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I have had this recurring dream that our baby is actually a girl for the last few weeks. I know it seems unlikely considering either you see it or you don't on the ultrasound but it leaves me uneasy. Husband thinks I am crazy, and maybe I am. I am just saying that's what keeps happening in my dreams.

Today I had my 28 week appointment. I took the test to see if I have diabetes. I would be shocked if I did. Although, considering this pregnancy, nothing should shock me.

Everything is great, the baby's heartbeat is strong, my weight is on target, and to quote her, he's measuring "BIG." There's no surprise considering his brother's size and his new cousin.

We loosely picked the date for induction. It will happen the week of 9/10, the day has yet to be determined. It will basically depend on what days my doctor is on call. It sounds crazy to schedule his arrival but with the football gmes ahead, it's a must. Plus, now we'll be able to figure out when my parents need to come to watch Jack. She wants to do it during the week so that when the Pitt game comes, the baby and I are already settled and my parents can be here for support. The following game is Notre Dame, away, but it's been promised that it will only be a day trip. We'll see how that rolls.

I also mentioned my dream to my doctor. I don't really care, I just want to know for sure. She laughed and said, we'd find out in September. Sucky. I was hoping she'd toss me a bone and order another ultrasound. There's a possibility I can have another, but only for medical reasons. And then she said, "Maybe your third will be a girl." That made me shiver. I just don't know at this point if I could go through another pregnancy. It's been tough on all of us, including Rex and I don't know if I can deal with this level of worry. However, I always thought I would have three, so only time will tell. I may forget how difficult this has been. Then again, the blog isn't going to make that too easy.

No names as of yet. Maybe will just drop all of our current choices and go with Rex. Would that be so bad?

Or... there's a couple in New Zealand who is fighting to name their baby 4Real. The government denied the name because of the numeral.

Sure think the grandparents would be excited by 4Real.
"These are my grandsons, Jack, Freddie and 4Real."

Cute, real cute.

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Another year of the blog has passed without much fan fair. It's now been 2 years of Jack's life recorded. My own e-baby book. I am not sure how to merge this with Rex, perhaps I will dissolve this blog all together.

However, being the second kid in the pecking order in my family, I know it's not really fair that Rex will have to share his blog with his brother. Technically they should each continue to have their own. "Rex Roundup" and "Journeys with Jack" may just be too much for me to manage. Would I just cut and paste the same entries just to fill the page?

We'll just have to see.

Yesterday Jack and I went to the mall to get measured for his tux for an upcoming wedding. he is starring in two events this summer. I am a little nervous about his debut because the church is very large with a looong aisle. But my friend isn't concerned in the least. Let's hope she remains upbeat when he either a: refuses to walk down the aisle b: screams MAMA!! and runs up to me on the alter or c: won't keep the tux shoes on.

'Cause the kid didn't like the tux. He didn't really like the jacket and sure hated the tux shoes. They were really cute little patton leather dress shoes with ties. He kept taking them off. He thought his Spider-Man tennies would do fine. That could be a problem.

This wedding could make or break him. It could be a great trial run for Stina's big day or it could make him say "Oh hells no" when it comes to her event.

And how do I prepare him? Maybe I should get him a little book or something. It's just the not the same for boys as girls. The flower girls for both events are thrilled at the prospect of the big day. Dressy dresses, flowers and foo-foo hair. Jack would rather play Spider-Man and dig in the dirt. He's perfectly happy barefoot, messy hair -- being a boy.

***
A big yipee on the arrival of Margaret June "Maggie" Hudson. The State News multiples!

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Around Okemos, Spider-Man continues to reign supreme.

31

Nothing in life is easy. Blah, blah, blah. We all know that's true. But for our family, it's just too true.

Piece of advice: Never fly with us.

When Jack came home with his Daddy from DC, he had an 8 hour delay because of rain in Baltimore.

When Jack came home with Mama and Ma from Florida, he had an 8 hour delay because of mechanical difficulties.

The almost-three-year-old is a seasoned travelor or who thinks delays are just part of the territory. (Not that this is completely untrue.)

Going through security in Fort Myers (his 4th flight in 1 week) he went up to the security person and said, "Um... where do I take my shoes off?" It was was priceless.

Then once we got deplaned for the "little engine problem" he ran around the terminal telling old people, "The plane is broken. It can't fly."

My parents got him this little suitcase with matching carry-on that he is very serious about. A good mother would have taken a picture of him cruising through Reagan and then Ft.Myers but I am not a good picture mother. That image is just going to have to be saved in my heart. He looked so cute. Every adult he walked past gushed over his cuteness.

And despite a few meltdowns, his 16 hours of airplane delays went off relatively well. He kept telling me Sunday night he was ready to get back to Okemos -- but so was I. He made friends with all the people flying on our plane and the ticket checkers even set up a Disney movie on a mini TV for him and the other kids suffering in the terminal. He was the only one to watch Monsters Inc. twice, though. Loves his movies.

