Day 1

ok I'm not going to post an update everyday of his life, but maybe at least for the first few.

Today, after a little surgical procedure, it was time to take visitors.

He had plenty throughout the day. Family, friends and crews from B&F and RHH (who count as friends).
Only one person cried, but she, admittedly, has baby fever right now.

Mom and Dad even got to hold him a few times.

In this picture he is obviously cowering from somethng very scary across the room.




What worries me about the pic below is the very Stewie Griffin-like look in his eyes. I fear for my safety, I really do.


The diaper changes have been heart-wrenching, due to his procedure, but otherwise he's pretty content.

He even got to meet his playmate Anna, who was interested in petting him for about half a second until she decided to play with her shoe.



Should get to go home tomorrow.
We really miss our bed.

Done

Started pushing a few minutes after the last post.

At 3:51 pm on Sunday March 30, 2008, Riley Evans Wallace arrived at Womens & Children's Hospital weighing 6 lbs 2 ozs and stretching 19.5 inches in length.



He had plenty of eager fans awaiting his arrival



Kristin the delivery nurse was great.

His head got a little coned in the birthing process.



His hair is a dirty blonde and his eyes are the typical baby blue-gray.




Mommy is doing fine and is eagerly awaiting the arrival of her sushi.

When Push Comes to Shove

3 pm.

27 hours after check in.

Nurse just said its time to push.

Doc is in c-section, but when she gets done she's heading this way.

No going back now.

Eeeek.

24 Hours In

After the epidural, the contractions slowed down, just like the books say.
They tried Pitocin again, and again he got all uncooperative, so they stopped the drug for good.

Now it's all up to him and her to work things out.

She's resting with her eyes closed and hopefully getting the recharge she needs to make it through the meat of things.

Comfortably Numb

10 am epidural administered.

10:15 dilated to 4 cm

Told to expect progress of appx 1cm per hour.

That puts a mid afternoon arrival meaning she can eat dinner, her first meal since yesterday morning. Definitely going to hit up Sakura since she has not been able to eat real sushi since August.

8:30 status update

Doc just broke Joan's water so she feels like she is peeing all over herself.

HILARIOUS.


"Yah aint cool unless..... Yah pee yah pants."

8 am update

Looks like being exposed to plenty of talk radio in the womb makes for a very opinionated baby.

Unfortunately the only opinion he will express so far is, " I hate Oxytocin." This is very unfortunate since that is the chemical helping him to be born.

At about 4:30 they cut off the drug because he was pitching a fit after every contraction. I headed home, melted into my bed and got an hour and a half of sleep. Lesley, working on 3 hours of sleep, stayed with Joan who got maybe 30 minutes total.They allowed her to eat some Jello and take a shower, so conditions aren't as miserable as they could be.

The on call doc came in at 7:30 and laid out the new game plan. Joan is now 3 centimeters dilated and having regular contractions on her own. As such, the doctor is going to proceed with natural labor, no more inducing drugs, and may come back in a little while to break the water. Another centimeter or so, and a very rich man will come and stick a needle into her back to make it all seem better.

Essentially we are now, after 20 hours in the hospital, at the same point that someone who came in on their own would be. Yay. Thank (your chosen deity) for health insurance.

1 am status report.

Been here approximately 13 hours.
Started Oxytocin, the labor drug, at 11 ish.
Apparently he doesn’t like it when his home contracts around him and he starts getting all pissy and making his heart rate slow down. That causes the nurses to have to put down their microwaveable Campbell’s Chunky soup and come straighten him out. Don’t know what that’s gonna mean in the long term, but we’ll find out within the next few hours.

Due to the lack of ability to have steady contractions, I’m doubting much progress has been made. That’s not a good sign since neither of us has slept yet.

She’s counting on sleeping whenever they give her the epidural. I’m hoping to go sleep in the truck whenever Lesley gets back from sleeping at our house. Too many clicks, buzzes and thumps in here to really get any rest. Nothing like a hospital couch to make you appreciate the wonders of Tempurpedic.

I’d step outside to get some fresh air, but there are too many patients out there in their hospital gowns smoking with their low-rider driving, wife beater wearing boyfriends. Oh well, my tax money has to go somewhere.

I’ll go ahead and post this before I get any meaner.

Under Pressure

No, I'm not referencing the Queen song than Vanilla Ice ripped off.
I'm referring to Joan's blood pressure.

This has been one of the most uncomplicated pregnancies in history, until this week.

Wednesday, Joan started having elevated blood pressure. She was placed under observation Wednesday and Thursday but it was never high enough to warrant taking any action.

This morning, Saturday, March 29, some lab results came back showing signs that inducing labor would be a good idea. At about 10 in the morning, the on call doctor told us to head on over whenever convenient.

