TALENT.

St. Nick's Day

December 6th is one of my favorite holidays of the year - St. Nick's Day. As a kid, I never bought into the whole Santa Claus deal, but boy did I believe in Saint Nicholas. And he showed up on December 6th, every year without fail. He always brought candy, little presents, nuts, and sometimes an orange for good measure. Dan, Dave, Sue, Lou, and I would hang our stockings on the night of the 5th, put our biggest shoes under the stockings, and in the morning they would be ready to burst! So, it was especially fun this year to have St. Nick's day with my own family.

After a relatively lazy morning, Aaron, Ceci, and I headed out to chop down a Christmas tree. We found a nice one at a little tree farm in DeSoto, KS. It was pretty windy and cold outside, though, so we had Ceci bundled up in Aaron's coat against Aaron and in my hat. I guess we should buy her some gloves, because we just stuck some socks on her hands. She may have looked a little funny, but by golly, she was warm.

Quack, quack

Weird Things

So, I've been inspired by another blogger listing a few weird things about herself, and I've decided to do the same.

1. I can control my eardrums. Yes. The actual ear drum muscle. I can cause my eardrum to lose tension, so I can't hear things. I'd say I can cancel out about 75% of sound when I do this, so it comes in handy at loud concerts and when I am asked questions I don't want to answer.

2. I have funny pinky toes. The other 8 toes are unusually long, but I have very short pinky toes that kind of curl under the others. Very weird. When I wear certain sandals, it looks like I am missing my little toes. Aaron thinks this is very funny, but he has claw feet and can't pass judgement on my toes.

3. I am obsessed with making sure doors are locked at night. This goes beyond personal safety, somewhere in the realm of a complete door unlockedness phobia. Aaron made the mistake of telling me he checked all the doors one night, and I happened to go back downstairs later and found one unlocked. So, I can never trust my husband about the doors again. Even if I hear him locking them, I still have to do the nightly door rounds. Sometimes two or three times. And it's not enough to see that the door is locked - I physically have to make sure that the lock is engaged. I should probably see a shrink about this one.

4. I'm not sure this one is weird, but I really, really still want a hedgehog. I'm waiting til Ceci is old enough so that I can pull the old "she found it on her way home, and I don't want to break her heart" trick.

5. I like to put 10 or so maraschino cherries in a bowl and fill the bowl the rest of the way up with whipped cream. No-ice-cream-sundaes are the best.

6. I like my diet cokes warm. I mean, they're not bad cold either, but why waste all that fridge real estate?

7. I enjoy occasionally having a bowl of cooked spinach for lunch.

8. I have a LOT of recurring dreams about the following:

• Not being able to swim in a coordinated manner. I'll jump into the pool, swim two strokes, and then not be able to move my arms or kick my legs. Kind of like the kind of dream where you're trying to run away and can't run.
• My contacts lenses. Losing them, breaking them, mixing them up - you name it, I dream about my contacts.
• Getting in a vehicle and completely forgetting how to drive. While sitting on phonebooks. Which is completely unreasonable, because it's not like I got any shorter in the dream.
• Walking into a classroom, and having nothing prepared to teach. Interesting twist on the going to class as a student unprepared dream, eh?

9. In addition to wanting a hedgehog, I really want an alpaca. Interestingly enough, I think I have better luck at one day getting an alpaca than I do a hedgehog. Unless I forget to tell Aaron about the hedgehog and keep it in the basement. I'm guessing he might notice an alpaca hanging out between the utility tub and the dryer, though.

10. I love watching Judge Judy.

Ceci was baptized this weekend at St. John's, and we had lots of people out here for the weekend. Dad, Jerry, Nora, Rachael, Mitch, and Dave all came out for the baptism, and Rachael and David are now Ceci's godparents!

Mobiles and Dead Batteries

Aaron made a mobile for Ceci before she was born, and it's pretty neat. He made it so all these little sticks with decorative ends are balanced when hung from the ceiling. It's pretty mesmerizing when you twirl it, because it sets all the individual sticks spinning independently. I laid Ceci down in her crib last night and started the mobile twirling, and she just laid there and grinned and grinned and grinned at the mobile. Same thing this morning. So cute.
The rest of the day went downhill. the truck battery was dead this afternoon. I found that out after I had already loaded Ceci in and was headed out to run a few errands. Instead, I waited for AAA to come out and jumpstart the truck, and then Cecilia and I drove to get a new battery. Not very much fun at all.

