Dina rolled

3 months and 4 weeks old and she did a full roll from her back to her
stomach. I'll have to be watching her like a hawk from here on out.
I have a feeling she'll be on the move as soon as she can figure out
how to get her chubby little body going.

My huge baby

Dina had a little check up today. She’s 8.8 kilos/ 19 lbs and 66 centimeters/ 26“ long. That’s great for a 6 month old. But my little bundle is only 2 months old. Oh, and did I mention the tooth that’s coming in?

Dina Isabel

Dina was born at 10:49 a.m. on Thursday, December 13th. Exactly a week past my due date.

The good part--other than having a beautiful baby--is that the labor didn't last that long. I had my first contraction at about 6:15 that morning and they were about 8 minutes apart. By 8:00 am they were 5 minutes apart and we were on our way to the hospital. By the time we got there it was 8:45, the contractions were 3 minutes apart and I was 8 centimeters dilated. Two miserable hours later she was born.

But this labor made me appreciate just how easy I had it with Emma's birth. Apparently I'm fine delivering a 4670 gram/10lbs 3oz baby (Emma) but a 5058 grams/11 lbs (Dina) was really friggin' hard. Go figure. I didn't have the sense of well being that I had after Emma's birth, I guess it was losing so much blood and having (oof) stitches. And no drugs. A decision I regretted.

But everything about this pregnancy was hard. And almost immediately I felt so much better than I did during my entire pregnancy. I could think again, and even though I had to recover I had more energy. I cried in the car on the way home the next day because I was so relieved (I'm sure hormones had nothing to do with that) that I didn't feel... handicapped anymore. I literally felt like I had a chronic illness throughout my whole pregnancy.

Emma has been doing great with Dina. No issues to date, other than a few bouts of temper when she feels she's not getting enough attention. At least, I think that's what is upsetting her. She's 2 years and 8 months... so it could be anything. But she wants to hold Dina, and help change her and bathe her. She likes giving her kisses and stroking her face. She's really quite sweet with her.

Today is Lars' first day back to work and Emma's first day back to daycare after the holidays. As I've been writing the sleep deprivation just hit hard--and I realized I can take a nap! Zzzzzz

My huge bump

Even I was shocked to see this picture. I knew I was huge, but this was beyond my expectations. It was taken almost a week ago, so I think I'm even bigger. I really, really want this baby to come out and last night I thought it was going to happen. I woke up at 4:00 am with some pain (but not steady contractions) and thought, "this is it!" I couldn't get back to sleep, but now in the light of day I'm just huge and uncomfortable again.

Potty Time

Emma used the potty for the first time yesterday! We've been watching Elmo's Potty Time, which does seem to inspire her. And last night, she put her pee pee in the potty! Elmo would be so proud.

Go Go Emma

This is from last November, but it's still so cute. She still loves to dance.

Great Blog!

I just got an update email from Planned Parenthood with a link to a great blog, "I Am Emily X". It chronicles the life of a Planned Parenthood worker who is encountering protesters--anti-choice people who are calling their harassment "40 days
for life."

It breaks my heart that in a country where the health care system is a travesty, these people feel that they have nothing better to do than persecute women who need affordable reproductive health care. This is one of the things that make me grateful to live in Denmark. Denmark is one of the most family focused countries in the world, certainly a hundred times more than the U.S., and there is never a conversation about a woman's right to choose in the news. It's not questioned that, of course, a woman has the right to choose her own path and to plan when she's ready for parenthood.

Good scan

I had a good scan yesterday. Everything looks great, including the placement of the placenta, so no c-section for me. The baby is quite big, she's 2.5 kilos already (over 5lbs) and I'm only 32 weeks! I'm preparing myself for another 5 kilo baby (between 10-11lbs).

Radio Silence

Everything is fine with the baby. And technically, I'm fine too. Blood pressure, blood sugar, weight, are all fine. But this has been a miserable pregnancy. My back is killing me. I have what is known in Denmark as bækkenløsning. I'm not even sure what it's called in the U.S. I did find an article on Babycenter about posterior pelvic pain, which sounds very much like what I'm experiencing. I'm currently on medical leave from work because of it.

The bottom line is that I feel bad every single day. It's the fatigue, headaches, back pain and sick stomach. I don't have morning sickness anymore, but my stomach hasn't been right since I had campylobacter for the entire month of August. Every visit to the doctor or the midwife has included a discussion on how I am 41...apparently I'm just old to be having a baby.

I have another scan today to check on the placenta. The 3D scan we had in August was amazing and we did see that it is a little girl.