Spotlight on... LindsayK! Feb 20-23

[LindsayK]

Here's a few questions to get you started... oh wait, I guess its my week!

EDD: August 8
Name: Lindsay
Age: 29
Location: Boston area
Family: DH (36) DD (2.25) standard poodle (5)
Baby's Gender (hopes or guesses): kinda hoping for a girl

Names you like: Last time around, we had names picked out before we had the "big ultrasound" This time though, we've barely talked about names, and its only a few weeks away. We have a name that we like for a boy, but my mom and godmother are staunchly opposed to it

Birth Plans/Preferences: We're with a OB/midwife team at Mt. Auburn hospital. Same place as where we had DD, but with a more natural minded duo this time. I hope to labor at home for as long as possible before going in - last time we were there 8 hours total, and this time I am joking that I want to leave before we have to pay for parking (15 minutes)
Strangest craving/aversion this pregnancy:

Hobbies/Interests: I have a horse who I have owned for 15 years, and she is at a co-op barn, so I am responsible for doing feeding/barn chores 3-4 times per week. I also do dog therapy visits at hospitals/schools/institutions in the area. I read a LOT - my new fav place to get books is at the free book swap at the grocery store, so my reading material is highly dependent on what is on that shelf that week

Occupation: formerly a senior financial analyst for a large corporation, but I quit this summer to be home full time with DD, which has been an awesome change for our whole family. I am currently a part time MBA student, and will complete my degree May '11.

How you met your SO: we met at business school (I was getting my 1st masters... 2nd masters paid mainly by the various companies I worked for!)

How you ended up at MDC: I started researching vaccines shortly after DD was born, because I had a nearly deadly vaccine reaction when I was a baby, and reactions run in the family. I found a lot of useful info on the vaccines forum here.

[Dahlea]

What types of books do you like to read?
Are you planning to go back to work when you finish your degree?
Did you decide to vax or not due to your history?

[LindsayK]

Originally Posted by Dahlea

What types of books do you like to read?
Are you planning to go back to work when you finish your degree?
Did you decide to vax or not due to your history?

I really like historical fiction - right now I am reading "Honorable Company" about the English influence in India just post the Waterloo battle. I especially like this one, because the main character is a cavalry officer, so there is a lot of talk about horses and battle mounts

I don't think I will go back to work until our kids are in school. Not sure yet if we are going to stop at 2, so I don't know when that will be. Or, maybe we will homeschool, in which case it could be a long time before I go back to work! Ideally, I would be able to find a part time job with some sort of start-up tech/biotech company... I don't really need benefits or anything, since DH has them, so I would just be working because I enjoy it. So, that is all up in the air right now, but I am ok with that.

I did the DTaP series with DD, because the pedi insisted that she needed to have those. She's since insisted on all the other vaxes, but we've declined. I switched to another pedi as of this fall, and he didn't bat an eye when I told him what our current vax plans are (not doing any until I think they're necessary) So, I guess we are on a delayed/selective schedule where the vaxes are getting indeterminately delayed. The pre-school I want to enroll DD in this fall said they were ok with just a note from the doc saying that she's on a delayed schedule and what that schedule is. So, hopefully, we won't have to deal with school vax requirements for a while yet.

[matey]

Did you grow up in the Boston area? BTW, I LOVE Boston.

[LindsayK]

Originally Posted by matey

Did you grow up in the Boston area? BTW, I LOVE Boston.

Almost. I grew up in Maine, about 1.5 hours north of here. We lived on the side of a mountain in the woods. I grew up playing in the woods, and making "forts" I moved to the Boston area in 2001 when I came down here for school. Found a guy, got a job, bought a house, and have been here since!

[rightkindofme]

How many degrees do you have, how many would you like?
How many children sounds like 'right' to you? Do you have a different opinion from your husband?
Are you one of the 'keep super busy' stay at home moms? How has having children slowed you down or made you feel like accomplishing more?

[LZP]

Very unrelated to babies, but maybe not so much. I see you have a standard poodle- I have always heard/read that they can be territorial- but I assume you've never had any problems with yours and your DC. What's his/her temperment like, and what made you decide to get that kind of a dog?

