It is now official....

As of 8:41pm, I've passed my record for the longest I've ever been pregnant. Both Caroline and Sam were born at 37w4days and that is today. Woo hoo! Here's to another 10 days of pregnancy and then welcoming Baby Nate...

37 week appt and now it's my turn....

Went to the OB today for my 37 week check. I am still dilated to 1cm. No change there. Baby's heartrate was 155bpm, which is normal. BP is fine. She will see me again next Friday. Because I've not been feeling well and told her that my throat was bothering me, she did a rapid strep test. It came out negative, but because I, as she put it, "look like cr*p", she gave me an antibiotic to get whatever this is out of my system. Jason is sick, too, so it looks like we've been passing it around our house for about a month. He's got the same crud that Sam had last week. We've been taking turns sleeping in the recliner, so needless to say, between the 2 of us, we haven't gotten much sleep this week. I am hoping we can get some rest after Caroline's soccer game this weekend. We need to get well before we have a new baby in the house. Here's to hoping all these sickies go away soon and for a VERY long time!!

After my appointment, I went to a local spa and got a prenatal massage. I've earned it and it was very nice! Sam got to go play at Cameron's house today after school so I could do it. He and Cam have such a great time together that he cries when I get there to pick him up. It's such a good thing he has (and I have) such good friends here :)

Until next time....

Full term today....

This was in my weekly newsletter today....

Your baby is full-term! This means that if your baby arrives now, his lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb.

WOO HOO! We only have 14 more days until our scheduled day for Nate to join us. We (read: ME) are getting things together. The car seat is going into the van this week. I have washed all the clothes. I have packed for the hospital. Plans are starting the shape up for the "big kids" for while I'm in the hospital. The kids are getting antsy. They've had enough of this leading up to his birth, let's just get it on!!

Until next time.....

Let the holiday season begin.....

These little delectable pieces of heaven are now on the shelves of your local grocery store. I have 2 boxes in my pantry as you read this. Let the holidays commence!

Caroline says to hide them from Poppa and Nana. She is sure they would eat them all up!

Until next time...

A Sad Day for Houston

Mac the Elephant has died. He lived only a short 2 years. We remember when he was born here and how the zoo had a huge birthday party for him last year when he turned one.

Here's the post on the Houston Zoo website...

Houston Zoo Mourns Passing of Beloved Elephant Mac

Mac, the Houston Zoo’s 2 year old Asian elephant whose mischievous nature endeared him to thousands of Zoo guests died last night following a brief struggle with the elephant herpesvirus. The entire Zoo staff is devastated. It’s difficult to put into words and describe the attachment that has developed over the past two years. This is a terrible loss especially for the elephant keepers and veterinary medical staff who cared for Mac during his time with us.
We are also aware how important Mac has become to our family of Members, Donors, Volunteers, Guests and the entire Houston community and we know that you share in our grief. Thank you to everyone who has supported the Houston Zoo and shown an amazing amount of affection for Mac in his two years at the Houston Zoo.

Houston Zoo elephant keepers alerted the Zoo’s veterinarians Sunday morning when they saw indications that Mac was exhibiting initial symptoms of elephant herpesvirus. Our keepers perform regular inspections of all our elephants and are trained to look for indications such as loss of appetite, lethargy, and swelling in certain areas of the head.

The Zoo’s veterinary medical team immediately began administering Famciclovir, an antiviral medication that has shown some limited success in past elephant herpes cases. “Veterinarians administered two doses of Famciclovir over a period of about 7 hours. The early indications were encouraging. Mac’s appetite rallied and he took some water. Despite the early intervention and the best efforts of the Zoo’s keepers and veterinary staff, Mac passed away at approximately 8:30 last night with his mother Shanti and his Aunt Methai at his side. The keepers and vet staff gave Shanti and Methai time alone to mourn Mac’s death. A necropsy, an animal autopsy, will be conducted at the state veterinary diagnostic lab at Texas A&M University. The results will not be known for several weeks.

Elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV) is a recent discovery. The virus was identified in 1995 by researchers at the Smithsonian National Zoo and Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Many animals and humans carry herpesviruses throughout their lives and never become sick. For reasons not fully understood, herpesviruses can come out of latency and circulate through the bloodstream. Most elephants are able to fight the virus and survive when it comes out of latency. Calves appear to be most susceptible to the virus after they have been weaned.
Herpesviruses are not limited to elephants in zoos; herpesviruses are found in wild elephants. In fact, wild elephants in Asia have died from EEHV. The Houston Zoo, the AZA, the International Elephant Foundation and other zoos and institutions are supporting the effort of the National Elephant Herpesvirus Laboratory at the Smithsonian National Zoo on testing and treatment for the disease that will contribute to the long-term survival of the species in both zoo and wild populations.

There is no cure for herpesvirus in animals or humans. It is only when an elephant is demonstrating clinical illness that zoos are able to detect the EEHV virus in blood or tissue. There is not yet a direct test to detect elephant herpes virus in a healthy animal with a latent (hidden) infection.

Mac was born October 1, 2006 at the Houston Zoo and set a birth weight record for Asian elephants – 384 pounds. Playful, intelligent, curious and mischievous, Mac quickly became a favorite of Zoo guests and staff alike. Mac enjoyed interacting with his keepers and proved to be a good student, learning more than 30 “behaviors,” activities that provided exercise for him and gave his keepers the tools they needed to care for him.