We checked in right at noon and the process has started.



She's on some drug right now that they'll run for at least 12 hours before administering Pitocin, the real labor drug.

At this point we're hanging out at the hospital until sometime after midnight when they'll plug in the good stuff and really get the ball rolling.

I can plug the laptop in at the family waiting area, and i'll post up if anything happens worth talking about. By this time tomorrow, we should have a kid.

Jumping The Gun

Brad and Lindsey got a big surprise from the Easter Bunny last weekend.

On Easter Sunday, the great State of Texas welcomed its newest citizen into the world, Mr. Gabriel Marcel Pecot. They picked Gabriel because they wanted to call him Gabe, and Marcel is the middle name of Kirby (Brad's dad)

The little guy weighed in at 5 lbs 12 ozs and was somewhere in the range of 19.5 inches long, if my memory is correct.



He came a few weeks early due to some complications but both he and Lindsey are doing fine after what was apparently a very short labor.

Congrats Pecots.

You won this first round, but we're coming back.

They're Everywhere

Seems like no matter where we go, someone else is pregnant too.

As mentioned previously, Cousins Shane and Tara are expecting their third tax deduction, shortly after us.

I previously attempted to embarrass Tara, by posting the onesie Shane bought which used a common slang term for the mammarial organs.

Now, I give her recognition by posting the mandatory, belly to belly side shot from Easter.



And even though Tara isn't sporting quite the horizontal, shelf style belly that Lindsey was carrying around, there was still much bending necessary for a good solid hug.




Based on my experiences Sunday with their other two descendants, Darby and Lillian, the new one will have never have trouble finding a playmate and a ready source of exercise.
(Though (s)he may be sore for a few days after. Not that I'm sore from playing with two kids for half an hour or anything. 'Cause I'm definitely not.)

The Lair

Just over two weeks left now, and, as far as we can tell, we've got all of the hardware here set up and ready to go.

The beautiful closet, by Cajun Closets, has been stocked with clothing and stuff.



We really have alot of storage space in that bad boy. We're taking up maybe a third with the infant clothes, so we've got plenty of room for growth as the clothes, themselves, get bigger.

The changing station is ready for Joan to change the hundreds of diapers that are sure to come.



We may need to move the horse though, so he doesn't get any unexpected showers.

Another component of the room is this beautiful "Moses basket" given to us by Lance and Kimberly.



I'm no Old Testament scholar, but from what I remember, old Moses' Mom shipped him down river in one of these things. So, if anyone finds our boy slowly cruising down the Vermilion somewhere around Abbeville, he was probably crying too much and we needed to sleep. Please return him once he quiets down.

And finally, the little prince's throne is all ready.



Notice the Big Brother style video surveillance we have set up. All you old folks may have had to actually use your ears to hear a baby crying in the other room, but we young 'uns can rely on wireless video technology (with night vision). The monitor even hooks up to the tv so you can see the baby in 42 inches of HD goodness if you are that obsessed. (just kidding... the quality is nowhere near HD, yet)

I'm sure Joan will use the monitor to watch and cherish every breath from her little angel.
I've basically got the camera there to get the child acclimated to the steady march toward the 24/7 surveillance society that Mr Bush, Mr Durel and all of your other elected (and unelected) government officials want. But they're doing it "for the children," right? so it's ok, huh?

(Thinks to self: Alright, alright, bring the blood pressure back down, get back on topic)

Which reminds me, everyone should go see Horton Hears a Who. The animation is ridiculously awesome, and the story line is great, not just for kids, but also for adults who are conscious of the state of affairs around them.
Definitely of Toy Story caliber in my book.

Other Changes

Of course the biggest change coming up in our lives right now is the addition of a kid to the family. I've heard that is pretty drastic.

That isn't the only major change though.
As some of you know already, after two and a half years, I will be leaving Briney and Foret in the next couple of weeks.

Sometime after Easter I will be joining the firm of Saloom and Saloom, founded by Judge Kaliste Saloom Jr. back in 1945.

The firm does a variety of stuff from personal injury to wills and estates, civil, criminal, corporate, banking and military law. It's going to be a great opportunity to explore a whole lot of different law.

On the litigation end of things I'll be working for the plaintiff side instead of the defense side, which I'm looking forward to.

If you're ever down at the parish courthouse (that's the not pretty one), whether for jury duty or because you are a criminal, pop over across the street and say Hi.

I want to thank everyone at B&F for their help and friendship over the last 2 years. I'll miss the great people here.

I must give special thanks to my awesome secretary, Nicole, who has balanced being a great secretary with beating that mean old cancer in the last year, and done both very well. So, if you are doing the Race for the Cure this weekend, and decorating yourself up with those pink signs, be sure to add Nicole H. to your sign. She deserves the recognition.

