Busy busy bees....

Wow - this weekend has been crazy busy! All day Friday I spent grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning and overall just getting ready for our visitors.

My parents (Dad and Arlene) flew in from Edmonton and came straight over to see Carson around 4 on Friday. Carrie and the kids came over too and then Jeff's parents showed up around 6 (they left PEI at 4am that day and drove straight here). Then Jeff's brother and his wife came in from Toronto. It was a long night with lots of food, drinks, laughing and great company. Carson didn't have the best night, I either jinxed myself by saying what a great sleeper he was, or he was just too wound up after so many people passing him around.

Yesterday was a bit more relaxed, I stayed home most of the day - afraid to take Carson out because once he gets in his car seat he falls asleep for HOURS and I wanted to keep him awake for as long as I could yesterday. Then Micheal and Olivia came over and made us a wonderful dinner - lamb, tomatoes and green beans. Each dish was probably the best I had ever tasted, they always have amazing recipes.

Then Carson ate forever between 8 and 12 but then he slept till 4am! Got up and only ate one side for like 15 minutes and then went back to sleep till 7am - I couldn't believe it. Of course I had to get up to pump or else I would have exploded but I think the little gaffer was just overtired, so he caught up on his sleep last night.

Today we are going for Dim Sum at 11 and then to Carrie adn Rob's for New Years. My aunt and uncle and grammie (from NB) are in town for the weekend and we are all celebrating the new year together.

Now it's time for a shower and then a bath for the gaffer before we head out for lunch (everything always takes 10 times longer now)

Happy New Year everyone - I can't wait to see what 2007 has in store for us.

I love my son

Carson and his cousins

Last night Carrie, Rob and the kids came home from Durham so we had a little Christmas-exchange-presents night and ordered in Chinese - Ethan and Isabelle are in love with Carson.

We got home around 8pm, I fed Carson and then I went for a nap at 9. Jeff gave the gaffer formula around 10:30 and then he slept till 3am! So that was a 6 hour sleep for me, wow. We introduced formula last week, he gets one bottle at his 9 or 10 hour feeding which gives me a bit of a break and to get rested up for the night time. Honestly, he's a pretty good sleeper. As soon as he's done eating I put him in his crib and he may make a few grunting noises but then calms himself down and goes right to sleep. I know they say before 6 weeks it's too early to set a routine for a baby, but we've tried to introduce him to the day and night. At night, the lights are off, we speak quietly and don't try to entertain him. During the day, the lights are always on, we don't try and be quiet around him or anything like that.

This little guy sleeps ALOT. Yesterday he basically slept from 11am till 8pm - with feedings throughout the day. He's like his mommy, he loves to sleep.

Post-Christmas post

Christmas this year was very low key, but wonderful. Rather then facing the crazed shoppers on Boxing Day, we stayed home with our new son. Then we ventured out to Julie and Tim's for a bit (and acquired a baby swing on our trip!) Yesterday I took Carson out and met Jeff and Peter for lunch, my first time in a restaurant since Carson was born. It felt great to be out and feel "normal" again. Then we went to see Nadia and Sean with Linda and Paul and my mom and Ricky - poor Nadia is still pregnant and wishing/hoping that she goes into labour soon. I never got that pregnant and know how I felt when I was just 37 weeks so I can't even imagine at 39 weeks how she feels.

Carson is sleeping through the night (sleeping through the night is technically defined as only waking up to feed) but then he goes right back to sleep - sometimes for an hour, sometimes for two or three. I don't want to jinx ourselves but he's a pretty good baby so far.

Today Stella comes (our cleaning lady) so Carson and I must vacate the premesis (I have no idea how to spell that). Even if she wasn't coming, him and I have gone out every day, staying inside for a full day makes for a crazy Christy, and nobody needs that. I think we are going to go to KiddyTown and Costco.

It's a very exciting weekend, tomorrow Grammy and Grampy Gallant (from PEI) are coming for the weekend on their way to Florida. AND Grampie and Nana Walker (from Edmonton) are coming tomorrow and staying till Wednesday (but not staying with us) so Carson will meet 4 grandparents for the first time this weekend.


The little munchkin is happily in his Baby Einstein chair listening to Raffi and looking around - it's book reading time! Ciao.

A few pics....

Home by 7pm on Xmas Day - boy times change when you have a baby

Carson and Daddy are both taking a nap, so I decided to put up a few pictures. Our first Christmas together was perfect. Carson made out like a bandit, and so did Mommy (even though Daddy broke the price limit!!)

I hope everyone has/had a wonderful Christmas!!!!








I've created an account with imagestation so I'll be putting most of the pictures up there.... the link is here

Merry Christmas Eve!

I just opened a present from Carson to his mommy and daddy and it was new camera!!! I'm not sure how he made it all the way to the store, but he bought us the Canon PowerShot SD 800 - so I'm just clearing out the memory stick for our old camera, with a few pictures we took of Carson in the bath this morning and sucking his thumb - it's a pretty funny thing to see.

I'm very excited about our new camera, this one was taking blurry pictures and is about 3 years old so it's just getting old. I'll be sure to post new pictures of Carson's first Christmas in the next week.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Christmas Eve Eve

I can't believe it's the 23rd of December today. Where has the time gone? We didn't put up a tree this year either so it really doesn't feel like Christmas. We've just been so busy with everything else, it really snuck up on us this year.

But - already I can see how kids end up with so much stuff! Carson has been spoiled over and over again and it's not even Christmas yet. He got two Christmas packages in the mail that are safely under Grandma and Nono's tree for Christmas morning. I have to wrap presents for his stocking (as well as finish wrapping Daddy's presents) for his first Christmas. I was a tad emotional yesterday and called Jeff saying - I can't believe we are spending our first Christmas together as a family - my husband and new son. It's crazy, but I am so excited.

Jeff's out finishing up his Christmas shopping and doing the groceries. Our neighbours from across the street just stopped by with some presents for Carson and we had a nice little chat. It's horrible but I can't remember his wife's name , I keep telling Jeff he has to ask Sal her name but Jeff always forgets to ask. It's gone on too long now and it's a little ridiculous.

We went to Kate's annual Xmas party last night, Carson was a hit. We ended up staying at mom and Rick's house cause it was freezing rain and we didn't really want to risk driving home on the skating rink. It was Carson's first fussy night, he slept from like 11:30 - 3 but then just on and off for the rest of the night. He was a little stuffed up (so he kept snorting), he was probably over stimulated by the party and just wouldn't sleep. But then he slept for a bit today so hopefully he will catch up and not get overtired.

