So, today I ventured out of my shell to meet new people. If you’ve known me for a long time, this isn’t a surprise; however, in the last few years I’ve kept to my established friendships a bit more and I’m a little less open with who I am.

Today, I met two moms off of RichmondMommies.com (where I’m an active member after lurking for months) at Cartwheels & Coffee. I got in line and immediately one mom in line in front of me said, “Evelyn and Ella?” It was Amy, the mom who had organized the playdate, and her little guy Jackson (who will be 1 on 10/10). After a few pleasantries she went to put Jackson in the play area and I was waiting to order. The mom in line in front of me got to talking to me, too. Her name was Melissa. She has two kids – Lucas, called Luke, and a little girl around a year old whose name I cannot remember right now. Ugh. Anyway, they were not there for the playdate and were actually on their way out, but we had a nice conversation and I’m hoping to run into her again sometime. She’s a regular there so I don’t think it will be a problem to find her.
After placing my order and paying I went over to the baby area and met another RM mom named Whitney who has a little girl, Becca, who will be 1 on Halloween. So all three kiddies were within one month of each other.

We had a great time! I learned that most of the things Ella is going through, all kids her age have/will go through. Yes, I knew this mentally, but it is so reassuring to have someone confirm it for you.

Ella played HARD for two hours before we packed up and came home. She slept all the way home and for about 30 minutes after getting home. After feeding her and a bit of playing she was definitely still tired (and I was too) so we laid down on the sofa together to nap.

I’ve already been in touch with Amy via messaging and we’re hoping to get together again soon. She is a member of the Y (yay) and they don’t do the Romp-n-Roll or other expensive classes either so we’ll have time to get together and play.

It felt great to make a friend with a little one Ella’s age. After looking at her signature in her message to me, we also got married one month apart. So crazy!

It was a good day…

Now, if Jeff didn’t have to work WAY LATE tonight, it would also be a good night. It is very, very rare that he and Ella don’t get one-on-one time together in the evening and she was a wreck when we got to her night time bottle and he wasn’t home. She knew, and she wasn’t happy. Hopefully she’ll be up a bit early tomorrow and able to play before he leaves for work.

Life is good…GOD is good! I am BLESSED!

So, we’ve had quite a busy summer. When Ella & I have been home we have taken time to visit with friends. We’ve also been gone three different weeks!

The first was in June. This was our first time traveling with Ella for more than 3 days, so it was quite an undertaking. I had no clue what to take with us so I just took most everything. We took a box of toys, her bathtub, lots of clothes, lots of pampers swimmers…you get the idea. We also decided it was way easier to buy diapers, wipes and food once in the OBX. This was true.
We never did use her bathtub, so that was nixed for future trips where both Jeff and I will be.
It was vacation with my side of the family. That consisted of: Jeff, Evelyn & Ella; Ken (Pop) & Sandy (GrannyMac); (Uncle) Warren & (Aunt) Rachie; Louise (Granny, GG) & Aunt Evelyn (now EE); Aunt Carla & Uncle Mike; Davey, Debbie, Zachary, and friend whats-his-name; Brad, Patty, Eric, and Patrick; Corey, Angela, Rosella, & Sammy; Carl & some friend another whats-his-name. Count it up people: 26 people! Wonderfully we were divided into three locations. Mom & Dad stayed in their trailer…Granny, Aunt Evie, the three of us and Warren & Rach in an older house…and the rest of that clan (my aunt & uncle, their 4 boys and their families) in the “big” house which had a pool. It was great fun, though we never did make it onto the beach to play. It was just so easy to play at the pool where we had the indoors right there. We did take Ella for walks on the beach, but no playtime in the sand. It was busy and great to spend time sitting up playing games with Warren & Rach. I (Ev) even won at putt-putt against Jeff, Warren, Rach, & DADDY! Of course, we didn’t start play until around 9 p.m. which is past dad’s bedtime, but that is just a small detail. It was a great week and really made us wish Warren & Rach lived closer.

