Latest Expansion to "Spencers: The Family" Released Seven Days After Original Release Date

Yes, that's right - the first Baby Expansion to Spencers arrived yesterday to much fanfare after 41 weeks in production and manufacturing. Rumor has it that the Designer wanted to wait a little longer to make this product public so that it would have as few bugs and be as well developed as possible. The result, made public at around 4:30ish yesterday afternoon is a rather heavy expansion weighing in at around 8 lbs., 7 oz. and 21 inches long. Contrary to previous similar expansions to other families, this one was widely acclaimed by initial viewers with cries of "so cute" and "I'm glad she's not one of those weird-looking babies". The wait seemed to many definitely worth it, though the Producer and Director were quite worn out after the expansion's delivery (having begun the process the day before). While not unusual, this expansion finally received a name only after the delivery was complete. Having decided that the expansion looked more like an 'Elizabeth' than a 'Kaelyn', it was promptly given the rather convoluted name 'Elizabeth Michaelyn Sum-Yi Spencer'. The Producer and Elizabeth will be staying in the Post-Production Building for a few days for monitoring but both seem to be in great shape and have received many visitors. So far, Elizabeth seems to be working splendidly - her 'cry' function is robust and her 'copy you sticking out your tongue' function seems to be a favorite of recent viewers. Pictures and more reviews of this exciting new product, and how it combines with previous versions of Spencers, will be posted at a later time (possibly beginning early next week at the latest).

Due Date, Plus 4

So, it's 4 days past our due date... and we're still waiting to see when our baby girl will come.

You're probably wondering what we (ok, mostly just me... since Ian continues to do what he always does - go to school, teach classes and work on his dissertation - work as usual for him) are doing. Well one of the things I've spent a considerable amount of time doing (and it's starting to wear on me) is go through the voter registration stuff. Man, what A LOT of info. Ian and I shared some "reading" responsibilities a couple weeks back in going over all the propositions and some of the candidates statements... but we still had half of the candidates to "research" (because no or little info was given on them) and all the justices to go over. So, after several hours of googling today... I think I'm ALMOST done. This is probably not what you thought I was doing, huh? It's not exactly something I'm finding fun, either... but to be an informed voter I feel like it's only part of my right and responsibility. (oh, I should mention I'm doing this now because I want to finish filling out my absentee ballot and mail it ASAP. I already know voting will be the last thing on my mind come November 7th... I'll probably be barely able to stay awake and sane with the responsibilities of a new mom.)

Next on my list of things I will do - Hand address all the handmade announcement cards (to be finished when baby girl spencer is born and we have a name and picture to go on them) that will be sent out post birth. Really, I could easily go out and buy computer labels, but I figure "I got the time!!" At least none of these things are actually driving me crazy (yet) and it's keeping me from going out of my mind sitting at home. (Oh and I did get some laundry done today too. But really, I just sound more productive than I actually have been.)

Passing of the Due Date

Yesterday was the expected due date of the "newest" member of our family... but alas, she did not come. We weren't altogether surprised though. We had a doctor's appointment earlier that day and had pretty much resigned ourselves to seeing her come "late" after last week's false predictions. (I had predicted she would come last week because of all the cramping and increased Braxton Hicks contractions I was having.) The word from the doctor is that everything looks good, the baby's heartbeat sounds good and that we could expect to see her within a week. BUT if not (since nothing is a sure thing), we do have another appointment next Thursday to "check" on the baby's progress... at which it will be decided whether or not we should go to the hospital for some further "baby check tests" (a non-stress test and ultrasound) to see if we can go another week in waiting for her. I guess if the fluid level gets low in the "sac" or she is having stress in the womb despite the fact she hasn't come, then they'll schedule a day to induce. If everything looks and sounds good... then we'll wait one last week at which they will definitely induce (or wait to see if she comes). 42 weeks, which would be November 3rd, would be the latest they would wait to see if she is coming. Personally I vote for her coming on her own next week... or be induced next week. She's getting too big for her "allotted" space... and has gotten MORE active in the last couple days... which mostly means more ouches for me and being uncomfortable all the time.

