Week 1 - 118 kg

Week 1 using BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) to "diet". BMR is worked out by calculating the weight you want to be with your current height, weight etc. The formula then gives you the number of calories you'd be consuming at the target weight to maintain that weight. All you have to do is consume that amount, or less, of calories per day. Easy. Sort of. Daily target is about 2400 calories. Toast (2 slices) with margarine, for example, is about 700 calories. Almost a third of your daily allowance in one hit. Bugger.

Weight this morning using home scales - 118 kg. Last week at the doctors it was about 124 kg (fully clothed and shoes).

My First Father's Day

I couldn't love this little Princess or her mother any more I think.

7 weeks

This time last year we spent almost seven weeks travelling around Japan. All good holidays seem to fly. The Japan trip was no exception. We could've stayed there for months it went so fast. Now we've just reached the seven week point of Georgia's journey. The last seven weeks haven't flown like a Japanese holiday but neither have they dragged. The first time Georgia smiled it was like every gorgeous sunrise rolled into one magical toothless gummy moment. My heart sang, my spirit soared and my eyes leaked like a sieve. In the week or so since that moment the smiling and grinning have become part of her. She smiles when we say hello when she wakes up. She smiles when we sing. And she smiles when her daddy dribbles any old shit when he is telling a story.

Don't get me wrong it hasn't all been wine and roses. Well, except for Valentine's Day; Michelle bought me a rose. But it has been the most rewarding time of my life so far.

This time last year we were dealing with some of life's challenges. This year we're dealing with the challenge of a new life.

The next time we go on a holiday we'll be taking her and already I know it will be the best holiday ever.

Dear Georgia Cate Nixon...

Dear Georgia Cate Nixon

Nine days ago you came into our lives. December 29 2010 was, and probably will be, the best day of our lives. You were that special gift that can never be surpassed. Our first child.
We want to do so much with you and for you. We can try to keep you happy, safe and healthy. We will always try to do our best. But there are two things we can give you. Our unconditional love and your name.

We love you Georgia Cate Nixon.

Your Mummy and Daddy.
XXX

Baby update - 30 and half week ultrasound

This is the scan the midwife suggested we do because the baby is tracking big. Today we were in the very capable hands of Dr Felicity Park. Dr Park was very reassuring and the ultrasound went well. All the measurements - placenta, baby, amniotic fluid - were all in the normal range. Some baby measurements were in the high range - up around the 90th percentile - but still normal. We think she is going to be a largish bub. She is currently around 1990 grams (a little over 4 lbs) and if she keeps gaining weight at the same rate she could be around 3700 grams (maybe 8 lbs) by the due date according to the computer projections. Michelle's birth weight was 3250 grams and mine was about 3900 grams so she may weigh somewhere between us. Anything less than 4 kg would be good as far as Michelle is concerned. She is the one who has to squeeze her out after all.

As far as the pretty pictures go she was sitting (hand standing?) in a head down bum up position and seems to be happily moving around - rolling, pushing, kicking. She still looks beautiful (of course). Apparently we can get a selection of snapshots from all the ultrasounds we've had so far if we bring in a USB thumb drive next time.

All in all Dr Park was very happy with the results and that everything is proceeding according to plan. We'll still need another ultrasound in 3 weeks to confirm a normal growth rate for she-who-is-as-yet-unnamed but we're more optimistic now.

Baby update - 30 weeks

We had a our first midwife visit at the RPA today. Not sure how it went really. I'm a little concerned although I probably shouldn't be. First baby jitters most likely. However Michelle had a largish fundal measurement. She is measuring 34 cm at 30 weeks. Generally the centimetres should be close to the weeks, 30cm at 30 weeks or so for example. They give a bit of leeway. A couple of cm either way isn't any concern. 4 cm is on the high side of normal according to the midwife though. Our first visit with the obstetrician a couple of weeks was the first time the fundal measurement came up. The doctor said it was high-ish but in the normal range and if the next visit, this current one, showed a similar measurement we should get an ultrasound to see what is going on. Gestational diabetes is one of the reasons the measurement could be high. For this reason the midwife asked Michelle to have the full 2 hour diabetes check (Monday) which involves drinking a glucose drink and multiple blood tests. We've booked the ultrasound for Wednesday and the blood results should be available then too.

Jackie, the midwife, kept reassuring us that there was likely nothing wrong and we shouldn't be concerned because a big baby is another reason for the large fundal measurement. Neither of us a little people - Michelle is quite tall.

