Auntie Jess LOVES Nolan! :)

Yes, thats right...I am an auntie! Jen gave birth to Nolan Thomas Charlton Dupont on Thursday evening around 10:45pm. Nolan weighed in at an impressive 8 pounds, 8 ounces. If you have ever seen Jen and her small size, your mouth will drop when you imagine a baby that size coming out of her. She did amazing with the birth and I am so proud of her.

Jen's actual due date was today. When I talked with her on our usual daily early morning phone chat on Thursday morning, we started thinking something was happening. She hadn't felt well the night before and it was questionable whether or not her water had broken. She scheduled an appointment with her physician that morning and after examining her, they told her that she needed to go to the hospital right away!

Ever since finding out she was pregnant and I was pregnant, one of my greatest concerns was that I would not be able to see her and the baby after he was born because of my own due date. We had already planned it out. If she had the baby on her actual due date, I would have to wait and see them after my own baby was born. If the baby came early, I would be able to go visit her. My physician (also aware and fascinated by the fact that we are twins and pregnant at the same time) had also advised me that this weekend was the last one that he would feel comfortable with me traveling.

Imagine my excitement to learn that she was going to deliver a couple of days early! We knew on Thursday once she was admitted to the hospital that she would have to deliver before 11:59pm on Thursday or her physician had advised her that they would do a c-section. With that knowledge in mind, I planned a quick Friday night trip to Virginia Beach. Matt came with me and it was amazing to be able to be there. I feel so content and so excited for our family!

Here are a few pics from my first visit with Nolan. He is so handsome and adorable! Jen and Charlie are going to be great parents and I am just so happy for them!

Introducing...Nolan Thomas Charlton Dupont :)

32 Weeks!

How far along: 32 Weeks!
Total weight gain/loss: Approaching 30 pounds...hey, at least I'm honest.
Maternity clothes: All maternity clothes. I'm getting tired of my maternity clothes, but refusing to buy more clothes. I do wish they made shirt extenders! Matt and I laughed the other day when I put on a fleece from Old Navy. The once slightly oversized cream colored fleece will no longer fit over half of my stomach!
Best moment this week: Meeting up with my sister, Jaime, for a few hours. It was so good to see her AND she gave us some of the cutest little outfits. One of them is a tan colored jacket from Gymboree. It looks like a little Carhart jacket and is a complete mini-Matt in the making!
Gender: Boy boy boy.
Belly button in or out?: Wide, but it hasn't come out yet.
Craving: I'm still loving cold foods, especially fruit (clementines!) I went to Harris Teeter and they had samples of cantelope. I tried to be discreet, but definitely turned that sample into more of a snack.
What I miss: Being able to eat foods without leaving any evidence. I'm so not kidding. If I snuck in a brownie before pregnancy, I may let a crumb or two drop on the floor but I'm in no way attached to that crumb and could totally pull it off. These days, that crumb gets caught up on my belly before it hits the floor and I find that I leave evidence on my shirt!
What I am looking forward to: We are taking a child birth class next weekend so I'm looking forward to it.
Milestones: Feeling and seeing the baby move around in my stomach. It is so wild but amazing at the same time.

Will You Be My Husband?!

While we were in Virginia for the Christmas holiday, we realized that Matt didn't have his wedding band on. He does not wear it to work or when he is working outside, so if you know him at all, than you know that his wear time is limited! He always leaves his ring on top of the jewelery box so we figured that he forgot to put it on before leaving for Virginia and we expected to find it waiting there when we got back. When we got home, I noticed that the ring was not there. We searched every day, several times a day, for that ring. At first, it was more frustrating than anything ie: "Where is it? I know it is laying around here somewhere." The frustration turned more into sadness when we realized that we had searched every possible place and it was gone.

Matt losing his band was more emotional than I had thought it would be. We tried to remind ourselves of all of the people we know that have lost them, however it didn't take away the fact that he would never again have the band that we exchanged on our wedding day. We had talked about getting a replacement, but hadn't done it yet.



Fast Forward.

So Matt is working nights. I always miss him but I especially do when he is working nights. I mean, while the dogs do keep me company, I'm not a huge fan of being alone on the weekends from 6pm to 6am. I was thinking of him last night and decided to pull a "dating" move. I got out my card box, found one that I probably had purchased in college but had never used and wrote it out. I remembered that he had been wanting the Eric Church CD ever since we saw him in concert this past fall. I purchased the CD and left it and the card on his night stand so he would see it when he got home in the morning.




This morning came and as he was climbing in bed to sleep the day away and prepare for another night shift, he found himself surprised and excited about the gift left for him on the night stand. When he was leaving for work this evening, he asked me if I could move my car so that he could drive his black truck. Matt has two trucks. I know, I know. Lucky guy. He had been driving his white truck to work, but the CD player doesn't work so he wanted to drive his black one so he could listen to the CD.