Oh, but to make the day (or I should actually say night) a little more fun and eventful.. we decided to host a little game playing party last night to celebrate the "Passing of the Due Date". Of course, it was really an excuse to have people over, eat some food, play some games and have a generally fun time. Something we might not have a chance to do for a while when she does make her debut in the world. We played a little "6 Nimmt" (an easy stacking card game, but with some unexpected turns), "Loot" (arggg... a pirate booty game) and then a husband versus wife game of Cranium (everyone that came just happened to be married - and for those who wanted to know, the guys won by just one turn/card.) If this baby girl of ours takes a really long time (+2 weeks) to come.. we might just have to have another game playing night. No use having all those good nights go to waste... especially since most of our games are technically big boxes of choking hazards and some (I would not be surprised at all) might never see the light of day once she is born, hehehe. (Ian's probably very sad at this thought.)

We'll keep you posted!!

Car Seat INSTALLED

Yes, our car seat is now "properly" installed. Ok, it actually is not installed according to our car's owner manual (gasp!), but it was the way the officer (and we) decided was the best. Here's the 2 key things we learned:

• Our car has one of those shoulder/lap belts in the middle seat that locks when pulled out completely (and retracts with the clicking noise), but because of that feature it pulled one side of the carseat up if we really made the seatbelt "as tight as it could go" around the carseat base. So, the officer showed us how to use the locking clip (a little metal clip that comes with the carseat) to actually "lock" the seatbelt into the correct position on the lap portion of the belt. This means you actually leave the shoulder part "unlocked". In the case of an accident, the shoulder will lock anyways (just as it does when an adult sits in the space)... BUT the bottom lap portion won't "give" any AND won't become a flying projectile if the shoulder strap section snaps.
• We undid our first installation and strapped the seat in and made it tight. But the seat still slid side to side a bit because of the distance between where the seatbelt comes out of the seat and the buckle in comparison to our carseat width. So, the officer recommended looking up in our owner manual about whether or not we could use the LATCH (Lower Anchor Tether for CHildren) system with the carseat in the middle. While Ian found the spot in the manual, the officer and I attached the carseat with the LATCH system. It was quite easy and it was tighter than we could get it with the seatbelt! Of course, when we got to the section in the manual, it only mentioned the LATCH system being for the outer seats. So, technically the manual does not explicitly prohibit the use of the LATCH for the middle seat, but it also does not mention using the LATCH for the middle seat in any way, shape or form.

So... our final decision... We'll keep the carseat in the middle seat attached by the LATCH system, and we won't remove the base ever. Ok, sometime we might, but the way it is now, the carseat really doesn't budge at all side to side AND it also subsequently solved most of the upward tilting issues that we had previously. Oh, and I did find out online that carseats are not tested for that upward tilt... it's called a "cocooning" effect and to a certain degree (not 3 or 4 inches though, which is what we were having) it allows the baby's head to move with the car in a collisions and not snap forward or back. To paraphrase the officer on our final decision, "I normally would not recommend installing a carseat in a way contrary to your car's owner manual, but I think this is going to be the best fit for you. Usually the LATCH system is usually too loose of a fit for the middle seat because the anchors are too far apart, but on yours it looks perfect."

Plan Change

So, we just got the call from the police officer 5 minutes ago and we set up an appointment for tomorrow to get our carseat "done up". Woohoo! It's in Davis (dont' have to drive to Sac), It's Free (don't have to pay the installers at the store just in case they don't believe we didn't have them "install" in once before) and he doesn't just "check" to see if we did it right but will actually "instruct" us how to do it correctly everytime. Sounds like a winner!

Oh and I checked online for more instructions and to see if others had problems with the tilting, and it is never mentioned. Maybe it's just not one of those things that matters?? We'll see. I'll definitely ask the officer tomorrow.

And in case you all in Davis wanted to know... there will be some DUI checkpoints tomorrow and Friday... Where? Who knows. That's just want the officer told me (he is also the DUI checkpoint/ community-safe traffic guy in Davis).

Tricky Car Seat

Today Ian and I are going to make our way to Goore's, a baby store in Sacramento where are infant carseat was purchased. They have certified carseat installers... and I think we need some help. We have a tricky (at least I think so) car seat situation...