He's just lying on his turtle mat now looking at the fish hanging from the ark, he's looking a tad drowsy so I am going to try and put him down for a nap.

Just cause I think he's the cutest thing ever...

I had to post a few more pictures. But it's my blog and I can do with it as I please.

I'm looking forward to Jeff being home for 4 days :) I just gave Carson a bath all by myself - normally Jeff and I had been doing it together but Carson was happily awake so I figured I'd see how I would fare. We did pretty good - I had been using our towels to dry him before and I forgot we had got some cute baby towels, so I yanked those out.

Carson got an adorable Baby Einstein outfit last night from Ethan and Isabelle for Christmas and a teething ring. He just got his first package delivered to him today, but we are saving that to open Xmas morning (thanks Auntie Annette and Uncle Mark).

Well Carson's starting to let me know he's finished playing on his turtle mat and needs some loving.

xo

I love the sun...

I don't know how I could have made it through the past couple of weeks without the wonderful gorgeus sun. Carson and I just went out for a little walk and soon we are going to pick up Daddy and head to the hospital to see the lactation consultant for the last time.

I want to try the cross cradle position for breastfeeding and I tried it myself a few times but was never really shown how to do it so I want to learn the tricks of the trade as I think it will be a better position for me - especially as Carson gets bigger. Plus, we get to have him weighed and I'm excited to see how much he weighs!

We are having a problem with him wetting himself. I'm sure we are putting on the diaper correctly (I've done it a million times) but his back always gets soaking wet! I don't know if the diaper is leaking or what, but I'm going to have to figure out what we are doing wrong. Yesterday I changed his clothes 5 times! I don't mind changing him, or doing the laundry, I just don't want him to be sleeping in wet clothes, how uncomfortable is that?

Hanging on my turtle mat

Carson is hanging on his turtle map, listening to Raffi (thank goodness for Max Trax Treehouse!) and just looking around and smiling (sure, you say it's gas but as a mom, I say it's a smile)

He's such a good boy - he has a fussy time around 8-11 at night but the rest of the day he's a really really good baby. When he's awake he's calm and just looks around and chills out, when he's hungry he cries, he's a good eater and he's so fricking cute.

It's hard, as parents, to know what's right and what's wrong. You don't want to instill habits in him but he's also only 3 weeks old. He takes a soother, he LOVES his soother, but we only give it to him when he gets fussy or can't calm himself down. He doesn't like getting his diaper changed cause he gets cold, so we just make sure he's nice and warm and then it isn't so bad. We gave him his first bath (in the tub) last night instead of just a sponge bath and he was so good! He slept in his crib last night for the first time (during the night). I can definitely hear when he gets up to be fed, but I was having issues sleeping through his little grunting and moaning when he was in our room, so he's moved now. I kept the bassinette in the nursery too just in case...

I'm going to go sing to him a little more now (thank god no one else is around to witness this) then we are going for a walk, and then to Babies R Us to do a few returns!

xo

Babe asleep in Daddy's arms

A few thoughts...

Breastfeeding is getting easier - I'm going back to the lactation consultant tomorrow to get them to show me the cross-cradle hold, I was shown the football position at the hospital and that's what I've been using. I've tried the cross cradle a few times, but I want to know all the tips and tricks to get it done right as I think it may be the right hold for me.

I think Carson is going through a growing spurt right now, he's eaten about every 2 hours today (as opposed to every 3 for the first two weeks)

The playgroup in Riverside South is closed for the holidays and opens again on January 8th.

He'll get weighed at the lactation consultant, I can't wait to see the scale as I'm hoping he's past his birth weight.

I didn't get any presents wrapped today, we went to mom's instead and took a nice big long walk to the bank (well, long for me since the surgery), I think it's good for the baby to get some fresh air. I know how cranky I get being inside the house all day long so I'm sure it feels good to him to get out too.

He LOVES his car seat - as soon as he gets bundled up in there to go somewhere he falls asleep immediately, and stays asleep for so long! We're supposed to take him out of the car seat and put him on a flat surface (says the public health nurse) but I've been told by so many brilliant mothers - never wake a sleeping baby!

Daddy and baby are sleeping right now, I find it hard to sleep, I always have one ear open to hear him cry and always have a million things running through my head that needs to get done. Wow, to be a mother, you never know what it entails until you are one.

xo

Daddy went to work this morning so Carson and I are hanging out by ourselves. We had a busy day yesterday - we went to mom and ricky's for lunch and the whole family was there. Ethan kept asking me why baby Carson was biting my boobies - pretty damn cute.

It's hard typing with one hand so i will update later - now we are going to wrap some Xmas presents. I can't believe it's just a week away!!!!

Back to my baby boy...

Carson was 7 lbs 4 oz when he was born - his discharge weight was 6 10. He's having steady weight gain now and at our appt on Wednesday he was at 7 lbs 1 oz - so mommy and daddy are very happy with his growth so far!

He is a very good sleeper (most often sleeps for the most part during the night, waking only to eat and then going back to sleep) and he's just a tad fussy around 8 till 11pm when he's with his daddy (and mommy is taking her pre-nighttime nap).

Breastfeeding isn't easy, I can tell you that. Especially when the little gaffer (his daddy's pet name for him) falls asleep after eating on one side. Normally we'll change him between sides to wake him up a little. Oh - and he fills his diaper lots of times during the day, another good sign that he's eating lots and getting what he needs.

He's upstairs sleeping right now, so I had time to do a load of laundry, tidy up a bit and just have some time to myself. Jeff went into work today, after the public health nurse left, I need to start getting used to having Carson by myself, I've had help all the way through so far.

Oh - and any of you ladies having babies, I encourage you to take the public health nurse up on her offer of coming by for a vist within the first few weeks the baby is here. Our nurse was wonderful, she even came by again today to check up on me because as I hinted in my blog, I had been having a bit of a rough time. I'm doing better, each day seems to get a bit better and after talking to so many people I realize that I'm normal and lots of new moms go through this.

Sorry this post was all kind of random thoughts, but I wanted to let you all know how our little guy is doing as well as mommy and daddy. So now, I leave you with a few pictures. The adorable penguin outfit was from Carson's Zia Pina - she came over to mom and ricky's yesterday while I was there to see the newest little Gallant!