I've gotta say, having vehicles that work all the time definitely will spoil you pretty quickly. It was not long ago that I still had the '87 Integra, which was quite the trooper, but certainly had its issues near the end of its valiant life. And then Aaron and I had the old Audi for a while, which had a 50/50 chance of firing up when you turned the ignition. And IF it decided to play along, there was an 80% chance that the radio would not work, and would instead display "SAFE" across the radio screen. Safe from what, exactly??? It certainly never made me feel especially safe when it did that. So, I guess what I'm saying is that a dead battery is pretty small dues to pay.

By the way, if anyone out there knows of an '87 Integra for cheap in good shape, let me know - I miss that car.

Splish, Splash, the girl loves her baths...

Time is flying by. Aaron's 30th birthday is this Friday, and Ceci's about to roll over to 3 months. Incredible. Things are going well, even if fast. Cecilia has starting making little talky noises, and that's been pretty cute. Unfortunately, she also seems to be starting to teeth, so that sucks. The poor kid eats her fist all day long. We've been taking her to daycare on Fridays so that I can go into the office and try to stay afloat; so far, so good on that front.

Dad, Nora, Jerry, Rachael, and Dave are coming out to Lawrence in two weeks for Ceci's baptism. I can't wait! It's going to be fun to have a full house.

So, it's already been three years since Mom passed. It's taken me a really long time to be able to remember her pre-ALS as well as I remember when she was sick. It's weird how that works, since she was only sick with ALS for a couple of years. More and more, though, I think of her when she was super healthy, and it makes me so happy. So along those lines... some pictures of Mom, the way I remember her best. :-)

Summer, 2000 - suppertime (Sue looks soooo young, and now I feel sooooo old...)

September, 2000 - Mom and Dave tearing out the swimming pool!

December, 2000 - Mom, and Lou with tulip ears!

Fall, 2000 - Backyard pics

Fall, 2000 - Backyard pics

November, 2002 - Aunt Rita, Mom, Aunt Vivian, and Grandma Kluesener at home.

Easter, 2002 - Mom at Uncle Phil & Aunt Kathy's

Easter, 2002 - Aunt Rita, Mom, and Aunt Vivian

Easter, 2002 - Me, Mom, and Aunt Rita

Christmas, 2003 - Me, Mom, and Susie Q

February, 2004 - Grandma Kayser's 80th birthday, Mom and Sue

Christmastime, 2003 - Mom and Dad

Winesap Season - Pics from the Apple Orchard this Weekend

Fall in Kansas is so nice... it has been gorgeous here. I had to run a few errands downtown today, so Ceci and I wandered around in the fresh air and falling leaves for a couple of hours this afternoon. It was pretty nice.

We had an eventful weekend, unfortunately. Cecilia was running a low fever on Saturday night, and when we called the doctor on call, they recommended we take her to the ER. So, we spent pretty much all of Saturday night and Sunday a.m. in the hospital. That sucked. They put poor Ceci through the wringer trying to figure it out, and she was quite the trooper. Turns out she had - waaaiit for it... that's right - a cold. Yes, turns out we are those parents. Our excuse is that the doctor told us to do it, so I think that makes it OK...

In any case, Sunday was a complete waste because Aaron and I were completely wiped out. Ceci was feeling much better, though! Hopefully this weekend is a little more relaxing.

Cecilia Smiles

Ceci's been smiling at us for a couple of weeks now, but every time she flashes a grin it feels like Christmas morning when I was about ten:

Keep the Pumpkins Away from the Beer

OK, AMoore sent this over in an email, and it is completely hilarious - thanks for the big laugh, Amy!!!

Susan demands a link to Kodak Gallery :-)

Here you go, Susie! :-) Many photos of Ceci!!!

Life is good again. Aaron and I are still adjusting to life as new parents, but things seem to have gotten a little easier lately... Ceci has started to settle into some semblance of a schedule, which has been helpful. It's been so nice to feel like we can do stuff other than sit around and wait for her next move. Last weekend we ate out on a deck at a restaurant downtown and then went to St. John's Oktoberfest for a couple beers and accordion music. Gotta love big accordion music.

Grace

I wound up being discharged from the hospital in Lawrence after a couple of days, and it was incredible to see Cecilia in Kansas City. She was still in pretty rough shape when Nora and I got to Children's, but she was stable, and getting better. Each day it seemed they took her off of another medication. She had been on anti-seizure meds, as she'd had a number of seizures in the two days directly following her birth. After a few days, she was only on antibiotics to get rid of her infection.

