British Bun in the Oven

[TracyTN 237]

Agreed - a more balanced speech would have been better. Having a c-section for either the safety of the mother or child is certainly not something I would have an issue with (or if you've already had one, lots of doctors won't let you try vaginal for a second child). But why he's coming at it as recommended off the bat is a little odd to me. As long as he will support your attempts to have the child vaginally, then I wouldn't fret too much. (I had vaginal delivery btw)

ETA I'm glad to hear everything went swimmingly with the appointment! Right on track!!

And I had times where I lost weight too - not unusual. I only gained 13 lbs overall. Each woman is different and all that matters is that the child is growing as expected.

Edited November 1, 2011 by TracyTN

[Alex & Rachel 78]

Yes! The doctor was not in the least bit concerned about my weight loss, and actually said almost word-for-word what my mother said to me a couple of weeks ago; that the baby at this stage is a parasite and very good at taking what it needs!

That's currently my (fond) nickname for the baby; 'little parasite'.

[TracyTN 237]

They're both right!

[Empress of Groovy 373]

Hi, ladies!

I thought I'd check in and say hello. I have news: After 3 months of being back in the M-F world, I'm going back to freelancing. Things have been chaotic with both of us working full time, Mad-Ag has been sick a couple of times, requiring juggling of who will stay home with her, and I hated the new job (although the people were very nice). Fortunately, one of my best clients wants me back! Woo hoo! My last day at my job is November 11. So, I will be able to check in more often rather than trying to squeeze everything I need to do into one hour a day.

Madeleine turned 1 last Thursday and is doing great. For the most part. We got her "school" pics back yesterday. I'll post one when I get them on the computah. Her hair is starting to look pretty red. Jon saw the pics before I did and said, "She looks uber ging." Ha!

[Empress of Groovy 373]

And here it is...

This is her "dressed up." I guess she's her mother's daughter...

[TracyTN 237]

Awww!!! She is TOO stinking cute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Uber ging. I don't know if I'd say uber, but yeah - it's definitely there!! (Is that from you or Jon's side of the family?)

Did you guys do anything special for her birthday? We just had a low key event at my mom's.

YAY about your work stuff too, that's great. Sounds like it is really the best fit for your family, and that's what's important.

I've recently started job hunting myself. This place has just gone crazy; the core of what I do is being shifted to India, of course. They're sort of creating a new role for those of us left in the lurch, but it just doesn't bode well for the future. I have an interview tomorrow at another place which STARTS my salary at $18k more than I'm making now. That tells me not only are they trying to marginalize my job here, I am also grossly underpaid...

But its really stressful to think about all of this - likely a longer commute, just being the 'new kid' again and finding my feet. Still that has to be better than wondering when they'll tell me they no longer have a job here for me. All of this sent my stomach into an 'episode' which they first thought was gall bladder, but turns out to be the start of ulcers (great!!). Started on some gut rot medicine to help. HA.

Sorry - whining over! LOL

[Alex & Rachel 78]

Good luck with the interview, Tracy! And although it is always daunting to start a new job, I've always personally found it much better than remaining in an uncertain job (mainly because I react so badly to stress). I hope you feel better soon!

As I understand it red hair genes have to be present on both sides of the family. It can also skip generations. My sister has red hair, and although only my maternal grandfather of the two previous generations has reddish hair, many of my cousins on my dad's side have red hair, too, so the gene is obviously present on both sides of the family!

Anyway - Madeleine's hair colour is GORGEOUS! Definitely more copper than ginger, I think! And her eye colour really complements her hair, too. I hope the freelancing works out well for you.

[TracyTN 237]

Good luck with the interview, Tracy! And although it is always daunting to start a new job, I've always personally found it much better than remaining in an uncertain job (mainly because I react so badly to stress). I hope you feel better soon!

As I understand it red hair genes have to be present on both sides of the family. It can also skip generations. My sister has red hair, and although only my maternal grandfather of the two previous generations has reddish hair, many of my cousins on my dad's side have red hair, too, so the gene is obviously present on both sides of the family!

Anyway - Madeleine's hair colour is GORGEOUS! Definitely more copper than ginger, I think! And her eye colour really complements her hair, too. I hope the freelancing works out well for you.

It seemed to go well, thanks! I hope it doesn't take forever to hear anything. I think I'd like it there. And I agree - this uncertainty is about the worst. Not just that but it makes me SO uninterested in my job which makes the days go by SO slowly. Ya know?

Ah that's good to know. It could also explain why Emily has blue eyes while her daddy and I have hazel and brown (respectively). I know my maternal grandmother had blue eyes but he doesn't remember any in his family. That said, his family aren't exactly close. LOL.

It is kind of copper, isn't it? That's just the CUTEST picture. She looks like she's got plans, man. Plans we will never know...!