Then in July I had Music & Drama week at Oak Hill. Jeff had taken a week off for the vacation in June and another week for vacation in August (more to come), so he couldn’t take the whole week in July off. That meant that Ella became the M&D mascot for about 5 days. She had fun watching the teens sing and dance, but didn’t enjoy that mommy was nearby, but not always available. Luckily, my mom is a dean of this week, too, so she had mommy & grannymac alternating. I was worried about her staying in the cabin and I’m sure she cramped the style of our cohabitants, Christie, Mom, & Carol, since we couldn’t just stay up talking and laughing at night, but we made it through and now she’s officially stayed at Oak Hill. That was special to me. She got picked up Wednesday at lunch by Jeff and taken home for daddy time Wednesday – Sunday. Talk about breaking a daddy in! I don’t know many other dads who have stepped up to fly solo when their first child is 8 months old. Yay, honey! She didn’t even act like she’d missed me when they arrived on Sunday…she barely came to me! My feelings weren’t hurt, I just thought it was funny.

In August (last week), we went on vacation with Jeff’s side of the family. This time we were all in one big house. It was 14 people: Jeff, Ev, & Ella; Jerry (PaPa) & Mary (Nana); (Uncle) Jerry & (Aunt) Krissy; (Uncle) Gabe; Nanny; Aunt Margaret & Kenny; Ian, Lydia & Noelle. It was a great house with a beautiful pool. Ella is most definitely a water-bug. She also enjoyed playing with Noelle who will be 5 at Christmas. We had big breakfasts & dinners and even got a visit from GrannyMac, Aunt Carla, & Michelle Mende who were all at mom’s trailer for the week. I’m pretty sure that climbing the 3 stories of steps just wasn’t enough to work off all the food we put in. On Wednesday night of the week, the “youngins” – Ian, Lydia & Gabe – convinced (Uncle) Jerry, Jeff & me to go with them to karaoke down the street. I made it until 11:30 before I was nearly falling asleep. At least we got to see Jerry sing “Home Sweet Home” and Ian & Gabe sing “When You Were Young”. The house was on Rt. 12 right at the sound. It was a 10 minute walk to the beach so (yep, you guessed it) we didn’t go play in the sand this week either. Ella did get her feet in the sand a couple of times, but we didn’t spend any real time over there with her. Jeff went a couple afternoons to play in the waves with the boys, though.
On the last night of that trip Nanny took us all out to eat at The Black Pelican. The food was taking a while to come so we took Ella outside walking and went over on the beach. Jeff was walking her along the shoreline and I managed to tell them to move in plenty of time the first time the waves got close…not so the second time. Jeff and Ella had their feet washed over by a wave – now, this was no big deal for barefooted Ella, but Jeff was in tennis shoes and socks. I felt so bad that he had to eat dinner with wet feet. Ella barely reacted to the water, so we’re thinking she’ll take to the beach like a pro next year.

And now we’re home…at least for a spell. Ella & I will be traveling to Tennessee in October to see Warren & Rachel. I’m excited because it will be 2 weeks before her 1st birthday. It will be great that they aren’t missing out on everything! Maybe she’ll be walking by then – or maybe she’ll walk on that trip. She is really trying!

Hope all is well with you, too! Keep in touch!

So here we go…I’m creating a new space to update you. Why? Because “EvlovesJeff” just doesn’t say it all now, does it? I’ll keep my xanga blog there for now (and until I find a way to keep it forever for Ella).

Hopefully I’ll be on top of life enough to keep you updated here with what we’ve got going on. Of course, you can find us on Facebook regularly and you can see all our pictures on evielou.myphotoalbum.com.

For today I’ll say that Ella is 9 months old (go to photo site to see her progress). We’ve been in our house for about 4 years (updated photos coming). We’ve been married for 3 years, 2 months, and 23 days (well, at roughly 6:30 this evening).
We still have our FOUR cats – Monkey, Hobbes, Toby & Sam – and our one dog, Maggie.
Life is great…

Thanks for keeping tabs on us!

Again, I apologize…

I can’t seem to get much time to get online.  When I do, I try to vary if I’m going to MySpace, Facebook, or here.  Since the other two are more interactive they tend to win most of my time.  So, I’ve been to both of those in the hour since Ella fell asleep and it seems I may have time (before starting dinner prep) to do a quick update here.

First, for pictures don’t forget to visit http://evielou.myphotoalbum.com.  If I have a few more minutes after I’m done here, I’ll load the latest 51 items off the camera to that site.

Second, CONGRATULATIONS to my other friends welcoming babies or getting prepared for the life-altering change.  Shannon Manke (that sounds weird to me): Yay!  Our little girls are close in age.  I’ll email you (soon) to see if you’re still in the Charlottesville area and if we can meet up somewhere in between for lunch.  Is there any where in between?  Hmm….
Grete!!!  Warren called me when he left you on New Years and said I needed to call you.  I put your number in my phone, but was feeding Ella and decided to wait.  Later that night (at dinner), both he and Rach were adamant that I needed to have called you already.  They were so upset that I had not that I knew exactly what the news was.  Yet here it is one week later and I’ve yet to pull you up and hit “send”.  My apologies!!!  I am so excited for you and Aaron!  Ask me anything.  Did Warren give you my number?  I PROMISE I will try to call or email this weekend to let you know how to get me (not leaving it on the general site, sorry).  I have picked my friend Colleen’s brain to death (and continue to do so) so I know that it is good to have other new moms at your fingertips.
To Grete – By the way…any day now you’ll be able to gently recline and your uterus will stick out – it makes your stomach look like a deflated basketball.  This is perfectly normal and nothing is wrong.  I’m not sure I posted about it, but Jeff freaked out the first time we noticed it on me and I called Colleen the day before she went into labor with Logan.  Since I’m still losing baby weight (just now got the okay to excercise again) and my uterus is not back to pre-baby size or location, I can still pull off this totally cool party trick; though not nearly as well…

Finally – if you have Facebook or MySpace (facebook gets more attention) and have not done so yet, please find me.  There are pictures on there, too, and I update at least my status every couple of days.

I hope everyone had a GREAT Christmas & New Years!  As you can imagine – this year was spectacular for us.

Talk to you soon!
~Evelyn Louise Cronin

P.S. The book listed as my “Currently Reading” was strongly suggested by Colleen.  Every mom-to-be (or mom who is) needs to get it and read it.  I wish I’d gotten it before Ella came.  We’re having to correct some bad sleep habits already!!!

Yes, Ella and I are alive and well!

First let me apologize for dropping so suddenly off the grid – which I may do anytime since I’m less than an hour away from feeding Ella (it is 10:06 and she is due to feed at 11) and she tends to want to go a little earlier.  If she wakes before 11, I may be pulling mom duty at the computer.  She is making a bit of noise through the monitor right now, but not crying yet.

On November 3 I went in to see my nurse practitioner following an ultrasound.  My blood pressure had been up and they wanted to be sure everything was okay.  She was pleased that my bp was down a bit and that the ultrasound showed that all was well inside.  There was concern that Ella was heading towards being a big baby.  When I left that Monday, I was told that she was going to share her findings with my doctor, Monica Powers, and that my nurse, Becky, would be calling to let me know if Dr. Powers wanted to see me sometime later that week.

Well, Wednesday I had a vet appointment scheduled for Maggie – I was trying to get everything in that needed to be done prior to having the baby.  Becky called as soon as the office opened and asked if I could come in that day at 1:30 (the same time as Maggie’s appointment).  I had not been feeling great and dad was coming to help me with Maggie, so I kept dad on schedule and canceled Maggie – who has yet to be rescheduled – and let dad take me to the doctor instead.  Before he came, I took some last pictures of myself in my Halloween “costume” and of my 39 week belly:
 

On the way to the doctor, dad kept joking that I was going to be admitted.  I told him that even if she decided that it was time for Ella to come, she’d probably send me home to get my stuff together and then come back later in the day.  After weighing in (a whopping 168 lbs) and peeing in the cup, Dr. Powers came in and took a look at where I was.  I was almost fully effaced and Ella had dropped, but I was still less than 1 cm dilated.  That wasn’t the problem, though.  My blood pressure was higher than it had been and there was protein in my urine.  Two big no-nos that indicate that I could have preeclampsia.  She determined that not only was it time for Ella to get out of that environment before it became a bad one, but that the time to admit me was RIGHT THEN!  Good thing dad drove me!  As she went to fill out the admitting information, I called Jeff at work to let him know.  Soon, a wheelchair arrived and dad and I were moved over to the labor & delivery room that I’d be spending the next 24 hours in.

They broke my water and induced my labor (yes, I know – a lot of you are very against this.  Let me remind you that my doctor has delivered hundreds more babies than I have and we were both hoping to avoid any type of interference from her.  However, my womb was becoming a not-so-friendly environment and Ella’s health was more important than anything else.  And yes, I got pitocin.  It was given to me at the lowest dose possible and only increased to keep my contractions where they should be).

Jeff arrived a short time later and I was set.  Mom and Jeff were going to be participating in the delivery along with my labor/delivery nurse, Ashley, who just graduated in May.  Let me say right now that she is the BEST nurse I have ever been exposed to.  She has had women request her as their nurse based on the recommendations of friends and I can honestly say, I agree.  She is amazing.  She told us that the earliest Ella would arrive was around 4:00 a.m. – meaning a 12 hour labor – so we sent everyone home except me, Jeff & mom.  (Everyone was my dad & Jeff’s parents).

I caved and got the epidural around 7:30 (meaning I caved at 7:00) and it was happiness all night long.  I didn’t sleep too much, but I did get more rest than Jeff or mom who at one point were sharing the couch (heads at opposite ends).  Now that was a funny sight.  Had I had my wits about me, I would’ve asked for the camera to prove it at this stage.

Around 4:30/4:45, Ashley decided it was time for me to start pushing.  She prepped everything that would be needed and around 5 a.m. I started the real work of delivering a kid.  Mom and Jeff were great cheerleaders.  Mom was the drill sergeant telling me not to let up and Jeff was the loving voice in my ear, helping me by holding my back and telling me what a good job I was doing.  At 6:00 they sent for Dr. Powers (who happened to have been on duty that night) and
at 6:21 I had a beautiful 7 lb, 12 oz baby girl:


This is Ashley:

For the past three weeks (TODAY was Ella’s 3-week birthday), Ella and I have been figuring out life on the outside.  The first week, mom stayed with Jeff and me and helped us with cooking, cleaning, and being an extra set of hands and good advice.  It was scary when she left, but we picked up and have been great (except for some feeding issues to be addressed another time).  Ella and I stay at home together and we’re really starting to get into a groove. We’ve even been shopping several days, though we’ve yet to hit the grocery store yet.  There are still times that it seems so strange that I am a mom!  This is my perfect little angel – no one is coming to pick her up at the end of the day.  She is the creation of Evelyn & Jeff Cronin – FREAKING COOL, man.

Today was Ella’s first Thanksgiving.  Wow!  I have so much to be thankful.  Most of all, my family which now includes this amazing little girl.

When she was 8 days old (she hasn’t changed too much):

Getting ready for our first Sunday at church:

Going into the nursery with Granny Mac (getting kissed by Connor Coppedge):

Seeing Pop at church on her first Sunday:

Well, she is now squirming (oh, I went and got her about 30 minutes ago) and it is about time for her to eat (7 more minutes).  I’ll try to post again soon and I may make it to Facebook and MySpace before the night is through.  For some reason, I have more energy tonight than I’ve had since I’ve been home.  I do need to sleep because tomorrow is Thanksgiving at my Granny’s in Newport News.

Thanks for all the loving support!  We’ll be online again soon!  Maybe Monday.

Okay, so no update on dilation, but confirmation of 50% effacement.  My blood pressure was still up so now I’m scheduled for an ultrasound on Monday morning.  Ella’s heart rate is perfect, but they want to be sure they aren’t missing anything they can’t see.  I’m excited to get to see my baby girl so close to her arrival in this world!  For now, doctor’s orders are to stay chill.  I am allowed to complete my last two days at work, but I’m supposed to be taking it easy while home.  I don’t have to cancel any plans for the weekend, but even going to Jay & Mo’s party requires me to sit on my rear and not play cornhole.  Oh well…

Trudy keeps joking me that I’ll just be admitted when I go on Monday.  Maybe I’ll install the carseat and pack my suitcase this weekend just in case.

Today is 38 weeks.  I’ll get a photo tomorrow in my halloween t-shirt and post it.  Other than that – Happy Halloween weekend!!!

_________________________________________________________________________________

So I went to the Doctor yesterday.  I am 1/2 centimeter dilated (still have 9.5 to go before Ella makes her mark on this world).  I am effacing – I think she said I was 50% effaced (which is a lot).  If that continues, then the dilation will speed up.

Dr. Powers is not predicting a baby this week, but isn’t saying it won’t be next week.  I asked if I could aim for 11/4 since that is Aunt Evie’s birthday (what better bday gift?) and she said Not if I want her to deliver Ella.  No, I don’t WANT to have my kid on election day – Aunt Evie’s bday just happens to fall on election day.  I would still get to the polls before heading to the hospital!!!

Actually 11/4 is Dr. Powers’ daughter’s birthday and they are taking 20-some-odd pre-teen girls to see High School Musical 3.  Oh my!  What Jeff has to look forward to!

My blood pressure was elevated (though the top number had come down a bit before I left) so I’m headed back to the doctor tomorrow for a BP check.  They’ll keep a close eye on that now so that I do not have complications.

I am in quite a bit of discomfort because Ella has dropped down between my pelvic bones and is starting to push on the “door” out.  Walking is not fun!!!  She is still as squirmy as ever.  All those things you read that says that you’ll notice a “decrease” in movement as the baby runs out of room are LIES!  Kidding – everyone is different and I’m carrying a cheerleader, or soccer player, or acrobat – take your pick.

I’ll update again later this week.  Thursday will be my 38 week mark!!!

I’ll actually post words later, but wanted to go ahead and put the photo up.  So, come back and read the post later!

Photos are up on my Photo Album Site!

So, I am now 36 weeks:

Here’s what is up with me:
I am TIRED and officially ready to be unpregnant.  It took me longer than other moms-to-be to get to this point, but as of this week I’m there.  Matter fact, today I called my doctor’s office in tears because I was experiencing actual pain in my lower abdomen & back.  I was convinced I was starting labor, but after answering a series of questions (all of which I had to answer “no”) it was determined that I needed to take two tylenol, lay down with a heating pad, and chill.  Now, three hours later, I am feeling a little better.  Mo is on her way over to help me with the nursery so we’ll see how I’m feeling shortly.  The craft show at church starts in a hour and we’re going to pop by to see what Jeff’s mom is selling & to get hot dogs for dinner.  After that, we’ll be turning what is now an empty room into a nursery ready (or close to ready) for Ella.  Here is where I am now:

Yep – we have a lot to do tonight. 
I’ve yet to find the little bookshelf I want that will go by the rocking chair that Jeff’s aunt is bringing me tonight.  Now let’s hope that I can get through tonight without the pain starting (or getting worse).

Tomorrow is Baby Class (Confident Childbirth) #1 (of 2).  I’ve heard a lot of “why are you doing that?” from several friends with babies.  Apparently I am now a pregnancy geek for actually doing one of the classes.  Oh well – such is my life.  I go back to the Doctor on Tuesday and she’ll see if Ella has dropped & turned.  Looking at my picture – I’ve definitely dropped.  My tummy is no longer sticking straight out.  I’ve included what Baby Center tells me about Ella at 36 weeks, but one thing is wrong for me.  If Ella is breech or transverse (or not head down in any way), I get a scheduled c-section.  I am too small to try to turn her (called “external cephalic version” below) so instead of hurting me trying, I’ll schedule my c-section and be all good.  As for birthdates, I am actually hoping for November 4 (late enough that I get to vote in the morning).  If I get a scheduled c-section, this is the date I’ll aim for.  Why?  Because I’m so political?  No way!  11/4 is my Great-Aunt Evelyn’s birthday.  So, Miss Ella, if you come naturally, aim for 11/4 (but let’s not get too intense until after mommy votes).

Here is what Baby Center Says:
How your baby’s growing:

Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She’s shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first bowel movement.

At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. (Full-term is 37 to 42 weeks; babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 are post-term.) Most likely she’s in a head-down position. But if she isn’t, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an “external cephalic version,” which is a fancy way of saying she’ll try to coax your baby into a head-down position by manipulating her from the outside of your belly.

So, here is my 35 week picture.  I took it last Friday night (10/10), but haven’t had time to actually blog yet.

Since I will be 36 weeks preggers in just two days, I thought that maybe I’d post this one before it got too late.

Notice the bump drop – yes, my tummy has gotten lower in just five days.  I go back to the Dr. on Tuesday for my Strep B test & for her to check and see if I have started to dialate yet.

Yesterday was 1 month until my actual due date.  Yesterday was also the first day I’ve been sick of being pregnant.  I haven’t had that feeling before, but if the doctor had called and said, “Hey, come in and have that baby today” I would’ve been in my car in a heartbeat.