Before there was Aerya...There was Critter.

Here I am, sitting anxiously at our first official baby visit at the Doctor's on Nov. 21 '05. We would be about 12 weeks along. I can't get over how young I look! Apparently Aerya has aged me about 10 years! And I am so going back to that hair style!

Ah yes, this was the first day I could no longer fit into my regular pants. An exciting, yet scary day. Nov. 29 '05.

We of course bought tons of stuff for Critter very early on. We were SO EXCITED! Derek managed to try out just about everything at least once. We even dressed Magic up in the clothes we'd bought. Dec. 26 '05

On Jan. 5 '06 we had our first of three ultrasounds. We did see the 3D ultrasound which was neat, but we were completely freaked out with the 3D pic. The regular ultrasound pic was great. I think she was sucking her thumb. The technician told us that we had a 60% chance of having a girl. Those are not good betting odds! We both desperately wanted a girl (and both felt it was a girl) so we called Critter a 'he' so as not to jinx it.

Here we go, a nice belly shot on Jan. 17 '06. We were about 4 1/2 - 5 months along. I loved that shirt and was sortof able to wear it until Aerya was born (and a bit afterwards. Hmm, well, yeah.)

Derek tried his hand at diapering on Mar. 19 and I was a little concerned about how little experience he had. I'd babysat tons of kids, and I just assumed everyone knew sortof what to do. Not always the case as it turns out! Derek though is the most amazing hands on Daddy I've ever seen. There was nothing he couldn't do, and in the first couple of months when I was so ill, it was Derek who could feed her the best, and actually get her to go to sleep. However, once I started to get well, and was nursing Aerya, I quickly surpassed him as the favorite. Though I'm pretty sure the initial bond was just with my mammory accessories!


On Mar. 19 we also put together Aerya's furniture and decorated her room. We were about 6 1/2 months along. I was pretty proud of my nesting instincts - while off work I sewed curtains, sheets and change pads and made Aerya a sensory blanket. I did intend to make one for my friend's baby's but that darn instinct went away really quickly and I haven't been at the sewing machine since.

At the end of March, just before we started the 8th month, Derek, Magic, Critter and I had some great pictures taken. I'm so glad we did it as it's really hard to remember what I looked like and how it felt to be pregnant. Plus, so often the attention is (rightfully so) focused on the Mother and Daddy gets forgotten a bit. These are some that will always cherish.

Here's another shot with my favorite shirt about 1 1/2 months later. You'll notice I'm filling it out a bit better there.

On April 8 '06 we bought our first stroller (of many as it turns out) and Derek of course had to give it a trial run. Pooh seemed to enjoy it.

The end is in sight! On April 28 Derek was at one of my checkups and the midwife let him use the dopler to hear what Critter was up to. It was mostly just jumping on Mama's bladder and sleeping on my sciatic nerve.

This was such a fun shot! It was May 13, at my shower and I was just into my 9th month of pregnancy.
Belinda was due about 6 days after me, but look at how differently we were carrying our babies. At a glance like this, most people would think we were carrying different sexed babies, but we both have girls.
Nikki was about 5 months behind me and Monica was due about 6 weeks after that.

Oh yes, there I was the morning of June 8 '06 enjoying my morning pie. Actually, I almost never have pie but what a great pregnancy shot. I was about 1 week overdue so needless to say we had gotten a little desperate. Okay, I was desperate! Every old wives tale you've ever heard about bringing on labour, we tried. EVERY one of them. The absolute worst was the castor oil. Not only did it not work, but it was without a doubt the MOST DISGUSTING thing I've ever put in my mouth. It gets worse, but I'll spare you the other details.
I'd pretty much given up on Aerya ever appearing and had a massage scheduled for that evening. We got home afterwards at about 7:45pm and as soon as I sat down, my water broke. If you've ever wondered if you'll know when your water breaks, believe me, you will.
We went to the hospital within the next hour because Critter seemed just as anxious as I was to be done with this part.
However, nothing more happended FOREVER (other than agonizing contractions of course). I was going to be the brave, natural birther, in the tub with massages and my midwife, but I pinched a nurve (or 10) and gave into the epidural. AHHHHHH, sweet relief! I could walk around, I was in no pain, I was laughing and talking - it was fantastic.
The next pic was taken about 20 hours into labour. I'm still pain free, so I'm still smiling. They'd decided they had done all they could to hurry Critter up and they were starting to get worried, so we were transfered to the Sturgeon (by ambulance - so cool!) and I was excited to go. Then nothing more, nothing more, still nothing more... And finally by 12:08 am on June 10 '06 Aerya was born! It may have taken forever, but she was more than worth the wait!