Research shows that 80% of carseats are installed incorrectly. I figured, "How hard can it be? Just follow directions, right?" So on Monday night, after easily putting together are car seat stroller frame and frustratingly putting together our porta-crib (Man does that portable crib have a lot of hard to attach "clips" and some not so great directions)... we decided let's just finish it all and get the carseat installed and all will be ready for whenever the baby arrives. We cleaned the inside of the windows (you don't want to know what the outside of our car looks like, yikes!), put up a sun shade and one of those "Baby on Board" things in the back window. Then we proceed to install the carseat per the manufacturer's instructions.

We have the base (the part that the carseat carrier will click into so we don't have to "reinstall" the carseat every time) in according to the instructions, but it seems to budge more than it looks like it should. So we try it again. Finally satisfied, we click the carseat in... only to realize that the little level thing on the carseat carrier shows we have it too far tilted. Oops. So we unclick the carseat carrier, undo the base and proceed to rectify the over-tilt. It's pretty easy because the base has different tilted positions that it can be set to. Once we "fix" that, we again install the base... and click the carrier in... and then check everything. "Looks" good. Then the test, how far does it budge when you physically try to move it back, forward, side to side and so forth... pretty good... EXCEPT for in one direction - Up. Ok, the manufacturer's directions don't say anything about seeing if the carseat can tilt up on the farthest forward end (where your knees would be if you were sitting in the back seat), but it just seemed like one of the ways you should see if the carseat moves... and it doesn't tilt like just an inch... it can be tilted several inches off the seat. (Imagine the carseat lifting up off the seat on the edge, with the place where a normal adult's butt would be is the pivot point.) We again relook at all the possible instructions, carseat and car instructions, and it says nothing about how to fix that. So, is it our car? Is it the carseat? Is it the carseat with our car? Is "up" not one of the directions carseats are tested for? It would be disastrous in a rollover for the carseat to move that way. Ian points out in a front collision (and probably side collision) the carseat and baby would be fine because of the physics of motion, but then I ask about the recoil which happens after the collision. Now we're both stumped. We tried tightening, uninstalling and installing the carseat several more times with no luck. We consider the LATCH system, another way to install the carseat without using the shoulder/lap belt and is built into most new cars now, but decide it to would have the same effect. Eventually, we just decide... we need some professional help with this thing.

So, I called the Davis Police Station, they have one officer who does appointments. He has yet to call us back, two days later. If this baby comes soon and we're still in limbo with this carseat... Ian will have to figure out a way to get it checked (and quick) on his own. So, since we're not in labor yet, we're going back to the store with the certified installers and having them tell us how it's done. AND if by some weird chance the carseat just won't "fit right" in the car... we'll probably exchange it right then and there for something else. That would be sad, since I've grown quite fond of our bright red and black carseat with it's hanging bugs, not to mention we'll need to get a new stroller.

Carseats... who knew they'd be so hard. No wonder 80% of them are installed incorrectly!!

(P.S. To all the parents who read our blog... is it supposed to do that? The tilting thing??)

A Quick Funny

Ian and I stumbled upon this... I can't even remember how. But it's funny.
Angry Alien Productions

Ian's favorite is "Raiders of the Lost Ark." Since I haven't seen most of these movies (especially all the suspense or horror ones)... I don't think they are interesting or amusing. AND now that I've seen the 30 second bun-o-vision versions of some of these movies I really don't care to see them now. Hey, if they're not interesting in a bunny version in 30 seconds, who wants to see a 2 hour version of it,right? Oh, but some of the funniest parts have nothing to do with the movie.. but instead it is the bunnies humming the theme song and/or just doing wierd things at the beginning or end of the "clip". Also note, how everything has been "bunnized", including other animals and objects. hehehe.

Oh, of course for all those who are on "baby watch" with us... nothing yet! :) If she takes her merry ole time.. Ian and I might have a "Passing of the Due Date Game Playing Night" on Friday. We might as well while we still can, we'll keep you all posted.

