Sorry I haven't posted in quite some time... life got a tad chaotic!
Let's see - we will start with Monday, May 18...
My mom and I took B to Storyville on Camp Street for his wardrobe fitting for the commercial. I brought several outfits and Mr. B was very cooperative during his 3 changes. Anne took a few pictures of him and then of the other articles of clothing I brought. Upon leaving, Simon (one of the guys with production) asked if B had been in other commercials. I told him that this was his first and he replied with "Well this is the beginning of a long career for him" (how flattering). I called Anne later that day to inquire about what he should wear for the actual commercial, she said that everyone loved the raccoon sweater but no one could really focus on the options because they couldn't get over how cute he was! I told her that I would just bring the entire bag with me again (just in case minds were changed). We were also informed that we needed to be on set at 7:30am - I was slightly worried about how that would affect B's attitude. We
cried at the thought of having to wake up at 5:00am just rolled with the flow.
Tuesday, May 19... B's BIG day in the
spotlightOh the glorious sound of an alarm clock going off at 5:00am. It's one thing when you hear your little babe on the monitor either crying or talking to his toys at 5am but it's a completely different monster to hear your cell phone alarm
screaming wake up lightly beeping to pull you out of your beautiful slumber. Thankfully Daddy appeased me by getting up with me to help me get things together. We woke B up, fed him breakfast, packed the diaper bag and left our house at 6:15am. I was hoping against hope that I would have enough time to make a quick Starbucks run and still be on set on time. The stars were in alignment for me as I was able to grab some juice and delicious coffee cake.
We pulled up at the location in Old Metairie (read: not where a young new couple purchases their first home
unless they're trust fund babies). A lovely lady, Jeanette, helped take my bags to the motorhome where we patiently waited for our turn. I attempted to feed B and he was beyond uninterested in his bottle - so he ate 2 ounces. I was actually pleased with this because any more could have equaled a vomiting episode. The casting director did a fabulous job --- B's on-screen mommy, Beth, looked like she could actually be his mommy (have I said this before?)... just a taller, blonder, non-pregnant version of me! Beth helped me dress B and said her husband, Trey, who also played B's on-screen daddy, absolutely love B's chunky thighs. Jeanette came to gather all of us and it was
SHOWTIME.
As I walked toward the home the commercial was being shot in front of, I was
overcome with thinking about how B has horrible separation anxiety and how this could go drastically wrong and that he would never get this opportunity again because of his typical nine month old attitude hoping that things would go smoothly. I handed him off to his "mommy" and they began filming. The entire process is actually very neat. I really enjoyed seeing what goes into making a commercial and I only saw a piece of the puzzle. I had planned on taking pictures to share with all of you but when one of the important people with the bank came up to introduce himself and then followed his intro with "So, you have a blog... my PR team discovered it while searching the internet for any media regarding the bank and your site had a hit," I decided I should probably not (since the commercial still had to be edited and approved by the bank and the talent agency). I was shocked with how well B did - around 9:05am they said they were finished with him - thankfully, because my poor bambino was starting to fall asleep in Trey's arms. Jeanette walked me back to the motorhome where I gathered our belongings, signed B's release
impatiently waited for someone to make me a copy of his release, and then we left. We had to go back a couple hours later because my pregnancy brain left behind two of B's sweaters. Let me just tell you, the difference between the set I had left and the current one was fascinating!
On a minor side-note: I was absolutely flattered with all of the highly complimentary critiques I received about B's looks, demeanor and personality. When we left the set, the guy who was filming told B "I hope to see you in Hollywood soon, kid!" How awesome, right?
Fast-forward to Friday, May 22... my doctor appointment and ultrasound
My mom, B and I went to the hospital for my appointments. Upon arriving, I had to go and pre-register with the hospital for my delivery. After I finished, we walked back over to MFM where I checked in for what I thought would be a super exciting ultrasound appointment. I was TOTALLY WRONG...
After waiting for an eternity and watching two people go back before me when I arrived well before they did - seriously, we arrived almost an hour early because my pre-reg appointment ended so quickly - I was already not in the most pleasant of moods. But I tried to remain bubbly because I was going to see my sweet baby (or Lovie as we've coined
her).
READ: If you don't care to hear about the initial details of an early ultrasound, SKIP THIS NEXT PARAGRAPH. This is my blog so I will freely talk about all the details I want DON'T say I didn't warn you...I had a trans-vaginal ultrasound today. With EVERY other ultrasound I've had they've always used warm gel - this one was ice cold and the gel warmer (with bottles in it) was in plain view. This wasn't as bad as her attempting to insert the probe and forcefully pushing it into my urethra twice as she was aiming too high.
(OKAY, if you skipped the above, you can pick up right here...)Once the ultrasound started, during the first several minutes all we (mom and I) could see was the gestational sac - no baby. The tech was saying nothing which had me thinking the absolute worst. It was quite scary. My heart was pounding out of my chest because
I thought my worst fears were being confirmed. Then I could finally see something and she said she was measuring the yolk sac. Moments later, we heard the heartbeat - 170bpm. She never once zoomed in on the baby - we never got to see the heart beating (as I saw with many other early ultrasounds with B's pregnancy). I don't even know if we saw the baby for 30-45 seconds. But she had a mouthful to say about my ovaries - how my left one was squished and how the cyst on the right one had become smaller. I know that checking out my reproductive organs are a vital part of this process, but I mean come on, we wanted to see the new baby. She told me that I was measuring dead on for my due date and that was is it.
Disappointed, frustrated and saddened are all understatements for how I felt leaving that room. Mom said she was sitting there thinking "please show a baby" and she was frightened as well.
But at the end of the day,
all that mattered was that Lovie is a-okay. I am still due on January 1, 2010!
Whew! If you made it this far you deserve a gold star pat on the back... what are you waiting for... get to pattin'!
