We're not pregnant!

Okay....since our little scare is over & done with...I now feel fine posting about it.

Who knew that you can be fertile as early as 2 weeks after having a baby? Well, I didnt.

Went for my 8 week visit to be medically cleared after the c-section. Oh, the doctor was concerned that I may be pregnant again. Yeah...about that... Talk about FREAKING me out.

No, I am not the perfect patient who followed my doctor's instructions exactly...8 weeks is a long time! So...I didnt wait. And, I didnt realize that I could be fertile already.

When I called Damon to tell him that the doctor ordered a blood test to determine if I was in fact with child...Damon said, "That's not funny." No sh*t. But, I had to explain to him that I was not joking. So...that was on Monday afternoon. The results came back yesterday afternoon. Negative. My beta was less than 5 or .5, or whatever the official "negative" reading is.

Thank God.

Here's how I told Damon....remember when I found out that I was pregnant, and I came home wearing a shirt that read "Pregnant" accross the chest? Well, I pulled that same shirt out of the closet...got a piece of paper & wrote "NOT" on it. I taped the paper above the word "pregnant". So, when Damon came through the door, I was wearing a shirt that read, "NOT Pregnant". I thought it was funny. He said that he just about had a heart attack b/c he didnt initially see the "NOT" & he certainly recognized the shirt!

Dont get me wrong---it wouldnt be the end of the world. It really wouldnt. But, I want Gage to have his "baby" time before I shooo him out of my lap for another kiddo. And financially....I couldnt imagine having 2 in diapers like that (kudos to Jessica & Blaine b/c I STILL dont know how you do it!). If I had been pregnant...then my kids would be 11 months apart. I'm soooooo not ready to go through pregnancy again. Thanks, but I still need time to forget the miseries before I go signing up for another one! ....again, dont get me wrong: there were some very wonderful things about being pregnant...but, then again, the backaches, swollen feet, ankles, & face...the heartburn...& various other body changes...no, I havent forgotten about those things yet.

So anyway...no 2nd baby on the way just yet! (Honestly, I think my mom was a bit disappointed by the news....)

What else???
Today I am sans bebe. My mother-in-law has Baby Gage today. This morning, our day started at 6:09 am, and it was a dry run of what life will be like when I go back to work. I had to go up to the hospital today to go to Employee Health, and turn in my return-to-work notice...so, it was the perfect day to see how hectic life shall be in the mornings.
Here's how it went: 6:09, Gage woke me up ready to eat. I fed him, and then he was awake & ready to play. I got up & started getting ready for "work". Damon got up with Gage. Damon got Gage's bag together...started our cars so they'd be warm...he made us coffee. (He gets tons of Brownie points for this morning!). Then, here's what threw me off my schedule...at the last minute, I decided that I needed to wash my hair. So, needless to say, between blow drying my hair & having to stop for gas, I was about 20 minutes late (supposed to start work at 8...got there around 8:20). But, whatever...I didnt really have to work today, so that was good. And, now I know: shower & lay out my clothes the night before.

I opened Gage a savings account today. Each of the 4 grandparents has pledged a minimum of $10/month for his savings account. I know it's not much...but that was our little asking price, and then they can give more as they feel inclined. Also, whenever Gage gets monetary gifts, we intend to put at least 1/2 of the money in his savings account. And...Damon's so good. He has not spent a single one dollar bill in a while. He saves them to be deposited to Gage's account. me...well, I'm not so good about saving my ones. We both save all of our change though. Over time, I'm sure it wont add up to much...but it will add up to more than zero! So, that's one more task taken care of.

I was going to open a 529 plan for him too...but I was at BankOne/Chase, and their minimum opening balance w/o penalties is $1K, so we're going to wait on that one. I know in the long run you can make more money off 529s than a regular savings account...but they are based on stocks & bonds...and things fluctuate...and they arent FDIC insured...and I'm so conservative & not really aggressive when it comes to the stock market stuff...so I'm just a bit hesitant. Also, there are about a billion different 529s out there...so I'm still researching which one we want.... Oh, the responsibility of parenthood!!!!
Oh--and while I was at the bank, one of the bankers was telling me that one of the benefits of a 529 plan has something to do with depositing 55K at one time (taxes...gift tax...blah blah blah). Okay....um....because today, as a 27 year old social worker, I really need to worry about depositing 55 thousand dollars into any account. *note the sarcasm* I guess if a relative dies & leaves me lots of money...or if I sell the house & make a lot of money...or if I hit the jackpot on a slot machine...or if I win the World Series of Poker....or if I win the lottery...well, maybe then it will make a difference...but for now, not a problem.

Okay...with the rest of my day I wanted to get my house a little cleaner. So, I'm signing off!