Since you're on your second DC, what do you think you'll need to acquire for your second? Are there any items that you're looking forward to splurging/buying?

Are you finding out gender of this baby? If yes, will you wait to buy/find things until you do?

What's your best piece of advice for first time moms?

[LindsayK]

Originally Posted by LZP

Very unrelated to babies, but maybe not so much. I see you have a standard poodle- I have always heard/read that they can be territorial- but I assume you've never had any problems with yours and your DC. What's his/her temperment like, and what made you decide to get that kind of a dog?

I've never had any problems with territorial-ness. I had one growing up, and my brother has one, too, and they have been really great with DD. She can pretty much walk up to him, and take away anything from him, including food, and he doesn't do anything. He wasn't horribly fond of DD when she came - mostly just steered clear, but once she started dropping Cheerios on the floor, he decided she was pretty cool DD throws toys for him now, and its fun to watch them play. I have allergies, and have a family history of such, so I figured it would be best to get a hypo (low) allergenic dog, since we planned to have kids.

Originally Posted by LZP

Since you're on your second DC, what do you think you'll need to acquire for your second? Are there any items that you're looking forward to splurging/buying? Are you finding out gender of this baby? If yes, will you wait to buy/find things until you do?

I want to get a baby sling this time around. I have an ergo that I love, but DD was 6.5 lbs when born, and you can't use most carriers until 8lbs. I carried her everywhere, anyway, but this time I really want a sling! We are planning on finding out out the gender, so ifs its a boy, we need more clothes. We need to get a bed eventually for DD, too, but it will be a while before baby moves into a crib, so I am not too anxious about that.

One thing I am strongly considering doing this time around is cloth diapering. I'm a little nervous about it, but figure that we can try it for the first 6 months when the poos are easily managed and non-stinky. I'm hoping I might be able to borrow some covers from a friend and do pre-folds, and then buy a few fitteds and all-in-ones. I just went to "Diaper Lab" which is close by to me, and my goodness! There are so many cute diapers! Way cuter than disposables. DH is a little skeptical about cloth, but mostly because he's afraid that the diaper washing duty will somehow fall on him (he can't stand to see housework left undone, so turns into the little red hen)

Originally Posted by LZP

What's your best piece of advice for first time moms?

Hmm. Most people say SLEEEEEP as much as possible, but really, its a struggle to get sleep when baby is tiny, and heck, you're already trying to get as much sleep as possible!

So I'd say, trust your mommy instincts, do what you feel is right with your baby, and grow a really thick skin to outside comments. It doesn't matter if you are a 1st time mom or not, you have built in mommy-skills and YOU know what's best for your kid. My DH jokes that my modesty went right out the window when I had DD, because I could care less when and where I would breastfeed DD or what happened to "pop out". I figured "hey, if you have a problem with what you see, you're looking too closely!" Confidence in mothering starts when you are pregnant and advocating for your choices, so the great thing is, you can already start practicing!

[LindsayK]

Originally Posted by rightkindofme

How many degrees do you have, how many would you like?

I have a B.S. in mathematics/computer information systems, a M.S. in finance, and soon to be an MBA. I might eventually switch over to education (I'm actually a certified math teacher in Mass) so that would most likely mean a masters in education. I don't really feel the drive to get a PhD or anything, though I do like being in school. Paying for it on my own kinda sucks, though!

Originally Posted by rightkindofme

How many children sounds like 'right' to you? Do you have a different opinion from your husband?

I think I would be sad if this were my last pregnancy, but we'll see what this kiddo is like when he/she comes. DD was a super easy, chill baby who slept well right off the bat. If #2 is that easy, I think we'd have at least 3. DH always wanted 3, and I used to tell him "one at a time, sweetie" because I only wanted 2. But now, if I mention having more, he tells me "one at a time!" So, we'll see

Originally Posted by rightkindofme

Are you one of the 'keep super busy' stay at home moms? How has having children slowed you down or made you feel like accomplishing more?

Well, in August when I first became a SAHM, I ran around like crazy doing playdates, traveling, cooking elaborate meals, tackling house projects. By the end of the month, I was tired and stressed. So now we do one "major" thing a day. Monday is grocery shopping, Tuesday is usually play with friends day, Wednesday is bible study/play with kids, Thursday and Friday end up being some sort of errand/project/museum/playgroup day, Saturday we clean the house in the morning, and then try to go somewhere outdoors, and Sunday we veg and go to church. I really value "down" time, and have learned that I resent even fun activities when I feel like I am too tightly scheduled. So, I'd say I am probably a more laid-back mom

I think having a kids has made me focus on different things in life, rather than slow me down or change my drive. Before, my focus was on career, climbing the corporate ladder, and community service type stuff. Now, its on childraising, homemaking, and some personal development - things that I wanted to "accomplish" before, but simply didn't have the time in my schedule for.

[LindsayK]

I had my first appt with my OB today (the other 2 were with her midwife) She seemed pretty cool, and easy to talk with. She delivers 90-95% of the women who see her, and her midwife delivers the rest, unless I have a really strong preference for one of them, and then they try to honor that request.

She found the heartbeat in about 2 seconds, and it was in the 140-150 range... is that predictive (per the old wives tale) of a boy?

[lisalulu]

Whats your fave meal?
Dream vacay?

BTW: I'm totally jealous. I had a mw appt today and again had problems getting a hearbeat. She can get it for like 10 seconds and then baby flips away. I can't remember the ranges of the old wives tale but its low is boy, high is girl I think.

[momongeon]

Does your DD know you are pg? If yes, How has she reacted so far and how do you think she will be during pg or as a big sister?

[LindsayK]

Originally Posted by lisalulu

Whats your fave meal?
Dream vacay?

BTW: I'm totally jealous. I had a mw appt today and again had problems getting a hearbeat. She can get it for like 10 seconds and then baby flips away. I can't remember the ranges of the old wives tale but its low is boy, high is girl I think.

Favorite meal... anything that husband cooks and I don't have to Honestly, though, I think one of my favorite meals is when DH and I get some fresh bread, with pesto fresh made from the garden along with a bunch of cheeses and sliced meats, and a good bottle of wine. Add in either the backyard porch, or the waterfront at the family camphouse, and that is my fav meal

I'd love to travel to Argentina - food is supposed to be awesome, and a great cultural scene, too. Either that, or I want to go to the south of France in the Bordeaux region... yummy, yummy wines....

Sorry you can't get easy heartrate readings on your little one. This was the first time I've heard it so fast... last time it took 2 minutes of poking around, and I was starting to get nervous! As they get bigger though, they won't be able to wiggle away so easily!

[LindsayK]

Originally Posted by momongeon

Does your DD know you are pg? If yes, How has she reacted so far and how do you think she will be during pg or as a big sister?

Well, I had told her quite a few times about having a baby in my tummy, and she didn't seem to get it, or be the least bit interested. Then, the other morning I went out early to feed the horses. DH had fed her breakfast, and she was bopping around the house, and then popped back into the kitchen where DH was, and announced "Mama has a baby coming!" DH asked her where the baby was and she said "In her tummy!" So, I guess she got it!

DD really seems to like little babies, so I think she will like playing with and "helping" with the baby. But, I also think she is going to have a very hard time sharing DH and I with a baby. She is going to (hopefully) start pre-school 3 mornings a week in September, so with any luck that will give me some alone time with baby, and DD her own "big girl" thing. But, we'll just have to wait and see how that works out.

[AutumnAir]

What are you reading at the moment?

Are you happy with the spacing you'll have between your kids?

[LindsayK]

Originally Posted by AutumnAir

What are you reading at the moment?

Are you happy with the spacing you'll have between your kids?

I "splurged" and actually bought two books from Amazon, as they were unlikely to randomly appear at the grocery store's free bookshelf I got Ina May's Guide to Childbirth. I read the second part - the "guide" first, and am now reading the first part, which is birth stories, now. I guess I didn't learn anything earth shattering in the guide part, and I was expecting to learn a lot of new stuff. I think what was helpful was to hear from Ina how trying out new things, no matter how silly they might seem can be enormously helpful in labor. Next up is "Eat Pray Love"

We'd started trying for #2 back in May, but didn't get preggers until November. So, I would have been happy having a little less space between them, but this spacing allows me an entire year to be home with DD all to myself, which I think is really nice, too

[LindsayK]

Thanks, ladies, this was fun