I move my car and then hang out by his truck as he moves his items from his white truck to his black truck. He had left the truck doors open in the black truck so he could quickly load his items in. As he was shifting some things around in the front seat, I glanced in the back seat and my jaw dropped. There it was. A wedding band. THE WEDDING BAND. The platinum wedding band that I slipped onto Matt's finger on our wedding day.

I quickly grabbed it. Matt was still rummaging around in the front seat. I said, "MATT!" He replied, "What??" He probably thought I was about to tell him something of little value at a time that he was rushing to get to work. I said, "Will you be my husband?" He immediately turned around and looked at me. He had a huge smile on his face and said, "You found it?!" I held it up in front of him. He quickly grabbed it and slid it on his finger. Then, at the same time, we came towards eachother and gave eachother a big hug and kiss. We both could not stop smiling and laughing.



If you made it to the end, I'm impressed. How purposeful today was. If Matt wasn't working the night shift, I would not have been missing him as much. I wouldn't have written the card or purchased the CD. He would have driven his white truck to work tonight because he would have had no reason to switch trucks for a CD that he didn't have. If he hadn't have had to rummage around his truck, he wouldn't have put the center console up which must have flung the ring to the back seat.

I seriously love that moment. Love Love Love It. Always will. March 9th is our due date. March 10th is our anniversary. L.O.V.E. this day and Matt :)

Astynomiaphobia?!

Dr. D responded very quickly to my e-mail message to him. This is his response:

Jessica,

Thanks for informing me of this. I actually addressed this nurse's astynomiaphobia last evening and how to prevent her anxiety from being unprofessional. Your concerns are quite valid, and I apologize to both you and Matt. Our office mgr will address steps that can resolve future issues regarding this.
I look forward to seeing you all in 2 weeks.

First, I appreciate him responding at all, and especially responding so quickly.

Second, I'm interested that he addressed this last evening with the nurse. I suppose he and/or someone else may have noticed the scene (and quite a scene it was) yesterday afternoon.

Lastly, Who knew the phrase astynomiaphobia existed?! We had no clue over here in this household. Apparently, it is a 67 year old term that is occassionally regarded as an irrational fear of police and law enforcement.

Well, you learn something new every day! :)

Alert, Alert: Officer in the Room

I felt I had no choice but to write this letter to my physician about two encounters I have had with an unprofessional nurse. I tend to have alot of patience and am usually last in line to share any conflict and/or negative feedback that I have for fear of "not wanting to make a big deal" out of something but here goes. Letter written to my physician:

Hello, Dr. D,

I just wanted to make you aware of a concern that I had about yesterday’s appointment with the nurse that was working with you related to Matt being present in his police uniform. We had this nurse earlier in my pregnancy on the day of my big ultrasound and I felt that she was unprofessional. She required that the exam room door stay open while Matt was physically present in the room. I put it past me because I did not have a physical exam that day and did not want to create any conflict.

Yesterday, she happened to be my nurse again. From the moment she saw Matt sitting with me in the waiting room, I felt she was unprofessional and made us feel uncomfortable. When she called me back to take my weight, it took her two times to properly weigh me because she was shaking. Matt was standing outside of the exam room while my weight was being taken, and she asked him to back up because his “badge” was too close. Once we went into the room, it was even more awkward. She was panting and unable to talk in complete sentences. She also had to wipe her face due to sweating.

In my line of work, I can appreciate the value of a traumatic event and/or fear that she appears to have. However, I also feel professionalism is important. In my own opinion, if she is uncomfortable, I would appreciate it if she could ask one of her nurse colleagues to take my weight and blood pressure so that she can avoid the situation and us entirely.

At my next appointment with you, Matt is not working and will not be in uniform. However, I expect that he will be in uniform again in the near future (particularly as my visits become more frequent). If this does happen, I do not want to have her as my nurse and plan to ask for someone else. If he is in uniform, he has to have his other gear with him for his own safety. I also want him to be involved in this pregnancy and would like for him to attend my visits with me. I would also like to continue to have you as my physician and do not want to have to change physicians in order to avoid the situation.

I just wanted you to know of my thoughts. I was not sure who to pass them on to. I hope bringing this to light may help someone else from having to encounter this situation in the future and/or may help this nurse plan for future situations where she may feel uncomfortable. I hope this feedback is well received.

Thanks in advance,
Jessica Farrell

We'll see if he responds. I'll keep you posted!

Dear Matt,
Thanks for all you do and the sacrifices that you make in your line of work. I know that you are placed in dangerous situations every time you are in uniform and I know how dependent people are to have your help. I'd have you in uniform by my side every day if I could and am not the least bit embarrased to be with you in uniform. You make me so proud.
Love you,
Jess