Thank you...

Thanks to everyone for your e-mails, phone calls and words of wisdom. I haven't had a chance to get back to everyone but every little word helps :)

I'm feeling a bit better, the crying episodes are not as frequent or as long as they were earlier in the week. I constantly have a lump in my chest, a feeling of dread or something - I can't exactly pinpoint what it is, but I have a fantastic support system and my friends and family have rallied around and are definitely helping the situation.

I'm off to take a nap now

And now it sinks in...

Jeff and I are opposites, that's why we work so well together. I am the romanticist (living often in my own dream land) and Jeff is the logical half. The whole time I was pregnant I was thinking about getting my little guy dressed in little outfits, celebrating birthdays etc... Jeff was thinking about the every day life. Now that we are parents, it's sunk in. We are responsible for this little guy for the next 18 years, and let me tell you, it's overwhelming.

The past few days I've been crying non-stop and just wanting to stay in bed and not talk or see anyone. It's brutal. If anyone asks me how I'm doing I burst into tears. I am completely overwhelmed, the only thing that consumes my thoughts are Carson and when he needs to eat next. I just feel like a milk machine and that's all I'm here for. It's hard. I never thought I would have these feelings, and sometimes I feel like it's wrong. But, I think (or at least I hope) that alot of new parents have these same feelings.

I have absoloutely no appetite, I've been drinking ensure to make sure I have at least something in my stomach. I get hot sweats, I am anxious and I'm just all around sad. And I'm never sad.

Sorry this is such a blah post, but just in case any new parents are reading this and maybe feeling the same way, you aren't the only one. Don't get me wrong, I look at Carson and my heart swells, I love him so much. I just am really struggling with all these other feelings. I'm going to see my doctor tomorrow just to be re-assured that I'm normal.

Just a quick picture

Jeff couldn't resist taking this picture of Carson tonight while he was sleeping.



We have gotten into a little routine, at least for the past couple nights. I take two naps between his 4-5 pm feeding and his 8-9pm feeing. Then I stay up through the night with him and Jeff gets a few good hours sleep. No point in him staying up through the night, he can't feed him!

Jeff has been absoloutely wonderful, demanding I take my naps and doing mostly everything around the house.

We keep looking at our beautiful boy and just can't believe what we've done. It's amazing. He's gorgeus and already has his own little personality, which I know will only keep growing and changing daily.

We have our first pediatrician appt tomorrow morning and I am visiting my family doctor to have him check my incision, the right side is feeling a little funny and I want to get it checked out. I'm a tad stressed about taking him out for a few hours and when he gets hungry - where am I going to feed him? I don't think I'm comfortable enough to breastfeed in public so maybe we will just get back in the car in between appts, and I will feed him there (read: the car is PARKED, not while driving just in case some of you think I've lost my mind).

I'm a tad emotional these days and will just be looking at Carson and will burts into tears and just consumed with so much happiness I can't contain myself.

Whoops

Forgot to add, he was 7 lbs, 4 oz when he was born. He dropped down to 6 lbs, 10oz before we left the hospital so he's hopefully going to start chunking up from the formula.

Recovering from a C-section is definitely harder than I thought it would be, I was telling the nurse that taking care of a newborn would be much easier if you didn't just go through labour.

I don't know how or why anyone would do it without an epidural, I like my drugs too much.

Ok, Carson is up and is a hungry hippo.

You honestly don't know how much you can love another human being until you look your new son or daughter in the eyes, it's absoloutely amazing.

And they say Christmas doesn't come early....

For us it came 11 days early and we couldn't be happier.

On Thursday I went for a nice long walk, did a few squats and at night sat on an exercise ball for an hour (thanks Rob) and the next morning at 6:45, my water broke! I wasn't sure that was it at first, but then Jeff said - what else could it be?

We took showers, packed our hospital bag (see what procrastination does?) and headed to the hospital around 8. I was hooked up to the fetal monitor and just kind of hung out for a few hours. I wasn't having contractions at that point so we were just kind of waiting. Around 11 they hooked me up to IV for oxytocin to start contractions (it doesn't induce labour because technically I was in labour because my water broke). They came on shortly and just got stronger and stronger as the day went on. I wasn't dialating though - around 6 I was finally dialted 1 cm (I was SO happy to hear I finally was dialating) and was told the hardest part is getting to be 4cm dialated, so I figured we would be there a while.

The rest is pretty much a blur, I got the epidural around ten to 8 ( Jeff said I didn't stop talking about the epidural and I remember wanting to buy everyone I knew an epidural and give them out as stocking stuffers, I think I told the nurse that) it was the best thing that ever happened to me. I kind of dozed on and off and around 10 they noticed the baby's heart rate was quite high and they were concerned. 10:30 comes and the doctor isn't liking the heart rate at all so they tell me a C-section is required. When they tell you your baby is in distress, you don't care what needs to be done, you are willing to do it. I was wheeled into the OR and at 11:15 Carson was born. As soon as Jeff said it's a boy - I said, of course it is!

After my surgery was over, they wheeled me into the nursery (in the pics below) and was allowed to hold Carson for a few minutes. They I didn't see him again until around noon the next day. Jeff was able to go and see him in the nursery but I was recovering from the C-section so I couldn't. That was the hardest part, not being able to see my little boy.

I finally got him for good Saturday night around 3 in the morning. I started feeding him from then on. His weight dropped during our stay and got pretty close to his 10% weight so he's being supplemented with formula right now.

Anyways, I was so anxious to come home (he fed STRIGHT for 7 hours on Sunday night and I wasnt' anxious to go through that again in the hospital) so the wonderful nurse let us come home last night. It was SO much better to be in my own home, we are all doing well. I'm sure I am leaving out a million things, but he's sleeping, I'm eating my breakfast and trying to get a few things done around the house.

I'll post again when I can, but this whole thing is pretty new to me, so who knows.

Thank you everyone for your e-mails, I'm sure you will understand that I won't be getting back to you anytime soon.

Proud parents, Christy and Jeff

xxoxoxoxo

It is BEAUTIFUL outside

So I'm taking a long brisk (well, as long as I can make it) walk and taking advantage of this weather!

Our cleaning lady comes in the afternoon, so I think I'll take off and hopefully finish my Christmas shopping.

I'm having a few menstrual type cramps and I felt rather nauseous this morning while Jeff was driving me to mom's to pick up the other car, not sure if it means anything but I'm just happy to start feeling a bit different.