So. I'm trying not to worry but we're first time expectant parents with only weeks to go so it is what we do.

100 days to go...

100 days to go if she arrives on the due date. That works out to be 14 weeks. So far so good.

By the way aunties, uncles and grandparents, have you read this yet? Click here to read.

Whooping Cough or why you should get immunised

Did you know that right now in Australia we're facing a Whooping Cough (Pertussis) epidemic? Pertussis is one of those childhood illnesses we almost had licked. But then, probably because of the anti vaccination movement and general apathy to vaccination, parents stopped vaccinating their kids and adults didn't get their booster shots and this deadly disease rears its ugly head again.

Last week a 5 week old baby died in South Australia and last year 3 babies, including 4 week old Dana MacCaffrey, from the North Coast of NSW died of this horrible disease. The SA health department reported around 2700 cases of pertussis for the first half of this year. For the same period last year there were about 1400 cases reported. Nationally the figures are even worse.

The reason these babies died from this preventable illness is because they were too young to be vaccinated. New born babies rely on herd immunity, the rest of the community being vaccinated, to protect them from diseases like whooping cough. By the community I mean us. Everybody. Especially those people who come into contact with children and babies. As vaccination rates have fallen herd immunity isn't as effective as it once was. Unfortunately for the babies that died they probably came into contact with a person who was carrying the disease. The more people who remain unvaccinated and the more cases that occur the more chance unvaccinated babies will have of coming into contact with carriers of this preventable disease. Remember that, preventable disease.

Unfortunately the Whooping Cough immunisation doesn't last a life time so a DTP booster shot should be administered every 5 to 10 years. DTP stands for Diphtheria, Tetanus and Pertussis. We had the DTP shot 5 years ago when we went to Africa.

What can I do and why should I give a shit? Well, I'm glad you asked. If you know me there is a good chance you know that we are expecting a little girl in December. If you're family there's an even better chance that you will be meeting said little girl shortly after she is born and probably when she is most vulnerable to nasty preventable infections. You can help by wandering in to your local GP and getting the DTP or Pertussis jab between now and December. It doesn't hurt and it is cheap. Fuck, if you're visiting our new baby in 2011 I'll pay for it if you're a tight arse or you don't have the finances. Even if you don't know me and you will probably never meet my baby you should, for the sake of your community and herd immunity, get the jab (but you'll have to pay for it yourself though).

Now before you roll your eyes and think that this daddy to be is just being paranoid remember that babies are dying from a preventable disease. That is stupid. No babies should be dying from Whooping Cough. I know that shit happens and babies die from a myriad of things and some of those things can't be prevented. But wouldn't you like to be proactive and do something today that may just save a life?

Oh, and by the way, some doctors are unaware of the risk and may be reluctant to give adults boosters. The booster for adults has apparently only been around since 2005 after all. If they won't give you a booster see another doctor.

What are you still doing here? Do us a favour and go see your doctor. Now.

Perving and baby update

I was out shopping today when a particularly attractive woman with a baby in a stroller caught my eye. A classic older yummy mummy. A MILF even. I knew that somehow I had crossed some sort of line when I realised that I had turned around and was straining to get a better look of her... stroller. It was a bright aqua coloured Maclaren or Steelcraft stroller and not one of the huge 3 wheeler prams you see most people pushing around. The baby, a big chubby baby, was sprawled out lying flat so the stroller looked like it works well for infants too. Something like what we'll need real soon now. Of course if the mummy had turned around all she would have seen some grey haired chubby bloke apparently ogling her. Yikes.

I used to so enjoy checking out the yummy mummies for their own sake. Now I'm looking at the babies and the baby gear and accessories like prams (that looks good I wonder how much that cost etc etc etc). There must be some truth to the report that testosterone levels for expectant dads drops during the pregnancy.

And speaking of babies. The one baby that preoccupies every other waking thought is apparently wriggling around like a hyperactive monkey. Michelle was enjoying breakfast on the balcony yesterday morning when she happened to look down at her belly and see, not just feel, the baby kick. That is some milestone. I grin like a loon and jig on the spot when she tells me that sort of thing. Which doesn't make for a very attractive picture come to think of it.

Excuse me now but I have to go and do something manly...

Baby update

Michelle's belly is expanding almost exponentially now. At this rate we will need to move into a new flat by December. Speaking of December, that means the aforementioned as yet still unnamed little girl is only about 3 and half months from turning our lives upside down. So far she has been gestating for 24 weeks and now she is kicking and punching like Hit Girl in Kick-Ass. Each time this daddy to be feels his little girl kick, his stomach flip flops and he has trouble swallowing. Apparently he also starts writing in 3rd person.

