freakishly fast

I am sitting in the doctors office. It's a pretty big waiting area and it set up very nice. I have been here only once before. As I am waiting for my name to be called, I can't help but notice that everyone else sitting here is kinda old. I mean old, like in their 70's. Like, all of them have someone younger (closer to my age) waiting with them.
(I know you think I am exaggerating about their age, but I'm not)
I don't know why, but this makes me feel so sad. I almost start to tear up -- but then I force myself to stop. The last thing I want to be doing is crying in here.
Am I upset because they seem so frail?
Or am I feeling sorry for myself because it is so lame that I am sitting here too?

I have never had a regular doctor, never needed one. When I was in my 20's I would usually see a nurse practitioner and more than once they mentioned that I had a fast heart rate. Low blood pressure and a fast heart rate. They often even asked if I was nervous to be there -- I wasn't.
So I knew this was unusual, but I never really thought about it.
It was remarked upon during my pregnancies, but again, it was in passing, until the last one.

My experience with OBs spans (omg!) 14 years. I had the same one for the first two, and hardly any tests. I mean, I even only had one ultrasound with DJ!

me with DJ :)

 I know they must check for more things now than they did then, because it couldn't just be my AGE as to why I had many more test and ultrasounds with the last two --

hrmmmfph

With Mikey, I was um, turning 40 (for the first time) and I think I had a bazillion ultrasounds and doctor appointments. Since I went so many times and had my freakishly fast heart rate noticed by the same people, they made me check it out with another doctor for an EKG.
Those guys said it was fast.
That was it.

Now for the first time ever, I have a regular doctor, not just an OB and she is all up in arms over my tachycardia. She gives me another EKG and brings in another doctor. They are both stumped. Nobody knows why I have this, but they pretty much want me to stop doing things that might get my heart rate up until they can get me in to see a specialist.
I have to admit, they sort of scared me. I stopped walking to the park, going to get coffee and even just strolling with Mikey while Kelly was at ballet.

Did you know that when it's something non life threatening, it takes FOREVER to get an appointment to see a cardiologist. Like months --
so after waiting a good long time, I go in to see this newest doctor, have another EKG and guess what?

I have a really fast heart rate.

He does explain that it's one of two things, I either have a weakness in my heart, that I have had my whole life or an unexplained fast heart rate.

Seriously. He said "unexplained".

Now I get to have an echocardiogram,
and I get to feel awful sitting in the waiting room waiting to go in and have it done.

And THEN I get to wait another week to see the doctor again -- just so he can explain to me how my freakishly fast heart is (most likely) cannot be explained.

I just want to be done with this.

names

I was 27 when I was pregnant with Paige and read every single pregnancy and baby book I could find. I think I had 5 books on names alone and I am pretty sure I read every single name in all of them! Since I did not find out until she was born whether or not she was a boy or a girl, everything was neutral, but deliberately so. When I was younger and thinking about the family I would have someday, I always thought I'd have boys. I knew I really wanted an old fashioned name, but nothing popular, so her girl name Paige seemed perfect! Her boy name was Devon which was her father's choice. He wanted Devon for a boy or a girl, but I really didn't even like the name all that much. After she was born, I couldn't have imagined her having been a boy! Her middle name Elizabeth was for my grandmother.

When I was having DJ, I HAD to find out if he was going to be a boy or a girl... I really wanted to plan this time, mainly because Paige had so many adorable clothes that I wanted to be able to use them for her baby sister... which this time around I was so hoping for. Well, I had an ultra sound in the doctors office and he said it was a girl! (I didn't have another confirming it -- I was only 30) I was very excited to name my second baby Olivia ~ went well with Paige, and it wasn't as popular 11 years ago as it is now. But you know, it never felt right to me when people referred to my belly as Olivia. So I chose David as a boy name just in case. I do have to mention that my dad, my uncle and my brother are all named David, so it was kind of a no brain-er. I did however, think that he (if by chance it was a he) should be called something other than Dave or Davey. My other grandmother was Josephine, so if by chance, (haha) I had a boy -- he would be David Joseph and we would call him DJ.
DJ wore a lot of pink as a newborn.