7 Days and counting...

So today marks a week before the expected due date. Of course, this doesn't really mean anything, because she could come early or up to two weeks late (of which then the doctor's would induce labor). And it is quite common for first births to be late... which I'm not hoping for. But getting to today without having to make our big trip to the hospital is a pretty "big" thing because last night, Ian went out of town. There was always the possibility of me going into labor while he was away... so I'm glad there wasn't any midnight calling and emergency rushing to get home because of it. This also probably means we'll be able to make it through the weekend of events (a wedding on Saturday night, Ian's teaching in Sunday School Sunday morning and visiting with his family from out of town on Sunday night) without a trip to Labor and Delivery. Of course, if she comes... we'll be EXCITED and we're definitely ready... but I time with others and Ian getting to teach is something we're treasuring as just the two of us for as long as we can now.

So, you're probably wondering "Where was Ian?" Ian and a bunch of guys from Davis were up at Lake Donner celebrating with a friend (Sam Shull) who is getting married this weekend. It was a bachelor party at a beautiful cabin on the lake (so I've heard, I've never been there). Last night I think they "roasted" and toasted Sam and played some games. I'm glad Ian was able to go and I think it means a lot to our friend, as getting married is such an major and wonderful event in ones life. Plus it also means Ian is getting "out with the boys" a bit and doing "guy stuff". This is always encouraging to me, because being the high introvert that he is... he would be completely content to just hang out at home with me all the time. Oh and while Ian was gone, I and a couple women went and had dinner at a sushi place in Davis. It was a bit of a "Girls Night Out". Since I don't usually get to have seafood (Ian's allergic to all seafood) and since I don't usually go out at night with other women (mostly because I feel guilty leaving Ian at home), it was a very different and fun night. Then after, I helped Bronwyn (my next door neighbor) put together her knew night stand, part of a set of bedroom furniture they just got. Sorry to the neighbors that live below them (as we were banging together parts at 9 pm), but it came out really nice and she was very excited to have a real bedside table.

Other things that I did yesterday since Ian's departure was dig up my "old" journal... that I've been meaning to get back to for months. Actually when I looked at my last entry, it was somewhere at the 8 week mark of my pregnancy... so about 30 weeks ago! I've been so bad at journaling, spending any times of solitude (which was so instrumental and helpful to process a lot of the transition in the last 3 years of marriage, not to mention to my own personal and spiritual growth) and doing any sort of regular devotional. But with the upcoming change (parents always said their children caused them to rethink their priorities), I've been spurred on to get "back on track" and to be more intentional with all the disciplines that I've been lately slacking on. So, feel free to ask me about it (and in a sense give me a swift "kick in the butt" if I get "off track") because self-discipline was and is not one of my strong suits... UNLESS I have a deadline of some sort or if there is some definite (and possibly humiliating) accountability around the corner.

Well, Ian just came home (early, too) so I am off! ... 'till the next bit of news or update.

Her Room

(Yes, we know... it's a little late in the game to still be calling our baby her. She will have a name when she is born, we just haven't quite decided which it will be. It's really down to two choices. But, we promise, she will have a name... and soon.)

I mentioned a while ago that it was starting to look a lot like a baby actually lived here in our apartment as we got her furniture ready and assembled. But now that we've had our last shower, it undeniably looks like a baby is/will be here soon. Ian even said yesterday "Really looks like a baby room" as he referred to the drawers full of clothes, the corner full of diapers, the crazy looking mobile hanging from the crib and the multiple handmade-with-love blankets. The room is as ready as it's going to get. Yesterday, we finished the last "touches", which included making and putting up curtains and getting a 3-drawer rolling cart to hold all the diapering, bathing and health stuff for her. But what better way to really share with you our fun new room... than to show you with pictures!





p.s. BTW, I've been telling everyone that I think our baby will come sometime this week because of all the symptoms and uncomfortableness I've been having lately. Well, we went to see one of the midwives this morning (as part of our prenatal check-ups) and it looks like "she" is sitting really low. So much so, that the midwife couldn't even feel her head in examining my ever enlarging abdomen. But having said that, upon further examination (I'll spare you the details), even though she is very low situated in my pelvis... she is likely not coming this week. The midwife didn't say it, but it was implied. Our baby might actually be "on time" or even (as is typically for first time births) "late". Ian thinks this is all good because he's got a lot going on this week that he'd like to be able to do... and it's ok with me, but I would prefer if she came a teeny bit earlier than her expected due date or at least close. Coming two weeks after just doesn't sound too fun and/or comfortable. :)

