Visit & Baby Shower

Dr. & Mrs. Rodgers


Mom, Jack and I before my baby shower


Cute socks


I love this dress!


Last week was really great. On Thursday we were visited by my Masters degree mentor, Dr. Frank Rodgers. He has been an amazing mentor during my career and James and I grew very close to him and his wife, Chris, during our time in Winnipeg. I started my Masters in New Hampshire then Frank took a position as Chief of Enteric Pathogens at the National Microbiology Lab in Winnipeg, Canada. After 2 semesters, I joined him up there. I remember going up there and not knowing anyone except for him and Chris. I wound up staying in Winnipeg to finish my Masters and eventually did a Ph.D. in virology under the mentorship of another great scientist, Heinz Feldmann. Anyway, I've been so blessed to have studied and been mentored by such great and humble scientists. James and I had not seen Frank or Chris for nearly 6 years because they only were in Winnipeg for 3 years and we rarely get up north to visit. Ironically, their daughter is doing her Ph.D. in Maryland so they came down to see her but swung by to visit us for the afternoon. They were 2 of Jack's great supporters during his CDH battle and this was the first time they met him. They couldn't believe that he was the same baby they saw photos of. Frank even commented that he somehow expected Jack to have some long term, visible effects but he seemed like a 'normal' toddler. The brought Jack some gifts, including a ball which he LOVES. Overall, it was a great visit.

On Saturday my friend Kat hosted my baby 'sprinkle'. I would actually call it a shower because she went all-out with balloons down the street, pink flowers, tons of food and it was like a pink bomb went off in her house. It was everything I dreamed a shower would be like and then some. We even played lots of silly games with prizes for things like who had the heaviest handbag (I thought they were going to make me stand on the scale!) and who could cut string that was the closest size to my belly circumfrance. It was great fun and the baby got so many adorable outfits. There were about 10 of us there but you would've thought there were 30 based on the number of gifts we got. I included a few pictures above. It's funny, when I was looking through the photos I was shocked to see how huge I am. I really look pregnant! I've been feeling really good these days, except for swelling and backaches but that's small stuff.

As for an update on the baby - I now see Dr. Kramer every week. She is doing great. I had a slight scare because her abdominal circumfrance was measuring small and that happened to Jack as more organs herniated. I didn't mention it earlier because I didn't want to freak anyone out. She seems to be growing OK though and as far as we can tell, her diaphragm looks great and all organs are where they should be. Unfortunately, we never get any good pictures of her because my amniotic fluid levels seem to be running on the low side and she is constantly pressed up against the uterine wall. Hopefully we'll get a good picture one of these days!

The kitchen renovations are still going strong. We FINALLY had our counters delivered today and James has been busy getting stuff done. On Sunday he drove my mom and Jack back to NY. It was just too chaotic for them to be here. I miss my little man so much but my dad sends me lots of photos. It helps to know that Jack is having a blast. This week we'll be trying to finish up the renovations and we are also getting quotes for a new HVAC (heat pump/furnance) system. As luck would have it, ours decided to die. I suppose it lived a long life so we can't complain.

Things are great with the baby. I see Dr. Kramer once a week now and he's going to try and schedule the date/time of my C-section. I have no good pictures of the baby because my fluid levels are low and she likes to hide. She still seems to be doing well and is now around 4 pounds 4 ounces.

~Vic