Wiegand Writes

For starters, Meg and I would just like to congratulate our friends Kathleen and Julie on the birth of their daughter, Adalyn (soon to be one of Avery's best friends!) She's absolutely adorable! We're very happy to report that everyone is doing well! I think Meg is officially freaked out though! She is 32 weeks this Wednesday and is getting bigger by the minute. She's sleeping more comfortably now that she's changed rooms at work (she's no longer chasing 1-2 year olds around all day. Instead she's playing with the babies!) BUT...the impending delivery is causing her some angst. Avery is fantastic. She hiccups regularly, which is oddly amusing. On one hand we feel bad and wish we could make them stop, but on the other hand, we can't help, but think that they are the cutest thing in the world (added bonus, they help develop her lungs!) We're reading Dr. Seuss books all week in honor of his birthday (last night we read Green Eggs and Ham ). Meg sw...

I started putting together Avery's dresser/changing table this past Wednesday, but an unexpected trip to the ER set the completion date back a bit... On Thursday I ate half an english muffin covered with peanut butter and a box of raisins for breakfast. Shortly after, my throat started to get scratchy and it became increasingly harder to breathe. A coworker bought me some benadryl, but it didn't stop the reaction. I had to use my epipen. Another coworker drove me to the hospital and sat with me while I waited for Meg.  My blood pressure was 158/100...gotta love epinephrine! I had to sit in the regular waiting room for almost an hour before developing hives. It was at that point that they took me back to a room. I was checked out by the doctor, given an IV, and administered more benadryl and some pepcid. After several hours lying next to some screaming crazy old lady, I was itching to get home (literally!)  In her defense, she did provide some comedic relief to the ...

Meg and I woke up early today to head to our OB appointment. Meg has gained 2 lbs since her last appointment (two weeks ago). Apparently at this point, you should be gaining between a half a pound to a pound each week, so she's right on target. Her blood pressure was great (low as usual) and Avery's heartbeat was in the 130s. We met the 6th doctor in the practice (we've now officially seen them all) He was fantastic! After measuring Meg's belly, he looked at me and asked if I wanted to feel the baby's head. I was a little caught off guard, but jumped at the opportunity. He pushed on Meg's belly and had me put my fingers in place of his. He had me push down lightly (so I could feel Meg's belly) He then pushed my fingers down harder until I could feel her little head. Don't worry! I won't be trying that again on my own. It was kind of creepy! He then took his hands and cupped them around Meg's belly (picture trying to touch your pointer finger ...

I had a phone conference with our lawyer, Tiffany Palmer, yesterday. She's absolutely fantastic. She explained all of the components necessary for completing Avery's adoption and some additional estate planning matters. While we live in Bucks County, PA, we are planning to give birth in New Jersey. "Why?" you may ask. It's simple, really. Aside from the fact that we want to deliver in a brand new, state of the art, hospital with the highest ranked NICU, an adoption in our county would require a series of three home studies and an additional $2,000. If we cross the river, New Jersey recognizes our marriage certificate (from Massachusetts) and therefore does not require a home study. They treat it the same as a step parent adoption. I would be the sole petitioner and Meg would just need to sign off saying that she agrees to the adoption. Oh, and get this...Both Meg's name and my name will appear on Avery's birth certificate. Pretty smart, right? All we ...

Avery is the size of a butternut squash! 2.5 lbs!!! What a little porker!

Mom just informed me that I haven't posted any updates about my Valentine's Day celebration, SO... I'm writing to tell you that Meg and I had a fantastic weekend. We bought Avery a few outfits at the Carters outlet. I finally found the bows I had been looking for (thank you Children's Place!) We ate lunch at this amazing organic pizza restaurant (check out www.jasonsorganicpizza.com) Best of all, we relaxed! (Nothing beats a king size bed!) I zoomed in on our towel pet. We couldn't decide what it was supposed to be (apparently the Hilton isn't as good as the people who fold towels on cruise ships) Anyhow, I said bunny. Meg said elephant. What do you think? Day 12 was a bag of pretzel goldfish and a note that said, "Before our mini vacation is "o-fish-ally" over,  we still have one thing left to do...order room service!" (Day 12 was breakfast in bed.) I ordered a western omelette. Meg ordered s...

Sorry, I'm a little behind...yesterday was Day 10. Meg's surprise was a mini rose plant and a note saying, "Day after day, minute after minute, my love for you continues to grow." Today is Day 11. I could barely sleep because I was so excited! (I suck at keeping surprises from Meg, so this one was extremely difficult for me...) I found a Valentine's Day fortune cookie box. I bought a heart shaped puzzle, colored it and wrote a "fortune" on it (more like a message, but whatever!) I paired the puzzle and fortune cookie box with a note saying, "I am "fortune"ate to have you in my life." Meg was so excited to put the puzzle together this morning: When she finished the puzzle she asked if I would tell her where we were going. I told her that we are taking a mini vacation...we're heading to a hotel near the Jersey Shore. We...