Luckily, Jack's aunt takes lots of pictures. Looking back on his baby pictures, she's probably taken the majority of them -- or at least the good ones. Here he is waiting patiently to go to his grandparent's anniversary party. Daddy had just slicked his hair back. Looks angelic, doesn't he?

30

Ding-dong the stent is dead. Whoo-hoo! I went to the doctor today and they removed the agony that was invading my insides since Memorial Day weekend. The long, approximately 12 inch rubber tube was helping my kidney-to-bladder function but then kicking my arse everywhere else. The doctor had to go in and get it today and when he pulled it out, I couldn't believe how long it was. It's pretty disgusting, actually. No wonder it made me feel so terrible!

They used a camera and then a mini-metal hand to go in and get it out. I watched all the action on a screen. Each time the doctor had the tube in his grasp, the baby kicked it out. I think it happened about three times. It's not that you saw the foot, just a bump and movement. It was crazy to watch. I think my doctor was getting a little frustrated.

Now I am urologist free until about 2 weeks after Baby Rex is born. Then I go in to find out what's wrong with with it through tests they can't do now because of the pregnancy.

The fam went to Virginia this weekend to help celebrate Husband's parents anniversary. Jack and Husband are staying there until Wednesday and are doing it up at Busch Gardens as we speak.

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I am glad to say it's Friday -- the Friday after Memorial Day. 'Cause let's just say, the holiday didn't turn out as we had planned. We were supposed to go to Cago to visit with family, and friends and instead spent the entire weekend -- through Monday -- at the hospital.

I started to feel crummy Thursday night. But I thought I had just overdone it. Being 24 weeks pregnant, I get tired quickly. And let's face it, the pregnancy has been far from easy. So like any other woman, I ignored the pain. Work went OK in the morning. I was still sore, and I wasn't feeling 100 percent but that was nothing new. Ma called me, and was immediately concerned because she said I sounded sick. My boss asked me if I was OK. She thought I looked sick. I knew we were planning on a huge weekend. I wanted to -- I needed to -- go to Chicago. But something inside me told me to call my OB. It made sense, I would call them, get some reassurance and continue with my plans.

30 minutes later I was on my way to the hospital. They were worried I was in labor. 16 weeks early. Yes, I drove myself. This is when it becomes a blur. My parents wanted to come up right away but I was still thinking we'd make it to Chicago. Our friend -- who was supposed to go with us to the C -- came over to watch Jack. I am not sure when Husband got to the hospital. I was just worried about Rex. As soon as they determined he was fine, and I wasn't going into labor, I lost control of everything. The details are disgusting. You can imagine. I fell apart. The pain was greater than when I had Jack. And Jack was 9 pounds 6 oz. 21 1.5 inches ... pushed out in 38 minutes. No drugs.

Apparently I talked to people on the phone Friday and Saturday. If you called me, I am sorry. I have no memory of our conversations.

So there I was hooked up to all these baby monitors feeling like I may not make it. And Rex wasn't happy either. He didn't like the monitors pushing on his area. He kept kicking them. Again and again, we were trying to listen to his heartbeat and we just heard, POUND, POUND, POUND. A good sign, really. He was in there, staying in there and didn't want visitors or interruptions, damn it.

Tests came back. Kidney infection, likely a stone. I would have to have surgery to see what was going on in there. I can't begin to tell you how much kidney issues hurt. I feel for all people who have experienced what I have experienced. I feel for the people who will someday experienced it. It's just so bad.

It took them two days to stabilize the pain. I had my surgery Sunday morning. My parents came up Friday and went back and forth between in our house and the hospital. Poor Jack didn't really know what was going on. He took it well. He's a very good boy and tried to understand why Mama was sick.

Did you know having a general anesthetic when you are pregnant can cause the baby to be aborted? I didn't. 15 minutes before going into surgery, I learned that tidbit. So, I opted out. Though the percentage was small, I wasn't about to lose Rex. So I opted for a spinal. That means I was awake. I was numb from the waist down, but awake. It's blurry how it went. All I know is my stone was huge and my infection was great. The doctor told me that if I hadn't gotten my surgery, the infection would have spread to the baby. My God.

I got out Monday. My arms are completely bruised. I found out my veins don't agree with IVs. Every vein they tried collapsed. Literally, collapsed. I made quick friends with Ruth the IV specialist. She was the only person who could get anything to work. Failed veins makes it difficult to get drugs... this causes more pain. You get what I am saying here. I now have a stent in my kidney to help with function. The doctor told my dad it hasn't worked properly for at least 6 months. It could be a problem for me post-baby.

I went back to work Tuesday afternoon. It was too early. I went back Wednesday for the morning. The nurses had said I would be a new person and could back to work anytime. But I am not a new person. I still feel like crap -- better than the weekend but far from good. Thursday I was home with bleeding. Today I am sore, still bleeding. My stent is poking me, and my baby is having fun kicking me.

But the baby is fine. And that's all that matters.