The doctors performed an MRI after she's been in Kansas City for a few days, and it showed some diffused damage to her brain from the lack of oxygen before she was resuscitated directly following her birth. That was some pretty hard news to swallow. The doctors kept telling us how resilient babies are, and it turned out they were right - a week later they performed another MRI, and all of the damage had disappeared. Aaron and I would like to thank everyone reading this who said a prayer for her, because she is the greatest miracle I can imagine.

The whole hospital stay is a blur. We were there two weeks. For the first week or so, Aaron and I stayed in the Ronald McDonald House across the street. For the second week, I was able to sleep in a room with Cecilia, but Aaron still had to stay in the Ronald McDonald house. The Ronald McDonald House was wonderful; I can't say enough good things about it, and how nice everyone was to Aaron and I while we were there. During this whole time, Nora was driving back and forth between Lawrence and Kansas City every day. I really don't know what we would have done if Nora hadn't been there. She provided us with sanity during a completely insane time in our lives. We had tons of support from friends - Brian and Belinda visited us a number of times, as did lots of other friends from KU and Burns and MacDonnell. I've never recieved so many phone calls and notes of support from friends and family, near and far.

It seems the hospital stay was in another life, and really it was only a couple of weeks ago that we got to come home. Coming home with Ceci was the best thing ever.

Since coming home, we've had the chance to adjust to "normal" life as new parents. We're starting to fall into a schedule of sorts... and we're finally starting to feel like parents. It's kind of weird how that feeling doesn't happen instantaneously. We loved Ceci from the get-go, but it's taken time for me to feel like a real mom. She seems absolutely better. She is such a joy in our lives.

So, anyway, this is all why her middle name is Grace. Before the birth, we'd talked about using "Rose" or "Irene" as a middle name. However, when we were in the nursery at Lawrence Memorial Hospital, it was very clear that she was with us by the grace of God alone.

One month old

What Happened, Part I

Nothing about Ceci's delivery went as planned. It even started with a surprise - my water broke at 10:00 p.m. in the evening of August 16th at home. We rushed to get to the hospital, and by the time we'd gotten there an hour later, contractions were terribly strong. When we checked in, they found that I had a very high fever and a uterine infection. In addition, my blood pressure had gone from completely normal throughout the entire pregnancy to through the ceiling due to sudden onset of preeclampsia.

Labor went very quickly for the first couple of hours. The contractions had built so quickly that I didn't feel like I could keep up. The fever had given me the uncontrollable shakes, and I couldn't concentrate on any of the breathing techniques Aaron and I had practiced. So, I caved... I had hoped not to get an epidural, but it turned out to be the best thing ever. It stopped the shaking, and it was complete relief. I even slept for about a half hour before we had to start pushing. We pushed forever - three or four hours. Cecilia was oriented face-up rather than face-down, which complicated things even more. She was having a very hard time fitting through my pelvis. On top of that, she had a very short umbilical cord which wouldn't let her descend as easily as it should have. Since my blood pressure was haywire, and Ceci had certainly caught my infection, the doctor decided to perform a vacuum delivery. After a lot of pushing, Cecilia was born at 6:05 a.m., but she was not breathing and did not have a heartbeat.

Aaron and I were hysterical. The doctors were performing CPR, and after what seemed like hours, they resuscitated her, and immediately transferred her to the nursery. We were allowed to see her a couple of hours later, and her vitals were stable. She was the most beautiful sight I have ever seen.

The doctor decided to transfer her to Children's Mercy in Kansas City. Aaron went to Kansas City as soon as he could, and was able to be with her in the NICU. I was stuck in the Lawrence hospital until Tuesday.

Thankfully, Aaron's mom, Nora, flew out to Lawrence on Sunday night, and she was able to stay with me in the hospital until I was discharged on Tuesday. It was wonderful to have her there.

2 weeks and 2 days old...

Cecilia Grace Bennett

Cecilia Grace Bennett was born on August 17th, at 6:05 a.m. She weighed 7 lbs - 11 oz. It will take me days to explain what happened, but for now, I'll say this:

She is home.

She is healthy.

She is beautiful.

We love her more than words can explain.

Big, Big Baby

Well, folks, she's going to be a big one. We had a sono done yesterday afternoon because the doctor suspected she might be a little larger than expected... and she was right. We're at 36 weeks (meaning a full month to go) and she's already 7 lbs - 6 oz. I think babies generally put on a lot of weight during that last month, so I am starting to get a little worried. I go back to the doctor on Monday, so hopefully she will have some helpful suggestions. Like inducing. She'll probably just tell me to go home and practice pushing. Ugh.

