Things are a changing

In this case, we're talking about Stephanie's cervix. She had an appt at the OB office today, where she was told she is starting to dilate, currently 2cm. Sorry for those of you who think that's TMI. At any rate, this was not entirely suprising. Stephanie has been pretty uncomfortable for about the past day and a half, with the contractions becoming a bit stronger.

What does this mean? Well, it's hard to say, but it seems as if baby Thane is coming sooner rather than later. Contractions like Stephanie is having tend to move things along. It's possible for a woman to hang out at 2cm for weeks, but if things keep going like this the munchkin will be making an appearance by the end of next week for sure. The "if things keep going like this" is the key. Stephanie was instructed by her doctor to, and I quote, "Take the bedrest a little more seriously." :)

Will it make a difference if she stays chained to her bed? Probably not too much, besides driving her crazy! In spite of all the razzing I do about the Wal-Mart trips, Stephanie really has done as good a job as possible of limiting her activity while caring for a 2 year old and a 26 year old (i.e. me). She is now a full 34 weeks and 2 days, so they won't try to stop her labor this time. Statistically, otherwise healthy 34-36 weekers do just as well (in the long term) as their 37-40 week counterparts. The only drawback is the requisite NICU stay for breathing, feeding, and body temp issues. For her part, though, Stephanie seems pretty determined to keep this kiddo baking in her belly as long as possible.

6 weeks ago, I was pretty sure we were gonna have that kid any day. A couple weeks later, it seemed like our new boy would never get here. It's a little odd switching back and forth. We mentally prepare for one thing, only to readjust our plans, then readjust again. I guess that's life!

No News is Good News

I've sort of been waiting to write another blog until I had some sort of exciting medical story or new happening on the home front. Well, it seems that cool stuff just doesn't pop into my clinic rooms as often here in Nebraska, and someone would probably try to sue me for telling you anyway. Just kidding... well, sort of. As far as the home front goes, I must say that things are pretty boring (in a good way, of course). No news is, as they say, good news. Stephanie's still pregnant. Caleb is still learning new things and trying (or, trying not) to socialize with other people. Me, I'm still plugging away at the hospital, enjoying a pretty chill month of clinic/derm.

Those of you who follow my wife's blog have already heard about my sweet schedule these first two weeks. She exaggerated a bit, but you get the idea. I honestly didn't quite crack 40 hours either week, which is probably the only time that will happen, but I'm not complaining. I've been at my family medicine clinic, which is limited in how many residents can work at a time by nursing staff, patient rooms, attending physicians, etc. This is why I wasn't scheduled all the time. These next couple weeks will be a bit longer hours, but I still will have no call and no weekends! It really is a nice time for this as Caleb knows a big change is coming and Stephanie is supposed to be taking it easy.

Which brings me to my next topic. I present to you Exibit A

Yep, that is Stephanie pushing around a cart at Wal-Mart. Now, some of you will say, "Well, why in the heck are you letting her do that?!?" To which I humbly respond, "Have you ever tried to stop that woman from doing something she wanted to?" I did drop her off at the front door and encouraged her to get one of those sweet motorized wheelchair/shopping carts. She obviously didn't respond well to said advice. Okay, you say, at least she can lean on the cart and take it nice and slow. She can let her boys get the stuff she needs and she can stretch her legs for a bit.

To that, I say, look at Exibit B.

This was taken without her knowledge, as I walked around looking for Caleb and Stephanie. You see, I had gone to the back of the store to get something so that she wouldn't have to walk all that way. Here I find her a significant distance from our cart (that one in the background isn't ours) and practically crawling under the clothes rack looking for the right pair of pants. Needless to say, I had to put my foot down and get her back in line. Doesn't she look happy about it?

In a bit of unrelated news, Officer Kumorski and his wife just had their third kid, little Gabriella. Congrats guys, we can't wait to see her! You can check out his blog for a picture.

We also learned that another of our friends from our Olivet homegroup are pregnant. Stephanie and I are pumped that we won't be the only ones with screaming kids at the next homegroup reunion!

Life is good

I'm just sitting here tonight reflecting on what a blessed guy I am, and I thought I'd put a few of those thoughts down on paper... er, I mean a screen, I guess. You must forgive me, I'm sort of into lists right now. It helps me keep my day straight at the hospital, which leads me to #1 (these are in no particular order)

1. I have a job I really enjoy. Looking back, I really don't know how I ended up in medicine except that the Lord must have had a hand in it. I mean, I didn't even want to go to college for goodness' sake. The only job I had before this was in a concession stand! Now, I have just today finished my first clinical month of residency. I was on the OB service and worked a good amount of hours, but I never got sick of it. In fairness, a better test will probably be how I feel in February after not seeing the sun for a few months, but things are going really well right now. As a bonus, I've been talking to several people within the program, and it looks as though I'll be able to spend at least a month or two overseas in my 3rd year of residency -- perhaps back in Papua New Guinea!

2. I have a great family. Stephanie and Caleb are great, end of story. I wouldn't change a thing about either of them. Okay, so maybe that's not quite true, but I sure do love them both exactly as they are. I am so happy to see them at the end of a long day, and they are happy to see me. Stephanie is still pregnant, and getting bigger by the day! We are now all hopeful she can keep this up for another couple of weeks, which will significantly shorten little Thane's NICU stay.

3. I have a great family. I have really enjoyed being back in Nebraska the past couple of months with my dad, his wife, and all my brothers and sisters. I've kind of given my dad a hard time in the past about not being super involved when we were kids, but the guy did his best and loves us all, even if he doesn't always come out and say it. He and Pat have been real supportive of us and great to Caleb, and Caleb sure loves them for it. It has been so much fun hanging out with all my brothers and sisters and their kids. Now that Andrew and Brittanie are all moved in (great wedding by the way! and here's a shout out to their pastor Jonathan. What's up man!), everybody but Joe and his family are in the Omaha area. We always seem to have a fun time when we're together, and it is great for Caleb to get to know his cousins. Hey, we all know the kid needs a little more social interaction!

4. A God who loves me, and Everything else. To be quite honest, I'm getting tired, so I'll have to cut this blog a little short. I could go on and on about our good friends, a place to live, my wife's cooking (which has improved significantly in the past 6 months!), and a bunch of other stuff, but I'll spare you. One thing that amazes me more everytime I think about it, though, is the way the Lord keeps loving me and reaching out to me. He really is with us all the time, which I guess is why life looks so good and full of promise right now. Crappy stuff happens and life deals some big disappointments. I think everybody and their dog understands that. As I've mentioned in a previous blog, though, it's just really nice to know I'm not in it alone. And, if I keep my head up, I might just learn something.

Yep, I'm a lucky guy. If you'd ask just about anyone in Papua New Guinea, all of us are pretty darn lucky.

Oh, and for some icing on the cake, Nebraska beat Western Michigan on Saturday. You gotta love all the new T-shirt slogans: Bo knows football; Got Bo?; My Bo Friend's back; Boses leading us to the Promised Land. Great stuff. Go Huskers!