Can you hear me?

Last night in bed while I was speaking to Baby C, I decided I would try to hear him. I put my ear on Allison's tummy, listened hard, I didn't hear a heartbeat, but I did hear a lot of gurgling & swishing sounds. I'm not sure if what I heard was Baby C or just Allison's stomach making noises. Not knowing what I was hearing was disappointing. I wanted to be excited that I could hear the baby, but I couldn't stop thinking that I was just getting excited because I heard some gas bubbles or meat loaf digesting.

So I decided to research Fetal Doppler baby heart monitor systems. A lady from work used one and said she loved it, so I have been very curious for a while. During my search, I found a website that offered a free or very low cost alternative. It was a great find because it only required 2 household items, so I could try it today.

The first item a cup. Plenty of cups here. The second item, an empty roll of toilet paper. Having a pregnant woman in the house, you are only ever 2 days away from having an empty roll of TP. Luckily for me, today was that 2nd day and we were good to go.

I followed the directions, put the cup on Allison's stomach, nothing. Tried the TP roll, nothing. So now I think I was punked! I applaud this lady. Very good gag, nicely done. Somewhere she is laughing at all the dummies that tried this.

The Fetal Doppler baby heart monitor, Belly Beats is now the front runner and I don't think I'll be trying any more hair brained ideas.

History of ACs - The Bathroom Incident

This is a blog about Baby C, but from time to time, I think it would be fun to share stories about Allison and I. I thought the blog would be a fun thing to do while waiting for Baby C to arrive, but after several suggestions to turn it into a book for Baby C or at least let him read this when he is old enough I thought he should hear some old stories stories about his parents too. Hope you enjoy them.

Let me start by saying I don't embarrass easily. However on this fateful Sunday, I was 10 times more embarrassed than I'd ever been in my life. This is the bathroom incident.

Almost a month into our relationship Allison took me to Maureen's Kitchen for the first time. Maureen's Kitchen is a breakfast & lunch place only located in Smithtown, NY. I had never gone before because it's normal to have a 45-90 minute wait on the weekend. Personally, give me McDonalds Hotcakes & Sausage with a hash brown and I'm good. 6 minutes, done. The things you do for love!

Anyway, we had about a 30 minute wait. We had a table on the porch in view of Allison's Aunt & Uncle who also happened to be there for breakfast. It was great. Pancakes were fluffy, bacon was crispy. Wonderful place.

For those of you who don't really know me, now is a good time to tell you about my stomach issue. My stomach produces too much acid and at times...I'll put it as delicate as possible...my stomach calls for emergeny evacuation through the basement, not the attic!??!  I think you guys know what I'm talking about.

So, we were off for a full day of shopping (again, the things you do for love & early in a relationship) when my stomach started to gurgle. I asked Allison to stop by her apartment so I could use the bathroom.

Back at her place, I did my business and flushed. I noticed there was a slight clog. The water was very close to the top about to overflow and it stopped. I mean it was right at the rim. So I started to panic. I really didn't think I just reacted.

I thought to myself "Hey, the water isn't going down. maybe I'll just flush again. Yeah, that will do the trick." Well not exactly. as soon as I flushed, the water started overflowing. Now I had already decided I loved Allison and had to be with her for the rest of my life. So here I am in the bathroom watching my future spill over the side of the bowl freaking out.

There was a lot of water and instead of killing the water supply, I decided to do damage control. I took her towels and bathmat and made a dam to keep all of the toilet water in one central area. Once I did that, I headed under the sink for some paper towels and other cleaning supplies.

I was so freaked out, that i didn't think to pull up my shorts. So now here I am, cleaning up a floor full of dirty water, that my shorts are now splashing around in, about to lose the girl of my dreams and I am out of dry towels. So I pull up my shorts, poke my head out the door and say "Don't come in here...but do you have some towels or perhaps a mop??"

At hearing this Allison just started cracking up. And comes in to help me. She shooshed me out after most of the mess was cleaned to finish cleaning up the mess. (for real...the things you do for love) I was just sitting on the couch in shock. This happens in Along Came Polly, this doesn't happen in real life. I assure you, it does.

So she comes out and is laughing and shaking her head. I am still sitting there in shock, not looking at her, not talking and not moving. I then say, "Well, let's get a new pair of shorts for me and some new towels and a bath mat for you"

It wasn't until we were in the car on our way to the store that I was able to talk about it. I called my friend Tim and started telling him the story. He hung up on me becsue I was laughing so hard that I was crying and no sound was coming out. Allison was doing the same, and we had to pull the car over to compose ourselves. Disaster averted.