Mike and I picked out Kelly's names even before her first ultra-sound. Being an >cough< older mother, I had many. Every single one said she was a girl, and every single time, Mike refused to believe it. (big sigh) We didn't really look though the name books, we both just liked the name Kelly, and it went well with Paige, David -- and Carol and Mike. Kelly's boy name was Nathan or Nathanial. With all the people saying she was a girl, we never really picked a final one, but we would have called *him* Nate. My middle name is Anne and so was Robyn's (Mike's mom) so, Kelly Anne.
On a side note, Mike did have ridiculous names that he threw at me the entire 9 months. Again, claiming she was a boy ---
Bolt.
Steele.
Galvin.
Maverick.

I think I have mentioned that I have known Mike since he was in the 8th grade. His best friend, who introduced us, is also named Mike. Everyone back then always called my husband Mikey. I called him that up until maybe 10 years ago. Well since I turned 40 during my last pregnancy, I had no less that a million ultra-sounds and every single one said BOY!
Well I just had to have my own little Mikey ~
But finding him his middle name was so difficult. Mike went back to suggesting Maverick, etc... ugh. I wanted Tristan after Brad Pitts character's name in Legends of the Fall -- one of our favorite movies. Didn't seem right though. It came to the point where Mike just told me to pick something. Well that didn't make it easier! Now all the name books are online sites, and none of them very helpful.

For years Mike has been quoting a line in Point Break to the kids, when ever he wants them to to bring him two of anything he says, "Utah, get me two!" or just "Utah" and they know what he means.
As sort of a joke, along with changing DJ's name to Forrest and naming the new baby Bubba, I threw out Utah as his middle name.

Mikey Utah.

Nobody really understands it but us.

Oh, his (always have a back-up!) girl name was Isobel.











Here is the clip from the movie Point Break!

Kelly Anne

Since I was 35 when I was pregnant with Kelly, I had many more ultra sounds than I did with Paige and DJ. Every single one, the tech told us she was a girl -- Mike refused to believe it every single time. He was wrong! LOL

The night before my scheduled c-section, I was having contractions. This is not an unusual occurrence for me, but these were pretty intense. I, however, choose to stay in my comfy bed and go to the hospital in the morning as planned. In the early morning of the 22nd, Mike and I left for the hospital on the picturesque road from Hidden Valley Lake to St. Helena. It was even snowing on our way there! Robyn and Vic were getting the kids ready and bringing them a little later.

We check in and get ready. And wait. For a while. They rest of our little family shows up. The doctors were so nice, they were letting Robyn come into the OR with us, so Vic was in a family waiting area with Paige and DJ. Now we are just waiting for the OR to be available.
I was walking around the room and I got back up on the bed and feel a rush of water -- ! I look at Mike and tell him that I think my water broke... Yes, I have had two babies before, but I have had 2 scheduled c-sections before, so this is a whole new thing for me! Sure enough, she was picking the day for her birthday no matter what --

We get to the OR and Robyn and Mike get all suited up. The staff are bantering back and forth saying how rare it was to have a "dry birth". Oh, haha. I hate the hot pillow thing they put on me, but they won't take it off. Can we do this now?

I will tell you that Mike took some GREAT pictures of Kelly being born. I am not sure why they came out as good as they did, because he wasn't looking at all while he took the pictures, but they look professional. In fact, I put them together in a coffee table book. They may not be to every one's taste (you can see her half in half out) so I won't post them here.

They finally pull her out and you hear a collective "oh, wow". The doctor asks Mike to take a picture -- of her cord. It is tied in a "true knot". Thankfully, my babies have extra veins in their cords and they are unusually thick. (Kelly has THE cutest bellybutton)

They clean her up and measure her: 9 lbs 14 1/2 oz and 22 inches @10:35 am My big girl! Mike gets to hold her -- and then Robyn gets to hold her ~

As they are wheeling us back into our room, Vic makes them stop in the hall so he can take pictures --


 Her brother and sister are so excited to hold her!

She is such a good baby -- and like her big sister, she is picking up her head and looking around!

Today, my sweet Kelly girl is 5!