on par as well. my fundal height (the measurement of the “bump” that has turned into the mountain) is measuring large, surprise surprise, and is now a running joke between paul and i and my doctor. the height should correspond with my gestational age, meaning that at 37 weeks right now, my mountain should be measuring 37 cm, but i measured in today at 39 and a quarter cm. nice….. the three of us just laugh each time that dr. thomas measures me. needless to say, the c-section is a very good idea. paul was with me and able to ask the doctor some good recovery-based questions for his own knowledge. i think he’s trying to get a good idea of what he needs to be expecting of himself in terms of help when we come home, caring for me and a new baby. i will see the doctor again in a week and will keep you posted, hopefully again with no big news. it won’t be long now……..

hi everyone! i find myself posting constantly now that the days are dwindling down…. there seems to be news to update everyone on all the time. we will have even more news tomorrow (monday) since i have a doctor’s appointment, and i will be sure to post again so that everyone knows what’s going on in the little man’s world. thank you again for your constant support. it’s awesome!

last night paul and i had a “family” shower (which is what all of the attached pictures are from). for those of you who don’t know, our “family” consists of paul’s naval academy roommates and dear friends (there are about 6 of them) as well as their wives. the funny thing about the wives is that within this group of us, we have 3 wives (myself included) who have been with our now husbands since we were freshman in college (some of us even before that), and the other wives started dating their now husbands either while the guys were at the academy, or shortly there after. needless to say, this dear group of friends has certainly become it’s own “family” in a sense, and we have referred to ourselves as that for years now. this entire group has come through jacksonville in the 3 years that we have been here, and with the exception of one couple, we are all together, gathering for “family dinner” at some point during each weekend…. you can imagine what things are like for us during football season. we have been through it all with each other, from the very first days of plebe year for the guys, to long distance relationships through college, parties with each other, crazy trips with each other, all of our weddings (with one more coming this october), the birth of the first “family” child miss lily (who is pictured)… and now more births on the way.

with all of that being said, “the family” (why do i feel mobster-esque when i say that?) wanted to have a baby shower for paul, myself, and the little man. being that i am not the best when it comes to showers, sarah and her husband phil (our gracious hosts) promised that it would basically be a low-key “family” dinner plus a few gifts. it was perfect!!!! we all shared dinner together (which included baked macaroni and cheese… my FAVORITE pregnant food), sat around sharing crazy stories of each other, and opened some very thoughtful gifts. it was a great night and paul and i feel so thankful for the time that we have with this amazing group of friends.

so, enjoy the pictures of our “family” and i will post another update tomorrow evening, after our doctor’s appointment. keep the thoughts and prayers comin!!!

ps- if you can’t tell from the pictures, miss lil is the queen and steals the show…. ok, we all totally give it to her willingly.

19 days and counting!!!! ohmygosh!!!! i can hardly contain my excitement. i know i just posted a couple of days ago, but paul and i have been getting so many messages and emails from dear friends and family, letting us know that we are in their thoughts and prayers. it’s so awesome to know that so many wonderful people are thinking of us during this time. at this moment, paul is exhausted from work (he’s in a class for the next two weeks that begins at 5 every morning) and my body is completely worn out and tired. (i know this is nothing like the exhaustion that our little man will soon bring… ha!!!) but sweet friends, like mom’s friend susan, who send us messages like the one that i am attaching in this post, totally renew our energy and keep us focused on the little bundle that we will be bringing home in 19 short days. so THANK YOU for all of your kindness!!! enjoy today’s post….

A newborn’s conversation with God…. Watch the baby’s eyes.

A baby asked Father, ‘They tell me you are sending me to earth tomorrow, but how am I going to live there being so small and helpless?’ God said, ‘Your angel will be waiting for you and will take care of you.’

The child further inquired, ‘But tell me, here in heaven I don’t have to do anything but sing and smile to be happy.’ God said, ‘Your angel will sing for you and will also smile for you. And you will feel your angel’s love and be very happy.’

Again the child asked, ‘And how am I going to be able to understand when people talk to me if I don’t know the language?’ God said, ‘Your angel will tell you the most beautiful and sweet words you will ever hear, and with much patience and care, your angel will teach you how to speak.’
‘Who will protect me?’ God said, ‘Your angel will defend you even if it means risking her life.’

‘But I will always be sad because I will not see you anymore.’ God said, ‘Your angel will always talk to you about Me and will teach you the way to come back to Me, even though I will always be next to you.’

At that moment there was much peace in Heaven, but voices from Earth could be heard and the child hurriedly asked, ‘Father, if I am to leave now, please tell me my angel’s name.’

God said, ‘You will simply call her, ‘Mom.’