Not Yet

Well, since I keep learning new things I guess I better correct my old post. The test that we have to do every three days is not called a Fetal Stress Test (FST). It's called a NonStress Test (NST). And, the ultrasound that we had last time is NOT and NST. An NST is when they strap 2 monitors to your tummy. One measures the baby's heartbeat, the other measures the strength of any contractions. This tells the doctor how the baby reacts when a contraction happens. They can then tell from this pattern if the baby is responsive, and it is a good indicator of how the baby is handling the stress of being in the womb and how the baby will ideally handle the stress of full out labor when it begins.

So, we had another Dr. Appointment today. Still no big change. The baby is lower (that's GOOD) . The doctor said though, "this kid's not coming out any time soon" (as in, not today I'm guessing)....

The doctor was much happier with the whole situation than he seemed to be last week and he apologized for having to send us to the hospital for the NST on Saturday since it took 3 1/2 hours and in his office it only took about 20 minutes!

The bottom line is, the baby looks great and the momma is doing great too (although a BIT more uncomfortable!). So, we just keep waiting!

Still Waiting

Well, it's been awhile since I've written and people are starting to get curious so, I figured I better update everyone.

We're still waiting for Baby Heimer to decide that he's ready to let us see what he looks like! According to the doctor this last Wednesday was our due date so, any day now...

Actually, since now we're considered "post-term" we have to go for Fetal Stress Tests about every 3 days. This is basically an ultrasound where they look around to make sure that they baby is moving enough, how big he's getting, that there is enough amniotic fluid, that his heart is beating strongly, etc. It was nice to see a picture of him and know that everything is just perfect. As of Wednesday he hadn't dropped so we could still catch a glimpse of his face. The doctor tried to get a picture but, the little guy was moving too much, he couldn't get a good one. He looks CUTE though, and it looks like he has chubbier cheeks than in the last ultrasound pictures! Hopefully we'll be seeing him on the outside SOON! Today we're going for another test just to make sure everything is still going well.

We appreciate your prayers! And, we'll keep you posted!

It has actually been pretty nice to have these few days. Stephen and I have been spending a lot of time together just relaxing and doing things around the house. It feels like life has finally slowed down a little bit! We even went to a movie! But, I've also had some time to make a few extra preparations. I've been cooking and freezing meals! So far I have about 8 frozen meals (although that is counting about 3 meals of chili!) and by the end of today I'll have another 4 or 5! So, we should be eating well, even if I don't have the energy to cook! :-)

Rockin'!!!

WOOHOO!!!

Today we ordered our rocking chair. It looks like the one on a previous post but will come in a different color AND I got it for even CHEAPER than we though we would!!! It's kinda doubtful that it will make it into our house before the baby - but anything is possible! At least we'll have it soon after! Ahhhhhh, and then....sweet GLIDING rocking comfort!

I think that brings our pre-baby spending about to an end. Just a few odds and ends like shampoo and lotion left. Maybe tonight I'll actually get the suitcase for taking to the hospital packed!

This is the bassinet that we got for the baby to sleep in in our room for the first few weeks at least. It fits perfectly in our room (although not much else will fit in!!!) and it's pretty cute. It's sitting in our room right now but we still have to do some moving around of other furniture before we're done.

Last Saturday some people from the church threw us a "Pampers" shower so we got LOTS of diapers and baby wipes that have filled up the rest of the baby's closet

There were a few other items as well. This one was pretty cute!

A Chronicle #2

I thought I'd break things up a bit - so here's more of what we've been up to....

Friends Jerry & Arlene from South Dakota were in the area and came over for a tour of the mission, dinner out, and some cards.

We've been shopping for rocking chairs. We're pretty close to a decision but this is just a sample.

Dad and Stephen replaced the facia boards on our garage so now it is closer to ready to be painted.

We got a crib mattress and Mom made a little "pretend Baby Heimer" to warm up the mattress for the real one's homecoming.

We got a really cool "I Spy" quilt that Arlene made.

We got all of the laundry washed and put into the closet...

Don't those built-in shelves look great?!

Actually, while folding and sorting all of these things and putting them into the closet I really decided that I'm ready for this little guy to appear. It's seeming more and more real with each day. I'm ready for an actual BABY in those clothes!

Mom has been washing windows, blinds and cleaning ceiling fans to no end! The windows appear to have NEVER been cleaned. Oops! (at least we haven't lived here that long - there's really OLD dirt on them!)

Some electrical work has had Dad & Stephen replacing outlets and very ambitiously adding a light to our hall closet!

The hall closet lights was a bit intensive since it requied a climb into the attic, taking down the ceiling fan in the bedroom to tie into the wires, cutting the hole for the new light, hooking everything up and then putting everything back together. What a team!

Assembling a baby bouncer is harder than you would think!

But it comes out cute! My only mistake - I didn't put the batteries in cause I didn't want them to begin to drain. However, it takes a little dis-assembly in order to insert them. Oh well.....

And, we're still researching other baby gear that we might need.

I think we've accomplished a LOT - but the time is going to quickly! There are only 1 1/2 more days until Mom & Dad return to the frozen tundra. We kinda like having them here! Stephen said that he might just have to lure Dad into the attic on Monday morning and then tell Mom that Dad needed something up there so we could trap them in! ;-)

A Chronicle

Okay - Here is a little chronicle of our adventures since Mom & Dad have been here.

Dinner out at State Line

A Christmas Lights Tour of El Paso - This is in the central park downtown. HUGE tree!