Good news & bad news about my belly

The good news, I no longer have the biggest belly in the family. Allison passed me this weekend. The bad news, I still have the belly of a 4 month pregnant woman. I measured it this evening and at it's largest point, it's 39.5 inches around. I have 5 months until Baby C comes along. My goal is to lose 5 inches from my belly by the time he is born. I'm not a health guy, so who knows if losing 5 inches in 5 months is realistic, but I'll do what I can.

We go to Disney a lot and we see lots of dads. Apart from the obvious of them all having children, there is something else most of them have in common, they have graying hair, balding heads and/or pot bellies or larger. I already have a few gray hairs and I have the pot belly too. It's only gonna get worse when Baby C comes, so wish me luck in losing it.

That's ok, I don't want to hold the baby

It was a long, but fun weekend. Glad to be home, can't wait to finish this post so I can go to bed. I had a great weekend meeting my nephew and seeing my niece again. It was hotter in NY today than in FL. They are having crazy weather in NY, Thursday was in the 30s, today it was in the mid 80s.

I used to hate touching babies. I always felt like I was going to hurt them somehow. I don't think I held my niece until she was 2 weeks old and Jack, I must have seen him 5-8 times before I would hold him. Now I love holding them. I feel a lot more comfortable with them and they love me.

I hope I don't jinx myself here, but kids love me. I have had kids walk up to me while we were shopping or at Disney World and just hold my hand. More than once, kids who do not like any men aside from their father warm up to me and want to hang around me.

The funniest story like this, is our friend Rene's daughter, Elena. We were in Downtown Disney and Elena always takes to girls better than guys. So we figured she would be all over Allison. We took turns holding her hand and carrying her all day, then we did some shopping and I was holding the bags. Elena, probably 2.5 or 3 years old at the time, was pulling the bags out of my hand and telling me to give them to Allison. I was laughing and taunting Allison. "Ha Ha, Elena said you need to carry them"

So I give the bags to Allison and the next thing you know, Elena is saying "UP UP" to me! What a smart little stinker! So I ended up carrying her around for the next 25-30 minutes. What can I say, kids love me and I am a sucker for them. Hopefully Baby C will fall for me just like the other kids around me have. If not, I am not above bribery.

Some folks like to get away, Baby C's first trip to NY part 2

Day 2, Baby C's first full day in NY was a busy day. We are all very tired.

Started off with a good meal. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. So off to Bagel Boss. One everything bagel w/cream cheese please! Can't find good bagels in Central Florida. What a treat this morning.
Next stop, dance class in East Islip. Baby C's cousin Olivia had tap & ballet today. After she worked up an appetite dancing, off to Friendly's for lunch & ice cream. Olivia got a balloon and had fun playing with it. My job was to make sure it made it to the car. As you can see below, mission accomplished.
Next it was time for Baby C to meet his other cousin, James. James was asleep, so Baby C kept his distance for the picture. Wouldn't want to wake the baby.
Now off to soccer. What a busy day. We'll all sleep good tonight. Olivia did well at first, but the coach wasn't there for the first ever practice, so the parents just through together a makeshift practice. They lost Olivia's attention, so I ended up kicking the ball around with her. The substitute coach was overhead saying "Over there...the bar is over there."
Dinner!!! Finally, the magic hour is upon us. NY PIZZA. Baby C's first taste of NY pizza. We found Winter Garden Pizza to be very good and very close to NY Pizza, but there is nothing that compares. Regular, Sicilian and a calazone, great dinner. GREAT.

Last item of the day, dessert. Uncle Carlo brought out doughnuts from Brooklyn. These are the best doughnuts I have ever had. I cannot describe how good they are. You just need to have one. Peter Pan Bakery, 727 Manhattan Ave, Greenpoint, Brooklyn. If you are ever in the area...get a chocolate sprinkle.Since it's Saturday night, I'll go ahead and steal a line. Good night and have a pleasant tomorrow.

Start spreading the news, Baby C's first trip to NY

Hello from Long Island, NY. We are up here to meet Baby C's cousin for the first time. He was born in February and this is our first chance to come up. We also want to take this time to show Baby C. some of the sites and experiences NY has to offer. I know he may be a little young for this, but ask yourself, is it really that different from the parents that bring their 4 month old to Disney World? These pix and sights are all about me right now.

Anyway, first stop, Long Island Islip MacArthur Airport. They are doing construction on the east wing and the gift shops were all closed, but that didn't stop Baby C in his first NY photo op. Check it out, the camera loves him! Thanks in advance to Allison for being a good sport this weekend. Her tummy will be the center of many a photograph.
Baby C then met his NY Grandma & Grandpa and we were off to get dinner. Don't forget there is a pregnant woman here who was on a plane for 2.5 hours with only a mini bag of chips and an even smaller bag of peanuts to eat.