[Empress of Groovy 373]

Aw, thanks ladies. Lots of redheads in my family, including me, although my hair has darkened over the years and now is a sort of auburny brown. I was actually uber ging as a baby. I'll find a pic. I'm enjoying telling Jon that he must have the ging gene in there somewhere! Her eye color is beautiful. I have green eyes and Jon's are hazel. My dad had really blue eyes (the only immediate family member on either side w/ blue eyes), and Mad-Ag seems to have them!

Tracy, that's exciting about the job possibility! Keep us posted. I have one more week at my job and then back to freelancing. I can't wait.

[Alex & Rachel 78]

It seemed to go well, thanks! I hope it doesn't take forever to hear anything. I think I'd like it there. And I agree - this uncertainty is about the worst. Not just that but it makes me SO uninterested in my job which makes the days go by SO slowly. Ya know?

Oh, I know! I like my job but on a quiet day I'm just clock-watching for hours. And the days dragged on even more when I wasn't in a job I liked!

Crossing my fingers that you'll hear something soon!

Ah that's good to know. It could also explain why Emily has blue eyes while her daddy and I have hazel and brown (respectively). I know my maternal grandmother had blue eyes but he doesn't remember any in his family. That said, his family aren't exactly close. LOL.

Yes!

My parents also have brown eyes. I have very dark brown eyes (actually as I understand it this is an indicator that I haven't inherited blue eye genes), my brother has brown, my sisters have blue eyes, another brother has blue eyes and my littlest brother has a beautiful grey-brown with almost golden flecks. One grandparent on each side had blue eyes.

I love genetics. Actually, having a large family is really interesting just to see how different we all are and what we've inherited from each side of the family!

Now, if you're both blue-eyed, and you have a brown-eyed child... then it's time to be concerned! Technically not possible, although it does depend on how you define 'blue' - it might still be possible if your eyes are more of a grey or a green.

My mother and I have epicanthic eye folds, which always makes me wonder if we have a very distant Asian ancestor!

I often wonder what features the baby will end up inheriting!

[TracyTN 237]

I'm so glad we're having this genetics conversation! I, too, find it fascinating.

My immediate family all have brown eyes, and so all the 'oddities' out of that come from our extended families. And while Chas doesn't know a whole lot about some of his ancestors, he was told by our dentist that the dark-ish dentin in his teeth indicates he likely has some Mediterranean stock in his background!! (And here he thought he was strictly English/Scottish...!)

I'll be so curious to hear which traits your baby inherits, Rachel!

PS Empress - Mad-Ag DOES have beautiful eyes.

[Jewel-8 21]

Aww, she is so cute!!! I love that she has such chubby little arms. It's babyish while she's still starting to look like a toddler.

Good luck to everyone on the jobs! I am also looking right now. I sent my resume to a non-profit that I have been involved with for the last 2 years. I coordinated a site about 20 minutes out of my way last year and volunteered there the year before. This next year I can't go back because I'm moving 40 miles even further away. So I saw a regional coordinator position open for the new county I'll be living in and I HOPE I get it. So far I have the regional coordinator I worked under recommending me, so there's a good chance.

Also, we're definitely building that house. I go pick out my cabinets, flooring and such tomorrow. Dave gets to come along and choose the exterior.

We should be out of my tiny condo and into our house with enough bedrooms for us by our second anniversary. YAY!!!!

[Alex & Rachel 78]

Oh wow, that sounds awesome! It must be amazing to live in a house where you had a say-so in how it was built!

I have to ring my dad this weekend. Rent prices here are just going up and up - it's crazy! Alex's dad wants us to buy a condo/townhouse, which would make financial sense (and the mortgage on a three bed, even with insurance and housing association fees added in, would be comparable to rent on a one bedroom), but we don't have any savings for a down-payment, let alone closing fees, etc. On the plus side, we have no debt and good credit. My dad's offering to help, but to what extent I'm not sure. He said we could discuss it over the phone.

[TracyTN 237]

That'd be great, Rachel! Maybe he can help you with a down payment. That's what my folks did years ago when I bought my house.

And YAY on the new digs, Jewel! We want piccys once things start getting going. I hope the job comes through for you, too. Fingers crossed!

My recruiter said he heard good things about my interview too and so I am REALLY hoping for an offer this week - but I guess we'll have to wait and see. I am so tired of this place. I love my boss dearly but I am still relishing the idea of giving her my letter of resignation.

Edited November 7, 2011 by TracyTN

[Jewel-8 21]

And YAY on the new digs, Jewel! We want piccys once things start getting going. I hope the job comes through for you, too. Fingers crossed!

Good luck on the job Tracy! I hope you get it. You've definitely been in your current position too long!

I got a call back about the job. I am playing phone tag to get the interview scheduled. I hope that we get it figured out soon. If they want to interview me hopefully that means I have at least a 10% chance. Wish me luck!!

I picked out all my cabinets and whatever. I let the husband pick out the exterior though. Rozie Dragon approves.

Edited November 8, 2011 by Jewel-8