38 weeks!

Where does the time go?

I'm exhausted. I left the house at 8am and just got back at 8pm. Went out for a yummy breakfast with Kaethe and Julie, then went shopping for Christmas presents and baking goodies, then went and spent 7 hours baking at mom's with Nadia and Carrie! All that standing, baking, cleaning etc... really took it's toll on me. My back is quite sore and my feet hurt. But, that's what I get for being 38 weeks pregnant I guess :)

Although, now I do have oodles of Christmas cookies and squares for the visitors we are bound to get once Baby G decides to make his/her grand entrance.

We purposely left the Civic at Mom and Ricky's tonight (Jeff met me there) so I don't have a car tomorrow, so inevitably I will stay home. Otherwise, I get ansy and I always have to get out during the day. Tomorrow, I won't be able to go anywhere (except for my walk) which is a GOOD thing. Remind me of this tomorrow after lunch when I'm itching to go out. I have a pedicure booked for Friday, a Christmas party Saturday night and dinner at our house on Sunday night.

I'm starting to sit on my exercise ball at night (hey, they use it in the hospital to help bring on labour, anything is worth a try!) and I think I may start lifting heavy things again ;)

Must.Stop.Shopping

Today's random purchases:

- Ovol
- Tempra
- Small bottle of penaten (for on the go changing station)
- Breast pump attachments
- Lamaze toy (for Baby G's stocking)
- Grobag! (I had been looking at ordering one online and it was going to be $40 (without shipping), found the EXACT one I had been looking at online at Boomerang (second hand) for $8.99 - SOLD)
- Lamaze toy (to go on stroller) and Bag of Links (again, from Boomerang)
- Books (see pictures and comments below)
- Diaper pail for nursery
- Little stuffed dog (so soft) for Baby G's stocking
- Christmas decorations (each year the girls and I exchange a decoration)
- Stocking for Baby G

I went to the Kiddytown warehouse here in Ottawa and it was fantastic - we spent so long in there. Then I came home and am spending a relaxing afternoon with my sick husband (of course, not getting too close cause if I get sick, someone is going to die).

Kim & Kara - I went to Chapters today and got 3 awesome books for Baby G! Thanks for the gift certificate, it was such a great idea. It was a crazy reminiscing session at Chapters looking through these books that I remember reading as a child. These are the ones I bought:

This is what I wanted...

to wear to bed last night.

Nursery pictures

All we need now is blinds and we are DONE!





Oh! And sonya - was it SWEET PEA you were looking for? I saw it at Babies R Us on Thursday, it was in the gift for babies section. It was white....

Fridays!!

Even though I'm off work now, it's still exciting that it's Friday. It means Jeff will be home for two days and the weekend is always more exciting then weekdays, no matter if you are off work or not.

Tonight Lisa is having a non baby shower/baby shower for me, and I'm really looking forward to it.

I've planned a baking day for next week! Carrie, Nadia, Mom and I are going to spend Tuesday afternoon doing Christmas baking. I figure it will be good to have some treats on hand for the company we expect to get once the baby comes. I won't be waiting on people hand and foot or anything, but who doesn't like homemade baking? I'm not exactly the domestic type, but I'm better than I used to be, baby steps... it's all about baby steps.

Well - I think the baby may have dropped. The past few days, the feelings I'm getting are much different then they have ever been and they are much further down then they ever have. I'm feeling more pressure in the front, so maybe that's what it is? Nadia said it looked like I've dropped in the past week, so maybe I have? It's hard to tell, so who knows.

The only weekend plans is Lisa's tonight, cleaning lady appt tomorrow and Grace's birthday on Sunday - besides that, we have no plans which makes me happy. We have a few things to do around the house and I'm looking forward to spending some time with my wonderful husband.

Things I bought or received today

- Mobile for crib
- Glider chair for bedroom (SO nice and comfy!)
- Baby Einstein rocker chair
- Bassinette (stand up)
- Bassinette (wooden one that's been through a dozen babies for the past 30 years)
- Stroller
- Snuggly for carseat
- Snot sucker

VERY successful day. Plus, I decided on at least one book to get with my gift certificate from Indigo (what a fantastic idea - thank you cuz's!) - Goodnight Moon.

Let it be noted that I have absoloutely wonderful, generous friends and family. You can't imagine how much we have been spoiled already.

Promised Jeff I wouldn't go shopping tomorrow (who knows if I can keep my promise or not) and then my non-baby shower baby shower tomorrow night, which I am VERY much looking forward to (Kaethe and I may ride our bikes over to Lisa's!)

My only goal for the week was really to get my hospital bag packed... which hasn't even been started yet. Tomorrow... there's always tomorrow.

Day 1

Honestly? I probably did more today then I normally do at work, so right now I'm beat.

Jeff needed the Matrix today so I was stuck with the Civic and let me tell you getting in and out of that car isn't as easy as it once was. I told him I couldn't drive that car much longer, so tomorrow I'll be sticking close to home becuase the Matrix needs to go into the shop all day for a service call.

Doctor's appt was fine, the whole waiting kills me. I'm in the waiting room for 45-50 minutes and then the appt takes less than 5 minutes. Baby's heart rate was 150 (highest yet), I'm measuring perfectly, my blood pressure was 113/76 and no protein in the urine. So, all in all a good appt. I had the feeling tha tmaybe the baby 'dropped' from the way my stomach looked and I asked Dr. F about it. He said some babies make their way down slowly, whereas some drop quickly and it's normally the latter where the mother feels it 'drop'. Next appt is Monday.

Tomorrow? Packing my hospital bag, making a yummy potato and leek soup.

Oh! I almost forgot! Saturday morning our cleaning lady comes to check out the house and then starts next week. That's right. We are getting a cleaning lady. I like keeping things tidy and clean but I HATE scrubbing floors, cleaning the oven, the bathtubs, the toilets, dusting etc..... so, we are getting a cleaning lady. I'm so VERY excited. My only decision now is whether to get her to come in on the Monday (after the weekend rush?) or Thursday (before the weekend rush?).

Yet more myths....

1. Heartrate "A heartrate of less than 140 beats per minute means that you're having a boy while a heartrate of over 140 beats per minute means that you're having a girl." Although this particular myth has been kicking around for decades, there's only one study on the books that supports it: a 1993 study at the University of Kentucky that concluded that the fetal heartbeat could be used to correctly predict the gender of 91% of male fetuses and 74% of female fetuses. Every other study conducted before or since has reached the exact opposite conclusion -- that the fetal heart-rate can't be used to predict the gender of your baby.