So, other than finding out that Aaron and I are going to have a giant, things are going well. It's cool and rainy here in Lawrence, and I am thoroughly enjoying it. We went garage saling this morning before it started raining, and we found a pretty awesome night vision scope for $20. I have no idea what we're going to do with it, but it seemed way too interesting to pass up. It should make for some cool car camping - we'll get to look at all the nocturnal animals rooting through our stuff, anyway. Aaron is making homemade bread now... we have the windows wide open to let in the fresh air... what an awesome day for August in Kansas.

Life on the Surface of the Sun

It's officially really stinkin' hot out. I don't think I've ever spent quite so much time indoors during the summertime, but being outside feels completely horrible when it's this hot. Things are going well, though... Aaron and I were both out of town last weekend. I went to Ann Arbor, MI and got to see Jocelyn at her bridal shower, and that was great! Aaron and a couple friends from Burns & Mac drove out to the Rockies and went fishing for the weekend, and it sounded like they had a pretty fun time, too.

This weekend was more laid back. Belinda and Carol Jo (KU friends!) hosted a baby shower for me at Belinda's new house in Lawrence. The shower was wonderful - tons of awesome food, lots and lots of beautiful gifts, and a chance to relax with friends. :-) Everybody should be as lucky.

Aaron and I bummed around today... went grocery shopping, cleaned up the house a little, Aaron cooked, and we generally had a slow, lazy Sunday. I did venture outside for an hour in the evening to water the gardens, but it was only because I had to.

Less than 1.5 months til Ceci shows up! I'm not really nervous about it, there are just so many things we still have to do before she gets here...

Forth of July Weekend

Aaron's parents were out over this long 4th of July weekend, and we had a great time. Nora and I wandered around all the little shops in downtown Lawrence, and Aaron and Jerry fished and fixed stuff. It's amazing to me what gets fixed when Nora and Jerry come to town! Overall, it was a relaxing four days, and now the house seems very empty.

Aaron is playing his last two softball games of the season tonight. I'm sure he'll come home bloodied and torn up. I don't know what they put in the dirt on the fields, but he's pretty sure it's glass shards. Every Monday night he comes homes a complete road-rash mess. :-(

The thermostat outside is starting to creep up... Kansas seems to have remembered that it's July.

Lily season is here. Aaron got me really nice sets of art markers and pastels for my birthday, so I have been playing around with sketching the lilies in our backyard garden. It has been so nice to set aside a little time here and there for playing with my sketchbook. I have missed it. I used to spend hours and hours drawing, but something about having a job has really put a damper on that activity. Go figure!

We went to see Widespread Panic at the Uptown Theater in KCMO last night with John H. The show was pretty good (I don't think I've seen a bad WSP show), but the venue was just too crowded. Or maybe I was just taking up too much room with my big belly ...I dunno. Regardless, that may be the last indoor show I see before Ceci shows up. I just didn't do all that well with the standing, smokiness, and heat. These are things that did not bother me that much three months ago, but I am finding that I can no longer ignore them. Plus, I kept wondering if it was too loud for Ceci. :-(

All is going well, though. Jerry and Nora are coming out this weekend, and we're both really looking forward to that. Hopefully the weather will hold out for a few more days!

3D Sonogram

We had a doctor's appointment this afternoon, and we also got a 3D sonogram done. This is so cool - check it out:

Mug

OK, I swore I would never do it, but for the sake of posterity... here I am at 29 weeks.

Things are going pretty well... we had our first childbirth class on Wednesday, and it was surprisingly pretty interesting. We both expected it to suck, and to regret signing up for it, but we were pleasantly surprised. It's nice to know that I'm not the only person who is experiencing 5 bouts of severe leg cramps at night! I have no idea what it is about being pregnant that gives you horrible charlie horses, but that part totally sucks.

One of the beautiful things about summertime is that I can squeeze in a little garage saling action on Friday mornings, too! He he! There's a lady in Lawrence who is even nuttier about garage saling than I am. She pisses me off most of the time because it seems like she is always one step ahead of me on Saturday mornings. When I pull up to a garage sale, I really hate to see Junker Jo already leaving with some really cool piece of furniture or widget. Nonetheless, I have to respect her a little, because once or twice a year she puts on a pretty swell garage sale, with all the stuff I couldn't beat her to on Saturday mornings. She doesn't charge an arm and a leg like a lot of dealers would, and she generally has cool stuff. So, my pissed-offness is tempered by her good garage sale etiquette.

So, anyway, I went to Junker Jo's garage sale this mornng. She's having it tomorrow, too. The thought has occurred to me that tomorrow may be the best garage saling day of the year because JJ will be stuck at her house having a garage sale! Hah!!! I win for one Saturday! :-)