More rock

According to the expectant father book I'm reading (called "The Expectant Father" oddly enough) the baby is now very much capable of hearing sounds from the outside world. These start off as low-frequencies and as the baby develops it picks up higher and higher frequencies.

It therefore seemed like a good time to get our hands on one of the Rockabye CDs. These awesome CDs feature lullaby versions of rock songs. Each album focuses on one specific band which range from the awful (The Eagles) to the heavy (Metallica) to classic rock (AC/DC) to modern (Coldplay) to stuff which is trippy enough to pass as potential lullaby music in the first place (I'm looking at you Pink Floyd). K was the first one to pull the trigger with the Led Zeppelin disc, but I won't be far behind, because I want our baby to be exposed to Tool as soon as possible, albeit sans lyrics - the kid can wait a few more years before hearing a band telling junkies to go f*** themselves!

Kick punch

The baby is stirring. Yesterday K reported that the movement she'd been feeling had transitioned from being small pops and squirming to full on kicks. I consider this to be kind of awesome.

I played a show with my band Heathrow last night, and K came out. Apparently the baby can now react to external noises, so she figured hearing Dad rock out would be a good thing for it. Who am I to argue...?

The second labor pain workshop

Tuesday night we went back to Alta Bates for the second labor pain workshop. This one focused on medications and was the main reason we wanted to do these classes. We were looking for any reason to *not* go for a natural childbirth.

The class was taught by an obstetric anaesthesiologist who works at Alta Bates. We knew up front that he would be "pro" medication, since that's his job, and of course he's going to feel it is safe. Our concerns were mainly around the phenomenon of "epidural fever", the ability to deliver in non-lying-down positions, and the risks associated with narcotic pain meds.

Although we got plenty of chance to ask questions, we walked away feeling as though the risks had been glossed over. He portrayed epidural fever as "a slight elevation in body temperature" which is contrary to what K had heard from an acquaintance, whose temperature had gone so high that the baby had literally had to be vacuumed out with a special tool.

We did have one question answered though, which is "is there enough compelling evidence to dissuade us from pursuing natural childbirth" and the answer was an unequivocal "NO".

18-week ultrasound

Yesterday was our second big ultrasound and the baby got a very thorough examination. The good news is that everything looks great. There were no obvious spinal issues (spina bifida, which is an opening in the spinal column would be the biggest worry at this point), and the brain, heart, kidneys and bladder all looked good. The baby's size was within normal range, and all fingers and toes were present and correct. Physical abnormalities such as club foot and cleft palate were also not present. All in all, a great success.

On the "host" side of things, K was very reassured to find out that her cervix was nice and long, which banished any fears of premature birth caused by an "incompetent cervix". This worry had stayed with her since the bleeding issues of the first trimester, so she was really, really happy to get this great news.

And now for some snapshots!

Breathe

We went to the first of two Labor Pain Management classes at Alta Bates Hospital in Berkeley on Tuesday night. Some people might think this is a bit early for all that, but it will help us decide what do in terms of the birth plan, and that in itself will inform what kind of birthing class we go to. You need to know different stuff if you're doing a natural birth versus one with an epidural.

After a fraught drive over in which I was grumpy about the traffic, followed by a rushed and unpleasant burrito, the class started. The instructor was great - she'd been an OB nurse for 30-something years and clearly had seen and done it all. We learned about the phases of labor and breathing exercises to cope with each. I'm sure we'll go over it all again in the real birthing class, but it was nice to start thinking about. Our real area of interest is with next week's class in which an anaesthesiologist will talk about medication options. For example, not many people know that there are FIVE types of epidural! Crazy...

Where beer and pregnancy converge

That's scandalous! Beer and pregnancy never converge! Yes they do actually. We're brewing a very special beer that will be ready right around the time the baby arrives. Beers that take that long to age are usually what the beeristi call "high gravity" which is a euphamism for "they will get you very drunk very quickly". In our case, we've gone for a Belgian Dubbel. It took so much malt, we needed to use a colander instead of the usual cheesecloth bag.

This idea came from K's co-worker who did a sobriety-busting Imperial IPA. She noted that for the first half hour after the baby arrives, you've got free rein to drink booze, so they wanted something very special for that, rather than your typical Cook's "champagne" or if you're my brother at the arrival of our niece last year, a tallboy of Budweiser.

All caught up

I think I've managed to capture the significant points of the process so far. Since the grand announcement in mid-March, a few additional notable things have happened:

• K is now "showing" - this is very exciting indeed, and the transition to maternity clothing is nearly complete (although a "belly band" allows existing wardrobe to stay in the rotation a bit longer).
  
• People have given us stuff. So far, we've been given clothes and a crib. We are not too proud to accept stuff, in fact we positively embrace the concept. Baby stuff is used for such a short period of time, and generally stays in pretty good condition, so if we can cut down on consumption (something we strive for everyday anyway) then that's a good thing. We'd rather spend money on things like a 529 account for the kid's college education, or saving for a downpayment on a house.
• K has had a cold for the last ten days. Since cold medication is not allowed for the pregnant laydeez, she's having difficulty getting rid of it. The weakened immune system that comes with pregnancy also doesn't help. So the best she can do is fill a bowl with boiling water and menthol or peppermint and breathe in the steam with a towel over her head.
• We've booked two evening classes that cover pain management. They're free from Alta Bates hospital in Berkeley. Hopefully they'll help guide us as to what kind of birth to go for. Right now, a natural, non-anaesthetized birth in a hospital is the front-runner.
• Names are being discussed, but won't be shared with anyone. Although the biggest issue is the last name since neither of us changed that when we got hitched last year.
• We had brunch with some good friends who have a 3-month-old. They gave us loads of amazing advice, but we learned that it is easy to get overwhelmed when those who have gone through the process try to share info with you.
• Our friends C&C had their baby, a lovely little girl. Everything went smoothly and they're well into the rhythm of looking after a newborn now. She was born at 3am on a Sunday, and we swung by to give them a little support at 5am. All was quiet and serene and they were seemed to be a mixture of overjoyed, content, exhausted and bemused. It was a really interesting process to be a part of and a kind of preview too.
  

That's it! From this point forwards, posts will be "as they happen" as opposed to retrospective.