The baby's heartbeat has always been over 140

2. The shape of your belly "If you're carrying your baby high, it's a girl. If you're carrying your baby low, it's a boy." If you've managed to get through nine months of pregnancy without having someone predict the gender of your baby based on the shape of your belly, count your blessings! Many people still lend credence to a rather sexist bit of English folk wisdom that states that boys are carried down low and out front because they need greater independence while girls are carried up high and across their mother's body because they need greater protection -- the origin of this particular gender prediction myth.

I'm carrying low (although some people have said high, I think I'm carrying length wise so it's both high and low)

3. Morning sickness "If you are experiencing severe morning sickness, you're having a girl." Theories such as this one have been tossed around for years, but a recent study added more fuel to the fire. Swedish researchers discovered that 56% of women hospitalized with severe morning sickness ended up giving birth to baby girls. Even if there is something to this study -- something that's led to more than a few heated arguments among obstetricians -- the findings aren't exactly definitive. At best, you can conclude that you may have a slightly higher-than-average chance of having a baby girl if you're feeling exceptionally crummy. It's up to you whether you want to paint the nursery pink on that basis!

Yay for me - no morning sickness

4. The baby is active "If the baby is very active, you're having a boy." Here's yet another theory based on some rather sexist assumptions: males are boisterous while females are placid. What this theory fails to take into account, however, is the fact that the amount of fetal activity that the mother feels is largely a matter of perception. If she's running around at breakneck speed all day, she may fail to pick up on the movements of all but the most energetic of fetal kickboxers!

This baby is super active

5. Cravings "If you're craving sweets, you're having a girl. If you're craving salt, you're having a boy." While it would be convenient if you could rely on your craving for chocolate as proof positive that there's a baby girl on the way, there's no hard evidence that cravings are linked to the gender of your baby. In fact, the jury's still out on whether cravings exist at all! So don't count on your cravings -- real or imagined -- to tell you whether to buy pink or blue.

Craving sweets WAY less then I thought I would

6. Pendulum or circle swing "If a wedding ring or needle suspended over your belly moves in a strong circular motion, you're having a girl. If it moves to and fro like a pendulum, you're having a boy." This particular method of predicting the gender of your baby works much like a ouija board. Micro-muscle tremors over which you have no control cause the ring to move in a particular direction -- a sensation that can be spooky to say the least, but that doesn't tell you a thing about the gender of your baby.

Kaethe's mom did it twice, circles both times

7. The Chinese conception chart "The Chinese conception chart can tell you if you're having a boy or a girl." The Chinese conception chart -- the brainchild of a 13th century scientist -- claims to be able to help you to predict the gender of the baby by linking your age and the month of conception to the gender of the baby. While it has a reputation for being highly accurate in China, it simply hasn't been able to stand up to the same scrutiny here in North America

There are different chinese conception charts - I've gotten both boy and girl (most often girl though)

Reasons to be happy

1/ It's my last day of work
2/ I'm 37 weeks pregnancy
3/ We are going out for dinner for Ricky's birthday tonight
4/ I had a great time out with the girls last night
5/ I slept for 5 hours last night (which is more than 3!)

Almost all these reasons are counter-acted with the fact that I have a COLD SORE!!! I just felt it a few minutes ago. I went downstairs to the pharmacy and there were two medications:

Abreva and Lipactin. LIpactin said don't use if you are pregnant or nursing. Abreva said nothing about being pregnant. Because this is the kind of stuff I deal with on a regular basis (indications for drugs), I came upstairs, looked on e-cps and found that Abreva is safe and Lipactin is recommended to not use. This far along in my pregnancy, the heparin (in Lipactin) as a blood thinner wouldn't do any harm (especially as it's such a small amount) but I won't risk it and I'm going to buy the Abreva (of course, the more expensive of the two, by alot!)

Just my luck.

A poll!

Free polls from Pollhost.com

Is Baby G a boy or a girl?

Boy Girl No idea

Monday....

Second last day of work, I can't believe it. Although I had the worst sleep ever last night, so I'm quite thankful that I'm almost done work.

I'm very much looking forward to dinner tonight with Kerri, Emma, Vanessa, Jenny and Tammy (and Lisa, if I can convince to leave work early enough!). Feeling a tad guilty for missing aquafit, but it will be my first class I missed since I joined, so the guilt will go away (especially while munching on the vegetarian thai noodle salad I love so much from Milestone's).

I have a few gift certificates in my wallet so I may head to Bayshore after work and see what I can see. I went to Thyme maternity to pick up some PJ's, but I didn't like the way they looked on me and they fit kind of funny. It's hard to buy things to wear once the baby is here because trying things on with this basketball of a stomach kind of skews the way things look.

Oh well, I have enough pairs of pjs and lounging clothes to keep me warm, toast and comfy for the first couple of weeks.

Goals for the week:

1/ Have my bag packed by Sunday
2/ Get our car seat and stroller (Julie and Tim are very generously lending us theirs!)
3/ Pick up the glider chair from mom's
4/ Find ihle's paste (I probably didn't spell that right, apparently REALLY good cream, and much less expensive then Penaten)
5/ Address thank you cards and get them sent out
6/ Paint the stars that will be going up in Baby G's room

I'm sure much more will get done, but that's it for now. Well, except for probably the most important thing...

PICK A BOY'S NAME!!!!! We have it narrowed it down to 4 for a girl's name, and I'd love to be able to have a list of boy's names that we would actually consider. Our latest, we love, but everyone gives us a second look when we tell them... but I'll save that for a surprise if and when we use it.

I love clementines

And we are SO excited to find out whether this is a boy or a girl!!!!

A few pictures

Nadia and I (she's going to be induced mid-December!), and of course, the birthday boy and girl.

Jeff always laughs when we tell the kids about their new 'cousin'. Jeff often looks at me and whispers (well, it's really more a half-sister/brother) but they won't understand that for a few years to come.

I always get a little sentimental on their birthday, knowing that I played a role in them being here in the first place, always a reason to smile in November (there are otherwise, so few!)

Weekend musings....