I told Baby C during one of our late night chats about the joy that is NY Chinese food. So we made the call to Yan Min Kitchen in East Islip. The scary part about it, I have been living in FL for 3.5 years and I still knew their number by heart. 631.277.5666. As always the food was awesome. Peninsula in Bayshore, is still the place to go for a fancy sit down Chinese meal, but take out, be sure to go with Yan Min.

We ordered a feast, a smorgasbord of Chinese delights. Chicken & broccoli, BBQ ribs, Beef LoMein, Wan-ton soup, egg rolls, pork fried rice. Man 0 MAN - Baby C ate well tonight. It took a lot of self control, but Allison, Baby C and I were able to limit ourselves to human size portions.
Finally, the last thing Baby C did tonight before hitting the sack was watch a Mets game with his parents, NY grandparents and 2 special friends. The friendship he made tonight (I know, still a fetus, but again my argument, 4 month old @ Disney World) will hopefully last forever. Or maybe just until he is old enough to pick his own sports teams and break his old man's heart by going with the Yankees and Rangers. Check out the three amigos. Mr. Met, Baby C and a Devils Bear.
It's always nice to come back home. It's funny that even though you are away living your own life with your own family and new habits how quickly you fall back into your old habits when you go back. It took a me about 20 minutes after dinner until I was rummaging through the fridge and closets looking for snacks. Mind you I just ate a large dinner and was not hungry at all, but when I'm in this house...my body wants to eat. Allison will say "that's nothing different than what you do at home." She's right, but not like this. This is eating on a mission. Almost like a zombie. How else can you explain the combination & quantity?? A handful of green grapes, 3 cookies, a handful of cotton candy, a glass of milk, some pretzels, more cotton candy, more milk and half a devil dog. Total elapsed time approx 10 minutes.

Anyway in all seriousness, it's great to see my parents and Baby C's grandparents. Tomorrow will be a great day. We are going to see my niece in dance class, taking her for ice cream, going to her first soccer game then back to my sister's house for dinner with the family. My other sister and brother-in-law have been sick, so they might skip it, but still a great day.

Enjoy your weekend. Will try to post again tomorrow.

Hi, my name is....

Whikka-whikkka Slim Shady. Ladies you will be relieved to know, Slim Shady did not make the list of possible baby names. Fellas, I tried, but Allison didn't approve. Check the end of this post for a bunch of other names she rejected. And, if I'm being honest...I don't even think she took any of them seriously.

Ok, so picking a name isn't as easy as I thought it would be. Let me rephrase, picking a boy's name isn't as easy as I thought it would be. As soon as we found out Allison was pregnant, we started throwing around girl's names. We had a name Allison absolutely loved and I liked a lot. You can imagine our surprise at the 12 week sonogram when they said it was a boy and we had to start picking out boy names.

We made a spreadsheet with names we liked and tested each one for 2 days. We use them in everyday life. Some names only last for 3 minutes. Some make it through day one, but don't make the cut of day two. Example Conversation:
Me: What did "Baby Name Here" do today, just suck his thumb and turn cartilage into bone?
Allison: Yep
Me: (to belly) Good job in there Keep up the good work & listen to your mother.

Me: Honey...where are you?
Allison: I'm in "Baby's name here" room.

There is one name that has made it through the test and is currently in day 3! I won't tell you the name, but it fits all the criteria.
Criteria 1. Cute name for a boy and also a good name for a man.
Criteria 2. Good nickname
Criteria 3. Easy to say. "Baby Name Here"

We have gone through a baby name book, multiple baby name websites and so far, this is the only name that has really felt right. If you are reading this and you have a suggestion for a boy's name and want to share it, leave a comment or send an email. We want to make sure we pick just the right name for our little guy and any suggestions of names we may not have thought of are appreciated.

List of Awesome Names Rejected by Allison
1. Martin Brodeur - NJ Devils goalie All-Time NHL wins leader. (pronounced Mar-Tan)
2. Mike Piazza - Beloved NY Mets catcher
3. Citizen Cope - Trip Cs, can you beat it? also one of my favorite singers.
4. Linkin Park - Another excellent musical entry. Also, a good president.
5. Seven - Stolen from the Seinfeld episode. SEVEN'S THE NAME!!!
6. Sig, Jonathan, Phil - yes, I was watching The Deadliest Catch at the time.
7. Mookie Wilson - He played in game 6.
8. Optimus Prime - Optimus Prime!!!
9. McLovin'

Posting from the road tomorrow. Note to self, do not post when distracted.

Baby C's nursery - Going Green

No, this is not a post about Earth Day, but congrats Earth on lasting another year. Good job buddy. This post is about Baby C's nursery. We had our house painted May 2008, so we chose bright green and pale powder blue for the rooms that would one day belong to our kids. Kid #1 is going green.