Triple Threat

Despite great weather outside, this weekend was very showery.

Working backwards: Sunday was Joan's "family shower", and Saturday night was Brad and Lindsey's "friends shower." To kick it all off though, Saturday morning Aunt Connie and Cousin Amy threw a shower at our house for Liz and Caroline.

The decor was decidedly more pink than for our shower.



Lots of folks got a chance to get some face time with Caroline, which should hold them over for a while.

Caroline's birth appears to have activated a new area of Paul's brain for him to explore (which is good because he was running out of things in the outside world to learn).

He's been inspired to start a blog about his adventures in the kitchen and in the nursery over at CookingDaddy.com

I'd try to write an interesting description, but he has done better than I ever could ( near PhD trumps a JD in writing skills):

Come one, come all, to cookingdaddy.com! witness as a pirate/economist/rock musician attempts to wear two additional hats: that of a daddy (vomit-shielding pith helmet) and that of a cook (hot grease-shielding pith helmet)!

watch as i attempt to change a diaper after two sleepless nights in a row! gasp as i set off to bake a “pasta thingie” without ever having glanced at a recipe or indeed cooked anything similar, ever!

would you let that guy anywhere NEAR your kitchen, much less your baby? No, of course you wouldn’t, because you’ve got at least as much sense as the average marmoset!

and yet, HE is ME! yes!! and somehow, not only is my kitchen still in oneish piece after two years of my abuse, but i have YET to trim my beard, despite the fact my daughter ripped out 2 pounds of my facial hair in the first week of her life so that my face appears to have wooly caterpillars hanging off of it instead of a beard!

interested? intrigued? vaguely horrified? stick around, it’ll only get better!

So, check it out. I'd expect content within the next week despite his busy student/daddy schedule.

Things will likely be slow on this page for the next month or so, unless, unlike Santa and the Easter Bunny, little Cajun Baby Wallace decides to come early.

But check back every once in a while. You never know when I might get an idea in my head that I need to put into someone else's head, for my own mental health.

Third Strike

The third and final storm of our shower season hit this weekend.

Thanks to Aunt Connie (The crafty cake maker) and Cousin Amy (The practical parent), for putting it all together, along with Aunt Sherie (The elegant hostess), for providing the facilities.

The theme was some sort of post apocalyptic setting, where rubber ducks have become pirates and taken over the world.



Ok, maybe thats a little stretch, but there were plenty of rubber ducks, pirates, and pirate rubber ducks to go around.



And as usual, Connie rose to the occasion with the ridiculously crafty idea of making pacifier decorations out of 2 lifesaver mints and a jelly bean.



Way to go Connie.
Even MacGyver is impressed with that one.


(sorry, I couldn't resist using my preschool level Photochop "skills" to make that extremely out of proportion pic)

Neither of us is pirate obsessed, but once we registered for the bedding, the theme kinda took off on its own. We're fine with it. It is infinitely better (for us) than some generic sports theme, or lots of pastel flowers. Plus I'm already planning a really cool toddler bed (with a slide) to look like a pirate's hideaway.

In keeping with the theme, here's the pirate's booty plundered at the shower:



Notice the dozens of small rubber ducks. They are an overwhelming force.

And though these items weren't handed over at any shower, we must thank Heather and Trey for leasing us (at no cost, I think) their baby swing, baby seat, and two car seat bases. They were thoughtful enough, when having Lillian, to register for gender neutral colors, so our boy won't be getting all softened up when using their stuff.

Not only has borrowing their items saved us a good bit of money, it has played a small role in helping to save the environment, and you know, just by looking at what we drive, that we're all about stopping global warming. ;)

Nice Shirt , Breaux!

If you've been following things, you know that Paul and Liz had Caroline a couple of weeks ago, and now the Wallaces and the Pecots are expecting unnamed boys next month.

To add another name to the list, Joan's cousin, Shane, and wife, Tara, are expecting their third child in late May.

Shane and fam are Disney World connoisseurs. When it comes to a trip to the World, you can be sure that Shane has looked into everything, and enjoyment and efficiency will be maximized under his plan.

I'd be tempted to call him crazy for that level of involvement in a theme park trip, but this pot doesn't go around calling kettles "black."

I only point out this quirk to differentiate from a situation where I am willing to call them crazy. Just as they've done for their last 2, Shane and Tara have no plans to find out the gender of their baby.
More power to ya, but I couldn't even wait 20 weeks to find out, much less all 40. (Maybe not everyone's mind is as single track and obsessive as mine, which is a good thing for society)

This leads me to giving another "Courage in Gift Giving Award." This one goes to Shane for purchasing a pretty funny onesie. So funny, in fact, that Tara made him bring it here personally, so she wouldn't have to bring it to a shower and present it in the presence of our more gentrified families. (ha, ha)

Now, instead of the shower guests seeing it, the whole world (i.e., the five of you that read this) will see the offending garment:



Nice.