Friday night's dinner was fantastic - thanks Jules and Tim. I've been craving more of your caesar salad all weekend now. Ethan and Isabelle's birthday party Sat morning was great, and chaotic. So many people, so many presents, the kids were on overload - so a tad cranky. Imagine having twenty different people shoving presents at you, trying to take your picture... I'd be cranky too. But, just a few minutes of crank and then all smiles again.

Then Jeff and I went to Bayshore, Reno Depot and FutureShop. Bayshore - a few more Xmas presents, Reno Depot to get the faux wood blinds for the nursery, (they were more expensive then I was anticipating, so we didn't get them. Apparently they will cut the blinds for free (our window is an irregular size so we can't buy any of the already cut sized blinds) - whereas at Home Depot you have the buy the custom blinds in order to get them to cut it for you. But, I'm going to check out a few more places before we head back to Reno) and finally FutureShop to talk to someone about cameras and camcorders. We need to buy one of each soon, so we are trying to narrow down which ones we want - so many choices! I think we are pretty sure what we want now.

Last night Kate and LJ came over for a yummy steak dinner, they brought a fabulous oreo cheesecake (doesn't it just SOUND fabulous).

And then, I fell in love with a hot water bottle and went to bed. I still have that really annoying pain on my right side at the top of my stomach and it kills. It feels better when I push down on it or, as I discovered last night, when I keep a hot water bottle on it.

Baby G is kicking up a storm and the crampy feelings are happening more often now, I really hope that's a sign of things to come, early. We are starting our nightly walks tonight, like Julie said - I just want to walk the baby out of me. I still have quite a ways to go, but I can try and do things to speed the whole thing up.

Almost off work....

3 more days left. I haven't been off work for longer than two weeks in over 8 years. (Edit: I think I was off for 2 weeks + 3 days for our wedding last summer)

I'm pretty sure I had my first contraction last night. Jeff and I had just got into bed and I was lying on my left side and a menstrual cramp feeling started, but then got painful, uncomfortable and I had to control my breathing while it was happening.

I've never had a contraction before so I can't say for sure if that's what it was or not, but it happened. Jeff looked at me and asked if I wanted to go to the hospital, I said no, I'm pretty sure it's just going to be pretty much happening on and off for the next little while. I'll let him know when I think it's time to go. Either way, we decided to get my bag packed this weekend. I doubt I'm going any time soon, but why put off the inevitable? It has to get packed sometime.

Yay for Fridays, tonight is dinner at Julie and Tim's, tomorrow is a birthday party for Ethan and Isabelle, tomorrow night is maybe the Sens game, Sunday is breakfast with Kate and LJ and then babysitting the twins in the afternoon while Carrie and Rob go to the home decor center and pick the hardwood, cabinets, counters etc... for their new house. Much easier to do without 2 almost-three year olds!

I don't eat alot of sugar, so it's funny because I'm drinking OJ and as soon as I started to drink it, Baby G started going nuts, sugar rush maybe?

Hospital stay...

As we all know, we had our hospital tour last weekend. My medical plan through work pays for a private room (so we are crossing our fingers that one is available, but we'll just have to wait and see how many babies decide to come that day!). The hospital tour lady was talking about the husband staying overnight. There is no cot, they can sleep on the chair (this completely uncomfortable chair) and I think they have two recliners (which most likely will not be available) so they advise dads to bring their sleeping bags and sleep on the floor.

Now, I just think it makes sense to send Jeff home for the night. My husband is not a great sleeper, I know there's NO way he'd fall asleep there. I will need him to be not as sleep deprived as me when we come home, so I want him to go home and get a good night's sleep.

I know we are in this together but he can get his sleepless nights and help me during the night once I get home, I have the nurses to help me and I'll be just fine. I can't understand wanting to put my husband through the hell of sleeping on a hospital floor when he could go home and sleep in bed.

Enough of that. Going to my compensatory advisor this morning to get all the forms signed and my leave of absence stuff done - 4 more days of work to go (I can't believe how much I have to get done in the next 4 days)

Surprise!

My work surprised me with cake today! It was a surprise (but I had a feeling it was happening) and there was about 40 people there.... it was super nice of them - I got a fantastic gift certificate from Babies R Us (PERFECT).

I had known it was going to happen and told Jeff what was happening - I'm not one for surprises and not one for being in a room with everyone looking at me, having to talk (little speech) and mingling. So Jeff was happy they were doing cause he thinks I need to be forced into situations like that so I can get used to it and build my social skills. He's right.

I am completely at home and comfortable with people I know, I love talking and entertaining etc... it's when there are people I don't really know (especially a large group), I'm not good at small talk and having people focus on me.

But, it was definitely nice of them to do it for me, and that's the end of Day 5 of the countdown. Now I'm off to meet my husband at my mom and Ricky's house.

Dr's appt...

Everything was good today.

Glucose - perfect
Blood pressure - perfect
Weight - lost another 1lb (that's 2 lbs in 4 weeks I've lost and gained nothing, but to look at me you wouldn't know it!)
Baby's heart beat - 149
Measuring - 33 weeks (apparently it's only if it's +-5 it's OK)

Dr. F started to talk to me about labour, I guess it's getting to be that time. He explained that if he wasn't on call that day/night then one of the other doctors would be there to deliver. He's on call the 10th and the 22nd. If I'm late, he said he'd induce me on the 22nd so 'junior' would be here before Christmas. I'm really hoping that he's here much before that, but he'll make his appearance when he's good and ready.

Next appt is next Wednesday (my first day off work). 5 days and counting.

Now I'm craving a salad, good thing that's what I have for lunch.

Book...

I promised I would post the name of the book a friend got me for my shower:

"Complete book of mother & baby care" from the Canadian Medical Association.

I'm all about medical books, and apparently this one is super helpful and even shows pictures so you know if a rash is normal, or something to see the doctor about (just an example). It's been ordered for me so I can't wait to get it.

http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/books/item/books-978155363014/1553630149/Cma+Complete+Book+Of+Mother+And+Baby+Care+Canadian+Medical+A?ref=Search+Books%3a+'complete+book+of+mother+%26+baby+care'

Week 36

Begins today.

As usual, I slept like a baby after aquafit last night. It's not necessarily that the class tires me out, I think it's just a mixture of a bit of exercise, the water and a hot shower afterwards. I could have stayed in bed for another hour or two this morning, but I will be able to soon enough (if only for a brief period)

A friend and I were just discussing old wives tales about whether or not I'm having a boy or girl, so I just took an online test (becuase we all know how reliable they are *grin*) and the results are...