Say hello to our little girl

It is with some delight, actually it is more than just some but I am really trying to show some restraint here, that I would like to introduce you to our daughter. You can probably see from the photos below that she is still some way from being able to greet you herself. She is a good 4 months away from being introduced to the world and we can't wait to meet her. Yes, she. Michelle and I are expecting a little girl. A daughter. Daughter. I love using that word. It sounds so right and yet it has an unfamiliarity to it the takes some getting used to. I smile every time I think about her and becoming a daddy. Smile with a lump in the throat and a tear in the eye. It is just so wonderfully confusing.
Michelle is 20 weeks pregnant with our yet to be named daughter. There's that word again - daughter.
Why announce it today and why did we wait for 20 weeks for that matter? Well for starters we were waiting for Thursday's scan. So far this pregnancy has been a bit of a roller coaster ride and we weren't even sure we'd get to this point. Last year we had a miscarriage at 11 weeks which has made us a little gun shy this time around too. I'll write more about the miscarriage some other time because right now we're just doing a little happy dance and we just want to enjoy the moment.
Thursday's ultrasound was the mid-point foetal morphology scan. We've had a couple of earlier ultrasounds and we've seen our little girl before but this time was the first time we've seen her without stressing, too much, about something bad happening. This scan was essentially to confirm for us that everything is progressing normally. And all the measurements were normal. Our little miss average is just that and we couldn't be happier.
For a little over two hours we could see, and enjoy, the 3D view of her face, her beating heart, her hands and feet, her fingers and her toes. Every centimetre of her was thoroughly scanned and measured. She is very active too. She stretches and squats and she rolls over. She raises her arms over head. She pushes, with feet and hands, against the walls of her home. That's why the scan took two hours. Every time the doctor wanted to, say, get pictures of her heart she'd roll over into another position and the doctor would have to start again. Eventually though Dr Tai was able to take all the pictures she needed. For us the first hour was terrifying and nerve wracking but after the doctor reassured us a couple of times that everything was going well we were able to relax and enjoy the best grainy black and white pictures and video we've ever seen.
She is beautiful.

I'm allowed a beer for my birthday

Redoak Boutique Beer Cafe for this rather auspicious yet solo occasion. The 17th of december 1964 seems a lifetime away. Well at least one. Mine. Happy birthday to me. Hope the next year is better than the last. Fuck it, I'm having dessert too. Which means 4 more teeny beers. So much for any meaningful work this arvo. Shit, I still have to walk back to work.

Seafood Tasting Board
Marinated tartare of kingfish with cucumber, truffle oil & micro herbs (Organic Hefeweizen)
Citrus cured Atlantic Salmon with extra virgin olive oil (Honey Ale)
Crispy scallop, eschalot and sesame wonton (Organic Pale Ale)
Prawn, spinach and Honey Ale soup with coriander cream (Irish Red Ale)

Dessert Tasting Board
Honey Ale pannacotta with orange zest confit (Organic Hefeweizen)
Vanilla bean custard, strawberry & mint tartlet (Irish Red Ale)
Coconut and raspberry slice with toasted coconut (Honey Ale)
Chocolate and Oatmeal Stout pot with raspberry cream and chocolate garnish (Porter)

45

It's just a number right?

Cancer with a little 'c'... or ouch ouch ouch ouch...

I look like I'm enjoying myself yes? On a sun bed soaking up the rays maybe? Nope. I'm actually undergoing a painful skin cancer removal treatment. That is cancer with a small 'c', not a big 'C'. I went to the dermatologist a couple of weeks ago because a mole on my belly had recently changed colour. A definite sign of melanoma. OMG I'm going to die! Even my GP said with a worried frown, "I think we should get this one checked out". Yep, I'm going to die. Of course we Googled pictures of melanomas and self diagnosed via teh interwebs as well. Now I was absolutely certain I was going to die.

Finally I got to see a dermatologist. Do you know how hard it is to get an appointment with skin cancer specialist? Don't their receptionists know that you're dying? I had to wait a week to get an appointment. I even made appointments at other clinics in case I could see someone sooner. Anyway Dr Bryan P is a jovial personable kind of guy. He puts you at ease right away. He made me strip and and went over my body with a fine toothed comb. Okay, not literally a fine toothed comb. I'm not that hairy. He um'd and ah'd and found four suspicious moles or lesions. I asked about the mole on my belly and he just said, "That? That is nothing. I don't think you're going to die today. Sorry".