The Mildly Humorous and the Annoying

So first with the mildly humorous:

Yesterday, Ian and I went to Fry’s Electronics in Natomas to pick up a replacement battery for our digital camera. I had seen a generic brand replacement on their website and it was half the price of a full priced Cannon battery. So, we drove out there, parked our car and walked into the warehouse sized building.

Now I have been to Fry’s one other time (down in San Jose), but this was Ian’s first trip to Fry’s ever. Let’s just say we ended spending 2 hours looking at every department (no joke) and looking down every aisle. We were not there all that time looking for the battery (otherwise that would be very annoying, and not at all humorous), instead we were there because Ian was fascinated by how much STUFF there was to see. The reason that this is humorous is because every new aisle or department we went to, Ian’s eyes got bigger as he perused the electronics, the games, the books, the toys, etc. Suffice to say, when we left Ian said, “This is one of my new favorite stores.” I asked him if it was better than BestBuy (which he also likes a lot) and his response was, “This is WAY BETTER than BestBuy.” I guess that’s the response I should have expected when the first hour was spent looking through the movies, music and especially the 6+ rows of computer (PC) games.

And then the mildly annoying:

Incident One - I just finished laying out (which includes framing and gluing down all the pictures) the pages for our honeymoon scrapbook today. I still need to go back and add little pieces of memorabilia and writing, but the 30+ pages with the pictures is DONE. Since, I was “on a roll” with double-side gluing down everything, I thought “Hey, I’ll glue down my 12”x12” pages into the album! Then I can just grab the album and a few pens and work on it whenever I get a chance! Great Idea!”

So I grab the first 12”x12” page that I’ve so meticulously made (btw, the album also says it is a 12”x12” album with 12”x12” hinged pages…) and go to put it in the album…. ONLY to realize that the 12”x12” page I’ve laid out is actually too large by about half an inch in the horizontal direction. The hinged pages are exactly 12”x12”, including the unusable border areas that keep the pages in the album. (Because of the way the “hinged pages” are made, there is a white border on the left and right that I suppose is there to protect the pages/have somewhere for the metal loop to go into.) So now… I have to go back and trim a ½” off every page, either on one side (making most pages look lopsided) or by trimming ¼” off both sides. The worse thing is that for some of the pages, there are so many pictures that there is not really any room to even cut the ¼” off of both sides… so some of the pictures will just be chopped off. So much for the nice scalloped corners or framing of pictures. And on some pages I also tried moving pictures… which ended up bending photos or ripping the paper (where the adhesive was). Oh bother! I really need to talk to my scrapbook friend Cindy and find out if this is normal (the 12”x12” album page that is not really 12”x12”) or if I just bought an album that was too cheap.

Incident Two - Our apartment complex has been getting a “facelift” in terms of paint and new light fixtures. Actually, I think it was only supposed to be paint… but the light fixtures ended up needed replacing too (read on…). So for the last three weeks we have had this group of light removing and window taping up painters. The first week, they took off the fabric awnings and light fixtures to prep for painting. In the process they left a mess! Broken shards of light fixture covers on stairs (I think actually from dropping them and/or being overly rough with them while removing them) and piles of fixtures on the ground in our courtyard. Oh and they also were fond of leaving their food wrappers, half eaten snacks, empty drink containers and waded up cigarette boxes for us too. Oh great. I think maintenance or annoyed residents cleaned up the mess.

Week two, they come back to tape up the windows for painting. Now, I can see the desire to “get ahead” and do as many windows in one go as possible in preparation. Hey, I like to be overly prepared too… But they got so far ahead of themselves that they were essentially taping shut all the windows (from the outside) on several buildings days before they would even get to the building to paint it. This also was during early September, which meant some days when it reached over 95 degrees outside. I saw some residents essentially ripping down the plastic over their windows because of this. And you need to know… our apartments essentially have non-working air conditioning units and the outside air at night is the only real viable option for cooling off your apartment. Oh and they (the painters) again left a mess… just a smaller mess, consisting of waded up pieces of tape and plastic on the ground and in the bushes. I think maintenance ended up cleaning this up too.