You have a 38% chance of having a boy.
And you have a 61% chance of having a girl.

And Here's Why...You are carrying the extra weight out front, so it's a boy.
The hair on your legs is not growing any faster during your preganacy, so it's a girl.
Girls are carried high. You are going to have a girl.
Sleeping in a bed with your pillow to the north indicates that you will be having a boy.
Your feet are not colder than they were before pregnancy. You are having a girl.
You refuse to eat the heel of a loaf of bread. You are having a girl.
Dad-to-be hasn't been gaining weight along with Mom-to-be, so it will be a girl.
The maternal grandmother has gray hair, so a boy will be born.
You didn't have morning sickness early in pregnancy, so it will be a boy.
You are not looking particularly good during pregnancy. Therefore, it must be a girl, because girls steal their mother's looks.
Your chest development has been quite dramatic during pregnancy. You should expect a girl.
Since the sum of the mother's age at conception and the number of the month of conception is an odd number, it will be a girl.
A needle on a thread held over you belly moves from side-to-side, so it will be a girl.
Your urine is a dull yellow color, so you will have a girl.
You have a craving for salty or sour foods, which means that it is a boy.
Your nose hasn't changed during pregnancy, which indicates a girl.
You have been craving meats or cheeses, so it is a boy.
Your baby's heart rate is 140 or more beats per minute, so it's a girl.
Your belly looks like a basketball, so it's a boy.
You show them the palm of your hand, so it's a girl.
You use the handle, so it's a boy.

Which, I say is completely phooey (yes, I just said phooey) because in my heart of hearts I believe it's a boy.

Days Off...

Are great, but I've realized I will have to keep myself busy for the three weeks I'm off before the baby comes. I can't stay inside the house all day (unless I'm really sick), I just go crazy.

By about ten this morning I knew I had to get out of the house. So I did. We went to get the flu shot, went out for lunch, did a bit of shopping and then came home and finished my thank you cards.

So now I have a list (I LOVE lists) of one thing to do each day for the first three weeks I'm off work. If the baby comes early, well not everything has to get done, but at least I can keep myself busy if the baby doesn't come till he or she is supposed to. The list doesn't contain the normal 'clean house/do laundry/make dinner' things, just above and beyond the normal every day living things.

I'm getting SO excited to find out if we are going to have a daughter or a son! Jeff now thinks it's a girl, he's going for a girl - Dec 7th - 7 lbs and 12 oz. I am going for a boy - Dec 10th - 8 lbs 3 oz.

We'll just have to wait and see!

Oh - Oprah is GOOD today. It's about listening to the different baby cries and what each one means. I stopped watching it (it's being PVRd) and I want Jeff to watch it with me.

Flu shot...

I'm getting the flu shot tomorrow, it's recommended for "women in their third trimester of pregnancy if they are expected to deliver during the flu season, as they will become household contacts of their newborns" So I'm getting the shot because a) I'm in my third trimester and b) I will deliver during the flu season.

The hospital tour was good, super informative and I always like knowing what things look like, knowing in advance what's going to happen, where I'm going, what's available etc etc... feeling much more prepared now, and it's all much more a reality now. I know, I'm 8 months pregnant so yes, it's a reality. But somedays I think I'm still in denial.

The weekend's been great so far, I have tomorrow off so I think I'll do some cleaning around the house, a bit of shopping, visit the dr, go for lunch with my mom and sister and then off to aquafit tomorrow night. When I'm at the gym tomorrow I'm going to check my blood pressure to make sure it's not up.

For now...? Write my shower thank you cards and watch Cold Case.

Toodles

TGIF!

SO happy it's Friday. Just got back from Dr. Farrell's, my blood pressure was up. Like way up. Doctors always used to marvel at how low my blood pressure was (you will NEVER have heart problems if you keep up what you are doing. This of course, after my weight loss) and today it was 143/83. They tried it again, same thing. 30 minutes later, it was down to 124/72. The doctor wants me to check it out (at the gym when I go) and if it's over 140/80 I have to take it again 20 minutes later and if it's still up, I have to go to the hospital. This makes me sad.

BUT, it did prompt him to say that I should go on sick leave shortly. So I have a note saying I'm not able to work past the 17th of November, which is next Friday. I technically can't do everything I need to do before I leave by then so I'm going to work until the 21st of November. That will be exactly 3 weeks before my due date and while I didn't want to leave earlier than 2 weeks, things change and now I'm perfectly content leaving 3 weeks before my due date.

We have our hospital tour tomorrow (oddly enough, November 11th at 11am) . And three cheers for a long weekend.

Update on pediatrician

I've decided not to go with my own family doctor, I would rather the baby have an actual pediatrician then just a family doctor. Peter was over last night and said that the pediatrician on call at the time Jaeda was born took her on as a patient AND he's in the same building that our family doctor is in. I asked Jeff to talk to Dr. G when he went in on Monday to see if he could give us a referral (in case they work in cahoots) and I will ask Dr. F when I go in Friday to see if he has a list of pediatrician's accepting new patients.

Peter said their doctor is amazing, really thorough and great with Jaeda and Justen. So I'm gonna try and wrangle myself in there.

heh

I was changing into my pyjamas tonight (yes, it's only 6:30 - you wanna say something 'bout it?) and Jeff looks at my tummy and then says "I think we should pack our hospital bag this weekend"

:)

Bathing the baby....

Ok, so for those of you who know me, know my mother is very hand's on and likes her girls to be ready for everything. Yesterday we were testing out our new bathtub and finding the best place in the house to give the baby a bath. We don't have a ton of counter space in our bathrooms so it looks like the kitchen will be the best place. So my mother has this doll in her hand and she's trying to show Jeff how he's going to bathe the baby. Jeff is trying to look like he's really fascinated by what she's doing and asks if he can try. He takes the doll from her hand, pretends to fumble and drops the baby (on purpose). I'm howling, my mom is laughing and Jeff is proud of his little jokey joke.

Maybe you had to be there, but damn it was funny.

35 weeks!

Which means:

5 more aquafit classes
5 more weekends
14 more days of work (including today)
5 more episodes of Prison Break
6 birthdays

Before this baby is set to make his/her appearance in the world. The nursery is basically finished, I have everything I really need, so we are good to go. Feeling MUCH less stressed about things now.

I love

Aquafit. It's amazing how light I feel in the water, and likewise, how heavy I feel walking out of the water.