And YES it was COLD. People have never beleived me when I tell them that it DOES get cold in El Paso. However, now Mom & Dad know that I'm not joking! Sure, it's nothing like MN and 4 degrees with a wind chill BUT, it's still cold enough to bite through even a winter jacket. Now I have WITNESSES!!!

Dad was working on a shelf for the baby's closet - but he took a little break to pet Jack.

I think Dad gets along better with our dogs than Mom (although I don't think she finds them TOO bad - you'll have to ask her!)

Here's Dad putting the shelves into the closet.

We had Stephen's parents and Grandma over for dinner. There are many of you that are better at this than I am. Sorry, no fancy tablecloth, centerpiece or cloth napkins...and, I have discovered that we've broken too many of my cool glasses I only have enough matching for 4 people! I guess that will have to get onto the list of home items to be purchased someday!

Thanks for decorating my fridge everyone! We LOVE seeing your pictures every day! After dinner we watched "The Nativity Story" - probably a new Christmas tradition.

For "My Public"

Well, due to increasing demand (and Stephen telling me that "my public" needs to know what is going on in our lives, I'm trying to finally sit down and add some new posts to this blog. We'll see how I do this...maybe one IMMENSELY LONG post.....or maybe, so it's easier on all of you readers, I'll break it into a few segments.

At any rate...thanks for continuing to ask about us, how we're doing, what we've been up to, how the baby is doing, and all that jazz. We've just been so busy we were lucky to find time to SLEEP in December so, posting was not really at the top of the list. But, we do have a lot of fun things to share - so I'll work on it this afternoon.

Actually, the last few days, I have kind of felt like the lazy one around here. Mom and Dad are here from MN and between them and Stephen they've been working on all KINDS of projects. Yesterday I felt like I wasn't really contributing much and they're joking about me being "the boss." Of course, I DID write a LOT of thank you cards.....so that just took time while they were bustling all around me.

Last I posted we were starting to set up the baby's room. We've made LOTS of progress since then and, after the next couple of days we should have pretty much everything we need for the first days and weeks after the little guy decides to show his face.

Okay - first, we had LOTS of performances with the Mariachi this December. We did a new thing and joined with another church to have a "Mariachi Christmas" concert. As plans changed and developed the concert turned out very differently than we originally thought it would but, it was unique! In addition to performing some songs on their own, the Mariachi did several songs with 2, 3, and 4 year olds singing! They were pretty cute!

"Go Tell It On the Mountain" - cute shepherds huh?

And here is a picture of just about everyone in the Mariachi.

As you can see, I'm not wearing the traje (suit) like everyone else. It doesn't exactly fit! I've been the odd one one it black and white at performances since the second week of November. After hiking my skirt up (since it gets a little wider farther down) so far that it was becoming high-water and STILL having to safety pin the zipper so it wouldn't unzip and cause embarrassment Baby Heimer was getting way too squished and the momma-to-be couldn't breathe well enough to sing! Of course, even if the traje HAD fit, I can pretty much guarantee I would NOT have been wearing those boots for the 1 1/2 hour concert...my feet were tired enough in regular shoes!

Most of the Mariachi performances in December have been "Posadas." A Posada is basically a reenactment of Mary and Joseph looking for a place to spend the night. Kids dress up as Mary, Joseph, often an angel, sometimes even shepherds and kings and go from house to house (or building to building) asking for "posada" (lodging). There is a traditional song that is sung. In between stops we usually sing Christmas Carols. This is a tradition that was begun by the Roman Catholic church and has taken hold primarily in Latin American countries although, it seems to be MOST popular in Mexico. In addition to performing at many of these at YLM Mission churches with the mariachi and some others the group was invited to participate in, I attended several others throughout December because I am researching the history of the tradition, it's significance as both a cultural and religious custom, and proposing ways that this event can be used by churches as outreach into their Hispanic communities as my Thesis to FINALLY finish my Master's Program. I have a LONG ways to go with the research but, I learned a LOT through all that I did this December

Posada at a Mission church in Juarez, Mexico. You can see Mary (with the blue headdress), Joseph (with the striped robe), and the angel.

Stephen singing along with the Mariachi at another mission church in Juarez.

Here we played at an outdoor amusement park that they had open for Christmas. (Kind of like going to ValleyFair for Christmas. (El Paso is a LITTLE warmer than MN) But, this night the temperature was about 36 and the wind was blowing HARD. There we were standing in the wind, FREEZING, playing our instruments for a very meager sized crowd. Some of the kiddos still went on a few rides afterward though! BRRRRRRRRRRRR.......

This is me playing the guitar for one of the Posadas. I've been mostly playing the violin lately but, we needed an extra guitar this day. It was pretty fun but, walking, singing, and playing a guitar over a baby bump was an adventure!

Last but not least for today - this is our newest Christmas decoration. One of the pastor's from Mexico brought it because someone had wanted to buy a nativity set carved by the Tarahumara Indians. However, it turned out that they didn't want one exactly like this, so, we got to keep it. I LOVE it! The Tarahumara Indians are a very impoverished indigenous people group from Mexico that we work with through a mission pastor farther into Mexico. Stephen and I first met (although neither of us remember it) on a mission trip to serve a Tarahumara village when we were in High School. Both he and I have gone there several times since with service groups and my Dad even made the adventurous trek with us a few years ago. We have baskets and other handiwork of theirs however, it's so nice to have a Christmas decoration that will remind us of those experiences as we celebrate Christ's birth every year as well.

Well, I haven't even gotten to what we've been up to since Mom & Dad have been here but, maybe by tomorrow!