Week three, they’re back again… FINALLY getting to painting the building and eventually finishing the trim. To set the stage, I have to let you know that Ian has been super great and had just finished cleaning our whole apartment (inside and out) in preparation for the baby. He was very pleased with his work and I was too. He cleaned everything in our apartment and even swept the outside balcony and down the stairs (which I hadn't even asked him to do). It was looking very very nice! So today, he comes home from school and sounds all frustrated. He relays to me (since I haven’t been outside at all today) that since the painters were doing the trim on our building today - they again left a mess. This is especially annoying for him because they left sunflower seed shells (essentially spit from the workers mouths) on the entire balcony and all the way down the stairs! They also left half finished drink and food trash items, all the way up to our door. How inconsiderate! Anyways, I filed a complaint with the apartment complex… and I think I’ll also go clean up the “Slobs’ mess” (for Ian, so he won’t feel so bummed about the mess on his newly cleaned area).

Hopefully week four (when they put the awnings back up) it won’t be as bad as the previous weeks… or maybe the apartment maintenance guys will just do it and the painters will not be back. Oh, I also have to mention that I’ve heard (from a reliable neighbor) that the apartment maintenance crew is also upset at the painters… because they “over painted” on to the front doors, which weren’t supposed to be painted. So, no one is too happy with the work of our Sloppy Painters!!

October Already?!?

Yes, I keep telling myself, it is October already... time is flying by so fast! That also means we have crossed over into the momentus "week 37." While there isn't really anything special about week 37 really... it is considered the point at which if labor begins, then the hospital will deliver her. Our baby girl is considered "full term" even though a couple more weeks incubating is preferred. Not to mention, it would be nice to have my last shower, see my family and also figure out how to install this carseat thing all before she comes. Oh, I should also mention that we're still waiting to get our first delivery of cloth diapers... which will come on the 10th. So, "Hold on baby... wait at least a week or so more please!"

Of course, also having crossed into week 37 means that everytime I get a cramp (not a Braxton-Hicks contraction, but an actual cramp like feeling in my lower back)... I think, "hmmm, this could be the beginning of labor". And cramps I'm getting A LOT of, mostly at night when I'm trying to get some ZZZZZs. Oh and if you ask me, I still think she's coming early.. but hopefully not TOO early (like this week). It'd also be nice if she didn't come on the weekend before her due date, because we have a wedding we'd really like to go to (along with pre-wedding events) and Ian's aunt will be "in town" (in Stockton) right after the weekend because one of Ian's cousins is also getting married that weekend in Fresno (which we can't make because of the distance to travel). Of course, it's not like I have any control over when she thinks she's ready and when she comes. But I can still hope for a convient time, can't I?

Well I guess it's about time to get to work this morning, it's almost NOON. I've got a list of things to finish this week, and I should probably get started sometime. Here's the current list:
~ Finish our Honeymoon scrapbook - I'm only about 3 years behind.
~ Setup a ROTH IRA for me
~ Finish packing the bag for the hospital. I'm about halfway done.
~ Re-figure out healthcare for the baby. We actually didn't qualify for Healthy Families (because our income was too low)... so now I am waiting to hear back from Medi-cal and trying to find out how that affects her after birth checkups at Kaiser (or if I have to find a pediatrician in a whole other system to take her to). BLAH!
~ Buy a new digital camera battery. We seemed to have lost our second "backup" battery, somewhere between Sea Ranch in August to now. And being that the charge in our camera loves to go out just as something is about to happen, it'd be good to have that second one during labor and delivery. Because we're going to be taking LOTS of pictures of our baby girl when she comes!!
~ And setup an e-mail announcement list so we can send a mass e-mail announcing her arrival to all our family and friends. If I do it now.. I'm hoping Ian will post the e-mail (post-delivery).

Wish me luck in being productive! Especially because I feel like I could definitely go back to bed for a nap right about now.