I had a full, long day. I'm tired, actually, exhausted. I overdid it today, was on my feet from 6am till I just sat down now after aquafit, at 9pm. Being back at work tomorrow will almost be a vacation from my weekend.

Night.

Weekend stuff

Jeff and I did all out Christmas shopping for the kids on Saturday morning - it took two hours, the store was INSANELY busy (Toys R Us) but we did it, it's done. SO happy.

Saturday afternoon was the dual baby shower for Nadia and I. It was fantastic. There were tons of people there, so it was nice to see everyone and catch up, as alot of them were from out of town or that I haven't seen in a while. It was great sharing it with Nadia, we opened our presents at the same time so not everyone was looking at me (I'm not one for being the center of attention). I got spoiled and got tons of wonderful presents - the people in my life are way too generous. I got a ton of cute little outfits, a high chair, the humidifier, sterilizer, set of bottles, nursing pillow/babysitter, books (including a medical book that my friend said she wished she had when she had her son, I'll post the name when I look through my bags), stuffed animals, bibs, toys, blankets (oh so soft!) and a ton of other stuff. Lucky for me I took the day off tomorrow to finish the nursery so I can put everything away.

After the shower last night, I took the twins back to my house for a sleepover. God those kids are adorable. I was pretty tired after the full long day, so I went to bed at the same time they did, we all got into bed together :) Of course, again today with the snow fall (eek!) they started jumping up and down because they know the snow means the baby is coming. Now anytime anyone talks about the show they always go on about my baby, I love it :) They were a tad confused though, because I bought a newborn outfit for a girl, and oen for a boy. Then whichever one we have, my mom will wash the outfit and bring it to the hospital and that's what we will take them home in (also with the cutest white linen over the top sleeper thing, thanks again Jules!). SO now ethan and Isabelle thinks that I will have two babies, one girl and one boy. Which makes perfect sense in their minds, because, well, they are twins and one girl and one boy.

Lisa and I went shopping for a few hours today and picked up some necessities that I needed for the nursery (baby monitor, change table pad, mattress cover, diapers, diaper bag...) We went to Walmart (hint: some of the stuff is cheaper there then Babies R Us) and then to Babies R Us, I finally feel that if the baby came next week, we'd be ready. Ok, not necessarily mentally ready, but physically ready - yes.

I'm sitting downstairs with my wonderful husband, we just made a batch of spaghetti sauce and are having garlic bread with it for dinner tonight. Then I have tomorrow off, my mom is coming over to help with the nursery, Ricky is coming to be his regular handyman with a few things around the house....then aquafit tomorrow night.

Life is pretty good these days, and it's only going to get better!

Pediatrician?

At what point do you have to find a pediatrician? Should I have one already? I had a dream about my baby's pediatrician and realized, I don't have one, when do I need one?

I'm trying to decrease my water intake (I don't drink anything else, maybe a glass of juice with dinner and milk with breakfast), but during the night last night I drank about 1/2L cause every time I woke up I was parched. Normally I drink about 700ml on the way to work each morning, this morning I only drank 200ml. I usually have about 3L during the day at work, I'm going to try and limit that to 1.5L. We'll see how I make out.

I'm still swollen, my face is a bit swollen, my hands and feet are definitely swollen and it's not a fun feeling. I really hope cutting back on my water helps.

TGIF!

Booooo!

I just had my bi-weekly dr's appt, and everything is fine (baby's hb is 149, no protein in my urine, measuring 31cm at 34 weeks, etc...) BUT I'm swelling. My hands and feet are swollen, so the dr tells me to lay off the fluids. Which, is hard to do because I'm thirsty. All. The. Time. I've been drinking around 5L of water a day (which isn't much different to prior to becoming pregnant...) He said just swish it around in your mouth and spit it out. That's just not going to cut it with me.

He asked me if I was still working, I said yes and he looked at me sideways. He told me to come back in a week, instead of 2.

I've had it so easy up to now! I'm a titch upset.

The pain on the right side of my chest (through to my back) that surfaces every once in a while is my expanding rib cage. So, nothing to worry about there.

Only Thursday..?

For some reason, this week has just dragged on.

I can't wait for the weekend - tomorrow night the gang's coming over for dinner and then Saturday is my shower and then I have the twins overnight. Sunday I think Jeff and I are hitting up Toys R Us to start and finish our Xmas shopping for all the kids (8 nieces and nephews and 5 other kids to buy for!) BUT I took Monday off, so I will be enjoying a nice 3 day weekend. It's another 3 day weekend the next weekend too, so really the countdown begins and I have 16 days of work left.

That's scary, I have SO much left to do at work!

Holy emotions!

8:00am - my mom calls.

Tells me she was just lying in bed thinking of what a nice person I was. I went over there last night so I could see the twins all dressed up and go trick or treating with them. My mom said - you are just all about family and do so much for everyone. You're always thinking of ways to surprise people, help people out and do everything for everyone else but yourself.

I cried.

8:30am - I sent the e-mail below to Carrie and Rob with the subject "I'm afraid"

Of how much I'm going to love my own kids when I know how much I love Ethan and Isabelle. Thanks for letting me tag along last night for their first trick or treating, I kept thinking of them all night and would just giggle to myself. They are so fricking cute and you guys have done such an amazing job at raising them - they didn't cry when you said we were all done, they didn't put up a fuss, they are perfect little children!
Love a very proud Auntie Christy

9:00am - Rob responds:

You're the best aunt ever!!! They love you so much. You're also going
to be the best Mom. Baby Gallant is so lucky!! The Boyd family is
looking forward to meeting the newest bundle of joy.
Rob

I cried

9:00am

Jeff and I decided a few weeks ago to buy a new digital camera for when the baby comes, our is old and is getting to be pretty poor quality. Because I maxed out my EI contributions early this summer I've been getting more money each paycheque, so I have quite a bit saved up from that. I said we'd buy the camera with that money, and he told me that I could spend that money on myself, he has been squirreling away money for such an occasion.

I cried.

Footnote: ok, when I say "I cried" it doesn't mean I was sobbing, bawling and have red streaks over my face. It means that my eyes got watery, maybe a tear dropped (but maybe not) but it's still 'crying' in my books.

I'm so lucky to be constantly surrounded with people who I love so much.

November 1st

I can offically say that next month, I will have a baby!

Ethan and Isabelle LOVED Hallowe'en last night - but really, what reason is there NOT to like it?