He excised four suspicious spots with a scalpel and closed the wounds up with a laser. Not as painful as it sounds because these days they have magic local anaesthetic that works instantly. One prick and you don't feel a thing. Well, 4 pricks in my case. All the time Dr P kept up a running commentary interspersed with Hong Kong movie quotes and jokes. Michelle thought my burning flesh smelled like burnt pork. Cue long pork jokes. I was still worried about the discoloured mole on my belly though and Michelle said to Dr P that I had been stressing about it a lot. So the doc said okay if you insist and after a quick jab, a flick of the scalpel and the smell of burning flesh from the laser it was gone and bandaged up. The stress left my body like a nice long warm pee in the ocean.

A few days later Dr P phoned with the results of the five biopsies. One indeed was a cancer and it was the one he suspected and not the one I went to see him about in the first place. A red patch on my back was a basal cell carcinoma or BCC. A BCC is the most common non melanoma type of skin cancer. It is also the easiest to treat and the least dangerous. Shit, I had one removed 15 years ago. It left a nice 12 cm scar on chest though. I mentioned to the doc that I was familiar with BCCs and the scars they left. My scar being case in point. "Yes," he said, "they were butchers in the old days. We don't do that any more".

Nowadays the treatment involves putting some cream on the lesion, bandaging it up for a few hours and then shining a red light on it. The sting? It costs 600 bucks. Ouch. At least I don't have to go under the knife. The treatment is called Metvix PDT. Metvix is Methyl aminolevulinate and PDT stands for photodynamic therapy. I think the metvix cream works out to be $100 per gram. The consumer information pack suggests that during the treatment you may feel a slight stinging or burning sensation. Slight eh? Frack.

Fast forward to today for the first treatment of two, with the next and final being next week. The nurse said I can have a local anaesthetic if I want because some people find the treatment quite painful. Heh, I thought, a bit of cream and a bright light? How painful can it be? Answer, fucking painful. First they have to rough up the skin around the lesion with scalpel, which was nothing really, and apply the cream. I went back to work for few hours and then came back for the light. The nurse asked again if I wanted a local and of course I declined. I took of my shirt and put on the sexy blackened swimming goggles, because the light is supposed to be quite bright, and lay on my belly ready for the next 9 minutes of light treatment. At first it feels like someone is scratching you with rough scratchy finger nails. Okay, painful but not overly so. Then about 2 and half minutes in (shit! only 3 minutes! shit!) it feels like someone has taken a large magnifying glass and is trying to kill an ant on your back and the ant is trying to burrow into your skin. The pain eases a bit for a minute or two then slowly builds again and feels like a really bad prickly sunburn except someone is trying to stick needles into that one point on your back. Then it feels like a thousand little needle like jackhammers hammering away into the sunburn. Does getting a tattoo feel like this?
Then the 9 minutes were up and it was all a blur for a little while. A bandage was slapped on and treatment information brochure was thrust into my hand, I handed over my credit card and I was out of there. My back stings for the rest of the day.

Oh boy, I can't wait for next week.

Update: 16/11/2009
I've just had the final treatment and was about a minute in when I thought the second the nurse offers a local I'm jumping on it. She did and I did. Aaah, blessed relief. I told her I'm only having an anaesthetic as scientific exercise... just to have something to compare against last week. The light has a lovely cooling fan blowing on my skin too. Didn't notice that last time. So, yes, no pain. The local wore off about half an hour later. Off the the chemist now for some codeine. Yes I am a big sook.

20th century icons kick the bucket on the same day

Michael "Wacko" Jackson and Farrah "Phwoar" Fawcett dead at 50 and 62 respectively. You don't have to be fan to recognise the contribution or impact these two made during the the last decades of the 20th Century. Most recently Jacko sold something like a million tickets for his UK tour. Maybe the thought of facing so many Poms so many times scared him to death.
And that picture above of Farrah. I reckon every 15 year old alive at the time had that poster - I did.

Happy Dance - I got a job! w00t!!11!

Thanks to Matt for the Happy Dance.
Imagine me doing the Happy Dance right now seeing as it has been approximately 322 days since I last worked. New 6 month contract to be signed this afternoon. Huge thanks to my referees Lisa and Robb for the references that swung it for me.

Anal Probe

I don't think I need to say any more... and posting pictures would be inappropriate. But an interesting way to spend a Thursday afternoon. Thank the flying spaghetti monster I slept through it.

Ultrasound

Pictured is the bladder and prostate. Too much information?