Today Meg and I went to the OB and saw another new doctor. She was great! She went over the results from Meg's glucose test (they were normal) and told us that Meg is not anemic (we weren't surprised to hear that!). In terms of the leg cramps, she assured us that they are normal and suggested Meg eat more potassium (bananas and orange juice). Little does she know that Meg does both of those things every day! Avery is doing well...healthy and growing. Her heartbeat was in the 130's. Our next appointment is February 20th. Now, onto Day 9! Day 9 consisted of a black and white picture of Megan and I (from her graduation party), a chocolate candy bar (which looked like a dollar bill) that said "you're one in a billion" AND a note that said, "Pictures may be worth 1,000 words, but our love is priceless."

Today marks 29 weeks (we'll take pictures this weekend). Meg has gained a total of 16 lbs. Her belly button is getting huge! She's feeling great minus some aches and pains at night, but she's definitely been more emotional recently. On a positive note, her appetite is starting to pick up (finally!) The coolest thing happened tonight...we had just finished eating dinner when all of the sudden Meg shrieked, "Jen, come over here." I looked at Meg's belly and I could see Avery moving from side to side. It was so weird! I think my exact words were, "it looks like an alien!" lol, not my finest moment! Good thing, I bought Meg and Avery a new book! It's called  Spoon and it's absolutely adorable! We're going to sit in the nursery and read it tonight. If you've been following my 14 days of Valentine's Day, Day 8 was a custom Valentine's Day word search created by yours truly and a note stating, "You don't have to sear...

Despite my little boo boo, Day 7 seemed to be Meg's favorite gift (so far). Day 7 featured a 3 frame picture frame and 3 maps...map 1- where we met (Arcadia University), map 2- the address of our first apartment (where we got engaged), map 3-where we were married (Provincetown, MA). The note attached to the frame said, "Wherever life takes us, I want to spend it with you!" In case you were wondering what mistake I made, I accidentally wrote the wrong year for when we met...I was so preoccupied with getting the day correct that I wrote 2007 instead of 2003! Whoops!!

I know you're anxious to hear about Day 6, but I think it's pertinent to tell you that I talked to the lawyer today. I scheduled a phone conference for next Wednesday...time to get this adoption thing started! Oh, and just in case you were wondering, Meg never heard anything back from the doc regarding her glucose test. I guess that means everything came back fine. We'll know more when we go to our OB appointment this Thursday. Ok, now for the fun stuff... Day 6: Six packs of bubblegum with a message stating, "Meg, you're amazing! Day after day you somehow manage to "blow" me away!"

At 28 weeks Avery weighs roughly 2.25 lbs and is the size of a Chinese cabbage.  Today is Day 5...here are the goodies I left for Meg: Gummy bears, Sourpatch kids, starbursts, Hot Tamales, and Chewy Granola bars The note read: "Almost 5 years later and you're still the one I "chews" to spend my life with!" Meg and I spent the day with her parents at the Philadelphia Auto Show. Here are a few pictures...

Meg informed me this morning that after this weekend we only have 11 weekends (give or take) to do whatever we want. With 81 days left, I think it's safe to say that Avery is truly becoming a reality. Today was a productive day. We put together the glider and then the crib. Surprisingly, I didn't have to take anything back to the store. Nor did I have to go back and redo something (this often happens when I build things, lol) I have to give Graco a shoutout for that one. While the directions looked like hieroglyphics, the labels were undoubtedly clear! There is one more part to the story, but it's kind of embarrassing. I think I better preface it by saying, "Don't laugh." Seriously. Don't laugh. So here we are. Everything is a lot easier than expected. The glider is finished and the crib is halfway there. I'm bending down trying to screw in the bottom leg when all of the sudden I lose my balance. Not wanting to fall on the springbase and break ...

A Box of thin mints, tic tacs, mentos, and lifesaver mints... "We are mint to be together!"

Day 3...three Burts Bees chapsticks and a note that read, "Read my lips. I'm yours!"

With Meg's recent cereal addiction, I knew today's gift would go over well. Day 2 consisted of a Valentine's Day bowl and a box of Lucky Charms. The message stated, "I'm so "lucky" to have you as my wife (and valentine)" In other news, the crib and mattress came yesterday. The glider is expected to arrive tomorrow. I can't wait to build them all this weekend!