We understand that Mac’s passing will have a significant impact on our entire Houston Zoo family and we share in your grief. Thank you for your love and support of Mac, and the Houston Zoo elephant family.

Godspeed, Mac, godspeed.

Ultrasound Pictures

This is a picture of Nathaniel's foot. Check out that big toe!


This is such a cool picture of Nate's hair. See the sticky-uppy parts? That's his hair!! The shot is of the back of his head. Look at that hair!!Technology is so awesome.



Until next time....

Whew! What a day!

I had my 36 week appointment with the OB this morning followed by an ultrasound by the High Risk dr. The ultrasound was to check on the placenta due to Sam's quick delivery being because of a placental abruption. I am still at 1cm dilated, heartbeat is fine, blood pressure is fine, weight is fine. I had 45 minutes in-between the time that appointment was over and the u/s appointment. So, I left and went to get a bite to eat and a drink. As I was going back into the building, I missed the step and fell tummy first into the concrete. I tried to break my fall with my hands but the tummy hit first. Some very nice ladies in the parking lot saw me and helped me up. My knees are all scratched up, I look like a 7 year old with skinned knees. It's lovely. I get upstairs to the dr. office, wait for my appointment. I tell the u/s tech what just happened and she does a VERY thorough ultrasound to make sure everything is okay. The placenta looks good, baby Nate looks great. I could see almost everything. He has hair on his head!! It was way too cool. His estimated current weight is 6lbs, 3 oz. There is a +/- factor to this, but that is about right based on what Caroline and Sam weighed at 37weeks 4 days. Nate has chubby cheeks, a nice little booty on him, and he is very much still a HE! After the very thorough u/s, the High Risk dr. tells me to wait and he'll write the report for me to take back over to my OB. He wants me to let them know about the fall. At this point, I am feeling fine. Nate is moving, no contractions or bleeding or extra fluid. So I wait for his report and then walk across the waiting room to the OB's office. Talk to the nurse, who wants to talk to the dr. Nurse comes back, Dr wants me to be monitored to make sure everything is fine. They take me to a room with recliners and machines in it. I get strapped with the 2 monitors - one for contractions, one for heartbeat. I am also given a "Jeopardy" button to push everytime I felt movement. (I am now told that this is referred to as a NST - Non-stress test) Nate was doing fine at first, he moved and his heartrate was fine, with no contractions. Then he decided to take a nap. Heartrate was great just didn't want to move around. Dr. comes in and gives me juice and a glass of ice cold water. I drank that and then that got him going. After all this drama, everything is fine. I am sore, but Nate is fine. Dr. wants me to take it easy for the next few weeks. It's getting really close and I'm to slow down a little bit so as to enjoy the last few weeks of this pregnancy - only 18 more days! We were supposed to attend some things this weekend that we are just going to have to miss. Next weekend, we have Caroline's last soccer game, her soccer team party, and yet another birthday party to attend. WHEW! Then we are taking it easy and preparing for Baby Nate to join us! I'm looking forward to a quiet weekend with my kiddos after all this. It's soon going to be mass chaos at the Babin house :)

In addition to all this, I got a phone call in the middle of it that my van was ready to be picked up but that they needed my key fob to re-program it. I've been without "Tina" for a week and have been driving a Toyota Rav4. When you go from driving a fully loaded mini-van to a bottom-of-the-line Rav4, you really miss it! After a few mishaps later, I finally got my van back this afternoon around 5pm. It's great to have her back. We've missed her.

I have u/s pics to scan tomorrow and then I'll upload them here. For now, I'm going to bed.
Until next time....

Two pregnant sisters

These pictures were taken last weekend. This will be the only time that both of us are pregnant at the same time.

Until next time...

Playdate with gifts for Nate

Last Sunday, some very good friends held a shower for me and Baby Nate. It was a playdate where everyone brought kids and gifts. Fun was had by all and we got some much needed stuff for Nate's impending arrival.

Caroline's Cindy and Sam's school party

Caroline was assigned a project to decorate a pumpkin like her favorite storybook character. Of course, she chose Cinderella. She and Daddy made this creation together. Notice Cindy's "bling" around her crown and neck. Only our child....



Sam's school had their Halloween parade and party on Thursday. They walked around the school in costume then had a party inside the classroom. He got to make his spooky spider dessert. His favorite part of the spider was the candy corn "fangs."



Until next time.....

Happy Birthday, Paw Paw....

This is my Paw Paw's 7th birthday in heaven. I miss him more and more every single day. He really would have enjoyed his little namesake, our Sam. I am so very thankful for the years I got to spend with him.

~SARAH~

Halloween 2008

We had a lot of fun this year at Halloween. Trick or treating, dressing up, eating dinner with friends, and then crashing in bed.......

Caroline dressed up as a ballerina princess (I made her skirt, WM made her leotard, tights, and shoes!) and Sam was a pirate. AAARGH!

On Thursday night, we carved our pumpkin. Sam insisted on making him a "happy" pumpkin. These children like the happy part of Halloween, not that scary blood and guts, skeletons and mummies stuff.

Here's the slideshow I made of our various Halloween festivities: