Say Hello to my Little Friend...

Sophia Marie Huber made her debut today, March 30, 2010, at 1:36pm. She kind of surprised the nurses as most induced deliveries have long labor, but she only took about six hours. Once again Tonya had to prove that she is an All Powerful Amazon by delivering pain killer free. She is doing fine but still confined to recovery at University Hospital.

Sophia weighs 6 pounds 4 ounces and is 16.5 inches long. She is currently at Cincinnatti Children's Hospital stabilizing. It may be a couple of days yet before we know when the hernia will be repaired. I'll shut up know and get to the picture.

We can DO IT!

Although this photo is not from this trip I thought it was appropriate for my last post before Fredricka arrives.

Tommorrow at 6 a.m. we will check into University Hospital to begin the induction process. Although this will be my last post for a couple of days. Patrick will try to give you all an update as soon as we can. Please understand if it is a day before he can post the info. Patrick will literally be running in between two Hospitals. I deliver at University Hospital and about 1 hour later, after she is all cleaned up and stable enough to be moved she will be transported to Cincinnati Children's NICU.

Thank you again everyone for your thoughts, prayers and kind words. We truly appreciate it!

Last day pregnant in Mexico

OK so I know what you are thinking...I thought they were in Cincinnati not in Mexico. Well you would be right on that account but we figured since Fredericka visited Puerto Vallarta near the beginning of her existence, that it would be fitting to make her feel like she was there again (food wise) on her last night in the oven.

In an earlier blog I talked about the Leblond factory that was turned into a Don Pablos. We decided to go there for a lunch snack. MMM Yummy Blanco Queso and freshly made chips, Daddy Patrick (as Liam calls him) enjoyed a Amber Dos Equis. Once again we found a place that served a beer that was so picture perfect I could not resist taking a photo of it. The interior of the old Lablond powerhouse was really neat as well it had an open ceiling and you could see the old original brickwork and catwalks.

After our lunch snack we headed to a really cool hobby shop. Dad this one is like the ones in the Chicago land area... not only do they have remote controlled fun stuff but they also have walls of parts to make and or fix them! We had a hard time not buying a baby remote controlled Helicopter to fly around the Ronald McDonald house...We decided not to since we'd very likely get ourselves in trouble with it.

After the hobby shop we went to an ice cream shop called Graters...one of the nurses at the Doctors office told us that it would be a good treat before labor so of course when I heard about it I said that we had to go. It wasn't just an Ice cream shop it was THE ice cream shop! I believe it was made there or somewhere really close...It was very smooth and creamy and when you ordered cookies and cream as Patrick did you actually got full cookies in the ice cream. My CC Cookie dough had huge chunks of chocolate. Judy sure was right it was just the treat I needed!

Yes I know it sounds like we ate our way through the day and we kind of did but we did do a good amount of walking in malls in between as well as driving.

As you might recognize from the second picture my last meal as a pregnant woman was at Chipotle. Patrick and I split it- he had about 2/3rds of it and I had about 1/3.

Back from Chipotle and reporting our days happenings....it's really weird to know that in 12 1/2 hours we'll be on our way to seeing our little fredricka in person.

As pregnant as she gets folks...

For all of those rooting for me to have a big basketball belly, I must say I am sorry to report that this is as pregnant looking as I get. Tomorrow morning they will induce so there really isn't much chance for me to get that big belly on.

I once again have found a successful diet plan.... I currently weigh about 8 pounds more then I did when I became pregnant. We found out today that Fredericka is guesstimated to weigh 7 1/2 pounds, so overall I'd say the weight gain is quite appropriate!

Hubers and Hamlin's hang out

Today we had our first visitors and they were as wow'd by the Ronald Mc Donald house as we are. I would like to thank Aunt Sheri and Katelyn for making the trip up to see us. We gave them a brief tour of our home away from home and headed for the zoo. Unlike a certain trip to the zoo with Aunt Cindy years ago- we did not have any monkeys throw poo at us. We had fun eating ice cream, looking at the animals and walking the ice cream off. I think by the end of the day we wore the Hamlins out. OK we were tired as well.
I think we are going to be fit as a fiddle when we leave here the hills do wonders for the calves.

Almost as good as seeing her in person

We had our second from last doctors appt. today. Things are still progressing well. Fredricka really cooperated with the ultrasound tech as you can see in the photo. Due to the complicated-ness of this pregnancy the ultra sound can be seen in more areas then just in the ultrasound room. The Ultrasound is also displayed in another room where other techs and the doctor can see them. While the Tech in our room was taking these 3d picts another tech stuck her head in and said "you have a beautiful baby" Patrick and I were shocked to have some one do that....that is when we found out other techs could see the ultrasound too. While at the appointment we also stumbled into a mother that is about 2 weeks behind us pregnancy wise. Her little one also has CDH. It truly is amazing how common this condition is for such an uncommon condition.

Cincinnati

We ventured to Newport, KY today. There is a crazy mall there as well, it doesn't have many stores but the Aquarium is there. We are thinking about going back and going to the Aquarium another day.

This Picture gives a good view of one of the many bridges that cross between the two states and also shows the big city of Cincinnati. It is truly amazing though how easy it is to get around in Cincinnati and the surrounding areas, and for the most part traffic is very polite, especially when considering it is such an urban area.

Picture perfect meal

Our day out ended with a burger so nice that it was OK if you tasted it twice. OK I know that sounds gross but it is true. I am really picky about Hamburgers, Johnny Rockets Original burgers are one of my absolute favorites and we found one across the street from the Lego store mall. These burgers are not only tasty when you eat them, but if you by chance belch (excuse me) them they taste good too. If you have never been to a Johnny Rockets the atmosphere is a blast back in time. Not everyone thinks that there burgers are as good as I do...but hey differences in tastes and opinions is what makes life fun!

Did I beat my brother to a lego store?

We ventured down the road a little farther from the LeBlond factory and Jumped on 71 north and found a very high class mall. It was neat to walk around, it had all sorts of stores that we had never seen before, like Oakley and fossil jeans (not that we'd buy stuff there but it was interesting to find out they existed). While wandering through we found the Lego store... I had to take a picture- so here it is... Just for you bro. I wondered if I had stumbeled upon a store that my lego crazy brother had not yet found?

LeBlond Lathe factory now shopping mall

After spending the morning at the Zoo Patrick and I thought it would be fun to take a car ride and tour Cincinnati a little. We ventured down Martin Luther King Road it turned into Madision Road and then we stumbled upon a shopping complex... Patrick saw the smoke stack and about jumped out of his Skin. It seems that the old LeBlond Lathe factory once stood on this site. LeBlond was one of the largest Lathe Producing factories in the U.S. for much of the twentieth century. The building you see by the smoke stack was LeBlond's Power House, the plant was closed in 1989. It was cool to see that the building remained but is now a DonPablos restaurant. There is a outdoor shopping mall that surrounds this structure and was designed to mimic the old factory. It was really neat to see the reuse of the structure.

The Cat House

Patrick was so excited to see the cat house- I did not know it was legal to take your kids to such a place....it must be an Ohio thing.

Swallowed

Carefull Partick that snake looks like it is about to swallow you!

Home away from home

This is the Ronald McDonald House. It is directly across the street from the Children's hospital. We,ve been told that it recently doubled in size from 41 rooms to 78. It really is a beautiful place.

This is Cincinnati Childrens Hospital. This is about 2 blocks from University Hospital. Fredricka will be transported to the NICU here about an hour after birth. That's when Patrick will learn how to be two places at once.

We will get a tour of Children's NICU tomorrow 3-23.

University Hospital- induction

This is the University Hospital where we will deliver via induction, unless Fredricka gets all silly on us and comes sooner she should make her appearance on March 30.

Our Cheers

Where everybody know your name....

Ok not really but it is only 6 blocks away!

Our very own neighborhood Chipotle!

We've Landed

Ya know it really isn't that hard packing for a long stay, you simply put a bunch of stuff in a bag and say....well if I need something else it can be sent to me or I simply don't need it. Needless to say they do also have stores to purchase things in Cincinnati, Ohio. I know, I know that truly is an amazing concept isn't it.
We had the car packed up Saturday night and put a few more finishing touches in Sunday morning. With a quick stop off to maw maw and pa pa's house to drop Liam off for his vacation, we headed out... off to the great wide open, to pick out a new sister for Liam. OK so that might be stretching the truth quite a bit but it is easier to say.

One of the nice things about the trip is that there are allot of landmarks that usually make the trip feel fast. Our first land mark being passing Ann Arbor (2 hours in), this trip we briefly paused there to eat Chipotle. Although Chipotle is one of my favorite restaurants and the food was quite yummy stopping there seemed to mess up our landmarks, Usually we wait until Findley, Ohio (four hours in) to stop and eat Chipotle. Yes we plan our stops around this restaurant, but when you are as addicted as we are and the nearest one is an hour and a half from your home, you get it when you can. Any ways I am digressing so back to the trip. Stopping in Ann Arbor made it so the next exciting thing was four hours away. On the way down Fredricka decided that it would be really fun to find ways to get her hand or foot in between my ribs and my skin..Sound like fun? yeah I thought so too. Since Patrick did not have the pleasure of this experience and we were approaching our destination about an hour earlier then we were suppose to check in I decided to torture him, he he he... I made him stop at IKEA on the outskirts of Cincinnati. After sitting in the car for four hours I needed a walk and if any of you have ever been in an IKEA you know that there is plenty of space there to walk. Patrick did very well dealing with the store, and in fact didn't mind the kids section ( the only section i really wanted to look at). We left the store after about a 1/2 hour. After looking at all the great looking food like Prawn Pattie in a squeeze tube, oh yum, can I eat that please?

We were off once again, excited to be on our way to checking in to the Ronald McDonald House (RMH). Previous trips we were told that the RMH was always booked and we'd be really lucky to get into the house in a week. We were lucky enough to call on Saturday morning and received a call Saturday evening that they had a room for us. What a wonderful blessing to get in so early. Once we arrived at the RMH, the staff greeted us with open arms and a care package and after some quick paperwork we were off to our room. Were number 1! no really we are! We are in room #1 of the 78 room house. When checking in we were told that this is the 3rd largest RMH in the world and that there are less then 300 RM houses world wide. WOW- once again I have to say that it quite a blessing that we were able to get in let alone be at a hospital that has one!

After the long drive and bit of emotional day we thought it would be best to celebrate our relocation at Patrick's new favorite pub, Molly Malone's. I blogged earlier about the place. It was as good the second time as the first, and yes Aunt Cindy they pour such a good Guinness that they can put the shamrock on the top. I also thought it would be nice to take Patrick to Molly Malone's since I tortured him with IKEA...
Now thats a smile! Look closely at the head of the Guinness you can see the shamrock.

What to Pack

You'd think with three days left till the relocation that we'd be packed right? Shea.....thats what I thought too. Sun shiney weather a time change and the inability to get out of work early are just some of the culprits in the not packed saga. My gram asked me two days ago if I was all packed, sheepishly I looked at her hand said no....What? she said... your not? I told her I was having too much fun playing....

Come on packing isn't fun especially when it is for an extended stay and your pregnant, but you know you won't be for long...Hmmm do I pack all maternity pants, or do I pack more regular clothes? How about shorts, we hear from Ohio-en's that the environment is darn near sub-tropical down there. Reality being that it is about the same to 10 degrees warmer. Crazy thing was last time we were there, that they had about the same amount of snow down there as we do up here.

I guess all I have to say is thank goodness we got the Scion XB and traded in the Mini Cooper, could you imagine packing knowing that you were going to have to cram all of your stuff in a Mini Cooper along with having two car seats in there too? Can you say clown car?

Perfect pint

Well with St.Patty's day quickly approaching I thought I'd pay tribute to Patricks new favorite restaurant, Molly Malone's Irish Pub. I will post the website address close to the bottom of this entry. Where is Molly Malone's you ask? We'll it's probably a good thing to report that it is not close to Midland otherwise Patrick would weigh 350 lbs from all of the Guinness and I would too from their really yummy food. Molly Malone's is located in Covington KY, about six miles from Cincinnati, we found it on our last journey down there. This place truly is not your run of the mill establishment, they brought decor straight from Ireland and you can tell that from the moment you walk in the door. While we were there Patrick ordered the above pictured Guinness. It was so picture perfect I had to take a picture, and I am glad I did because now I can share it with you. Patrick said that the Guinness tasted as perfect as it looked. it was creamy to the very last drop and the froth trailed down the whole glass. Later we learned that Molly Malone's just won Guinness's Perfect Pint contest and we can definitely see why. The beer is not the only tasty treat at this establishment. The Food is like a party in your mouth. I had a Ruben....mmmm just thinking about it makes my mouth start watering. Every thing on the plate was fantastic, the Reuben, the fries, the coleslaw and the pickle were absolute perfection. So if coming down to see us in Cincinnati is not a good enough reason, I guarantee Molly Malone's would be!

http://www.mollymalonesirishpub.com/covington/

Put your feet up and relax

Put your feet up and relax.....

I think I have come to the point in my life that I have realized that those words are not in my vocabulary. I don't even know how to to that on a paradise vacation... it's always OK what's next... Really if you don't believe me just ask anyone who has gone on a trip with me....

People keep telling me that I need to slow down,especially right now... when we were in Cincinnati Patrick and I walked 6 blocks from the hospital to the closest Chipotle ate and walked back for lunch and dinner. When the doctors heard we/I did that I thought their teeth were going to fall out. You did what? they asked? Well looking back at it... when you do the math it did total 24 city blocks when we were done. But the food was so yummy we just couldn't help ourselves. I always thought a moving mom was a healthy mom. Their concerns were that a moving mom might just be a go into pre-term labor if I do to much mom.

When I was pregnant with Liam I did not slow down....I was helping finish the addition to the house and working full time. OK I guess that is not 100% true there were times where Liam slowed me down when he so skillfully hit my leg ligaments from the inside and brought me to my knees, but hey I probably needed to sit a spell at the time.

This time around it seems that she has slowed me a bit more then Liam did but for someone 8+ months pregnant I am still moving pretty good I'd say. Slowing yes but putting my feet up and relaxing ...not so much... We have a house to clean, clothes to sort and pack for Her, a two year old to chase, dog food to stock pile and decisions to make as to what to take. Really... how do you figure out what you should really pack for an extended leave?

You'd laugh if you came over, our house is a disaster and there is a two foot high stack of dog food by the back door (in 40 lb bags), we frankly look like hoarders....but Riley and Koda have to eat while we are out too.

One of the harder things about all of this is that getting ready doesn't lead to quality time with Liam... Good thing we can turn any of these things into a game. I mean who needs to mop the floor when Liam has dipped his whisk broom into the dog's water bowl and is wet sweeping the hardwood laminate floor with it?

Under 3

We have known for a while that due to the Flu season heavy restrictions are in effect at the Children's Hospital. We learned just how heavy today...At this point in time patients can only have 2 visitors besides their parents. They have to be the same 2 people. Overall this is not a big deal since we are a distance from all of our relatives but it does infact limit us from visitors a bit. They also currently don't allow any children under the age of 14, which is also understandable since Babies in the NICU are very sick and no one wants to bring any sort of sickness to those babies.
I read today though that even when flu restrictions are off they don't allow children under 3. Hmmm.... Thats interesting....Liam is 2 1/2....3 in September... We are in for some really creative teaching moments with introducing him to his sister...Hmmmm anyone know where you can get nice cardboard cutouts cheap? Think it's time to look into a baby doll ....

Pregnant Liam?

Look mommy I look more pregnant then you too!
One evening Liam and his cousin Max were playing with balls at Maw Maw's (grandma's) house. Patrick thought it would be funny to stick the ball under Liams sweater. Then the game was on... both boys had a blast playing ball belly.

Wall Mural

Here is the mural I painted in "Fredricka's" room

Week 35

Last week we went down to Cincinnati again to check on her progress....Overall she is doing quite the same from what the doctors could tell. She's really active and gave the MRI tech a run for her money. When I was called back for the MRI the nurse asked how far along I was (yes, you once again can not tell I am very pregnant) I told her 34 weeks and she said "good they are a lot less active at this stage". I told her that she hasn't met our little one yet.

I don't know any of you have ever had an MRI but they are a blast especially when pregnant, they have you lay on your side, and offer you music to listen to. Oh yeah least I forget the pillow. The headphones for the music are huge-80's style muffs- and conform really nicely to the pillow (not), also when asked what kind of music you like...it's not the best of ideas to answer..anything really...because you wind up with 80's rock. Once you are all strapped in, have your 80's music muffs on they squeeze you into this tube, thank goodness I am not a HUGE pregnant girl because my belly would have rubbed on the tube.

The MRI was to last about an hour...an hour and a half of 80's music later I was finally told I was done, Laying still for an hour and a half can create some really nice aches and pains...was I every glad to get out of there. The tech said she had never seen a baby so active...which says a lot since we were at a Children's Hospital.

Due to her being so active it was hard for the techs to do the lung measurements and the doctors believe it was also why one specific results came out lower then we would have liked.

The good news being that according to the test results, we are still in the Good range of CDH patients, its the lower end of good but it is still good. The doctors were quick to tell us though that we didn't have a cake walk ahead of us either.

So the big question then was...when do we return? The answer 37 weeks, March 21, approximately 12 days from today. The idea being that she would be induced in week 38, provided that she doesn't have any scary ideas like wanting to see the world before we relocate.

So now the rush is on, finish her room, decide what to bring, clean the house, spend as much quality time as possible with Liam, Try to tie things up at work... try to keep the mind running so that this can all be accomplished...