We browsed around the stores up and down 436 and of course Babies R Us. At the end of the day(s) we decided Babies R Us was the way to go. We found 15% off coupons (I bought them on Ebay) and opened a credit card to get an extra 10% off. We ended up saving a lot of money.

I met up with my neighbor Mark V at Babies R Us who was nice enough to volunteer his truck to get the furniture back home. We loaded it up, carried it upstairs and after a few "that's what she said jokes" Uncle Mark and I were done with Phase 1. Allison and Kristin made a great dinner then it was time to put the stuff together.

First up, the glider. Piece of cake. This went together in about 15 minutes. The only problem, the cushions were so light and fluffy, they kept floating away (like in the new 3 Musketeers commercials) Luckily Allison volunteered to help solve that problem.

Next up, the crib. A few more parts, a little more complicated, but still no problem. Went together in 25-30 minutes. No problems with the crib floating away, but I decided to throw some stuffed animals in there anyway.
The chest of drawers was next. This was the easiest piece to put together. It was already together, I just had to add the drawer handles. I could do that all day. Again, it wouldn't be complete without a stuffed animal on top.
This is going great! Why do people complain about putting baby furniture together? I don't get it, this is a breeze. Then the changing table. Damn you changing table! This thing had parts that looked almost exactly the same, but with slight differences. They weren't labeled, there were no measurements, it was just a mish-mash of parts. Check out the directions...a special shout-out to the good fellows in Indonesia for these bad boys. Step 1, take all the pieces out and put them all together. Really? Step 1, put the whole thing together? Really? Why bother with directions at all? Just enclose a picture or even better, just a little man giving the bird with LOL below it.
Well I'm glad I got that out of my system. Here is the final product. I still have to touch it up, but I needed a break.
Is that all? No theres more- you see when the left tire mark goes up on the curb and the right tire mark stays flat and even, well the 64 Skylark had a solild rear axle, so when the left tire would go up on the curb, the right would tilt out and ride along its edge. But that didnt happen here, the tire marks stayed flat and even- this car had an independednt rear suspension. Now, in the 60s- there were only 2 other cars made in America that had positraction and enough power to make these marks. One- was the Corvette, which could never be confused with the Buick Skylark. The other had the same body length, height, width, weight, real base and real track as the Buick Skylark, and that was the 1963 Pontiac Temptus.
Sorry, I sometimes get off topic. I'm back now. The last thing we've done to the nursery is add a ceiling fan. I think it's one of the coolest fans ever. Check out the jungle blades.

Ok, that's all for tonight.

Perhaps we better start from the beginning...(My First Post)

Hello! and welcome to the first post on Baby C's blog.

I plan to post my thoughts and feelings throughout the pregnancy and after delivery. On days when I'm not feeling anything new, I'll post links to sites, top 10 lists, and stories of events that have gone down during the pregnancy. Remember, my wife is pregnant, hormonal, moody, so I'm not going to post all the stories. Nothing that will get me into trouble. I'm brave, but not crazy. Having said that, her moods and emotions really have not been that bad. It has been a great 4 months.

I decided just before I left work today that I should start this blog. I have lots to say about our upcoming addition, but I don't always have someone around to talk to. So now it's out here for the world to read. I am staying up way to late to do this, but if I don't do it now, odds are I never will. I have lots of grand ideas. I plan to do them, I have all the best intentions in the world, then I get distracted and never get back to it. Examples??? My comic strip about Molly, my kids book about manners, and organizing my own half marathon.

I even had a name picked out for the 1/2 marathon and designed a logo for the t-shirts. It was called "The Central Florida, possibly annual 1/2 marathon on the same day as the NYC marathon, 1/2 marathon race for the cure" Doesn't it just roll off your tongue?? I think I was watching too many episodes of The Office at the time. Or more accurately, I watched the Rabies Run episode one too many times.

Well, I'm here to share, not to scare, so back to the baby stuff. We have started to test out boy names. We have a spreadsheet of names we like and every two days we pick a name and use it in conversation. Then, depending on how that goes, it either gets crossed off the list or moved to the "finalist" column. So far, 2 names....2 strikes. The 3rd name has made it though day one with flying colors. Which is surprising, because I didn't think I would like it.

I have also started talking to Baby C every night. While Allison is laying in bed or on the couch, I will lean over and just talk to her belly. Tonight I told him about the blog. So far I have mentioned baseball, a list of movies he should watch and a bunch of other silly stuff. I'm not sure why, but I just can't talk about serious stuff yet. The important thing is that he hears my voice, so I don't really think it matters what I say.

I think this is a good start. More to follow, stay tuned.

Baby C - 8 weeks


Baby C - 12 weeks