The Final Faceoff

Less than 6 weeks till the Wallace and Pecot babies are due.

Brad and Lindsey were in town this weekend for their "friends" shower, and it will probably be the last time we see them as non-parents. Lindsey's doctors won't want her straying too far from H-town for the next few weeks.



As you can see, by this point, both of the gals are obviously pregnant, not just carrying a little extra "holiday weight."

And let me tell you, you haven't seen humor until you've seen two short girls (with proportionately short arms) try to hug each other while each at least 32 weeks pregnant.



Best of luck to those two Texans and their Texan baby.

(meant all in jest. I am eternally grateful for their living in Texas, as Lindsey is my lifeline for good fajita meat and salsa)

In the closet

Last week we received the most unique gift for the baby, and the one gift I can GUARANTEE we will use more than any other (in that we'll use it 24/7).

First a little back story for the Non-Wallaces:
For the last few years my cousin Erin has been dating a really cool guy we'll call TJ ( Mostly because that's what everyone calls him).

TJ comes from a hard working, entrepreneurial minded family who has recently expanded into the custom closet and shelving business by becoming a local franchisee of the ClosetMaid Corporation. Erin holds down the sales end of things while TJ is the install guy (with help from Josh, too. Grad students always need cash)

In order to expand her portfolio, and, I'd think, give us a great gift, Erin approached us with the idea of installing a closet system for us in the nursery.

What was just a simple, boring closet



Has now been transformed with customizable shelves, sliding wire baskets, and 3 fully movable hanging bars on each side.



We don't have it all loaded up yet, but I'll be sure to post up when we do.
That system has exponentially increased the usable space we have, and I'm sure we will be even more grateful for it once the kid comes.
Thanks to Erin, TJ, Josh and anyone else who had a hand in this gift. It's great!

Now for the sales pitch:
For all of your closet and storage needs: bedroom, bathroom, garage, office, anywhere; contact Erin Wallace at Cajun Closets. All of the info you need is in the link to your right.

Disclaimer: Cajun Closets will not install your closet for free, but I'm sure their pricing is very reasonable.

Continued Showers in the Forecast

The Second Storm in this year's shower season arrived at our house last weekend.
Due to the living arrangements of Joan's gal friends, our house became the host location of the Co-Ed Friends Shower.

Thanks to everyone who came, and special thanks to Lesley, Heather (and Trey), and Virginia (and Mitch) for getting it all together. Even though it was at our house, they made sure we didn't lift a finger.

It was a mad house for a little while. There were 5 kids here between the age of 5 months and 14 months. Jimmy did quite well, even when being chased around by the bipedal tots.

Our guests were able to enjoy Central Grocery Muffulettas courtesy of Lesley, Heather's Hot Crawfish Dip, and a variety of finger sandwiches from Virginia's secret source (really, she protects this person's identity like a drug dealer)

Special thanks also to Ms. Rachel Lato (Heather's Mom) for making a pretty cool cake.




Yes, it's not your traditional cake, but it is modeled after the invitation to the shower.



Holding the distinction of being my oldest friend, and Joan's second oldest friend (behind me, of course) Lesley knew immediately that there would be no invitation in the world more fitting of us than that one.

Also, I must present the "Courage In Gift Giving Award" to my co-worker Ms. Kathleen Will. Despite being afflicted with near debilitating LSU Fan Disease (forgivable because she was in Tiger Band), Kathleen had the strength and good taste to venture into the Vermilion and White baby clothes section and get our boy some pretty cool little Cajuns gear. Good job Kathleen, there's still hope for you.

Now going to T&L's shower, a shower for Liz here, and a family shower for Joan next weekend and shower season will be done. (fortunately I'm only welcome at one of those)

And before we depart, let me grace you with my deep thought for the day. Just a small piece of wisdom I've gained in my many years on Earth:

Marriage is .........






.......always having someone to check your teeth before a photo.

Deep, huh?

Caroline Sophia

Tuesday, February 26, 2008, Caroline Sophia was born to Paul (Joan's brother) and Liz.

Those two are now the parents of a glowing baby girl.



OK, she doesnt actually glow. Thats one of the anti -jaundice, tanning bed blankets, but it makes for an awesome picture.

With no major complications for mother or child (or dad), they were able to head home a few days later.





The young 'un definitely has a gripping instinct, and within 24 hours was already taking a firm hold of her Dad's beard.



Congrats to Paul and Liz, and my only selfish request is that if Caroline has good looking , smart female friends, she be a good cousin and introduce 'em to our boy.