Hutchison: I brought you each a little present, because I have been through this before [her son, Hutch, is 11.  This is what you call a Survival kit. You won't go anywhere without it. [Keifer and Marshall open beautiful handmade, fabric travel bags filled with baby necessities.]
Marshall: Look at these little diapers.
Keifer:.  They're as big as my hand!
Hutchison: They're going to seem huge when your baby is born.  You're going to be like, "This is too big.”
Keifer: Did you see that MAD ABOUT YOU episode when Jamie takes her baby , home and doesn't know how to do the diapers?  And Paul's staring at her and she's like, "Stop looking at  me; don't touch me:' It was the best. [Attention shifts back to the gifts.] Thank you, Fiona.  You're very, very thoughtful.
Hutchison:  It’s just one of those things.  The first four weeks with Hutch, my husband [John Viscardi] and I were like, "Where are the diapers?  Where's the Desitin?  Just give me a bag and I can put everything I need in one place:'

Digest: How are the pregnancies affecting you?
Keifer: [Expecting with hubby Robert Convertino.] Fiona seems so much more demure about this.  I'm much more dramatic.  I come down to the makeup room at 1 1:30 and I'm waiting for this one particular restaurant to open up at 11:30 on the dot.  Everybody better be clear of the phones.  I'm in the middle of makeup and I tell them, "You have to stop, I have to order this now." My eyes are like the devil's.
Digest: What are you ordering?
Keifer:  Just food at the studio.  If you've been there since 7 a.m. you need to They're starting to fear me.
Marshall:  I swear I've had more m swings in the third trimester than I did the first one.

Digest: Your husband [Kent Schaffer] is in Houston?
Marshall: Right.  He's a lawyer and he his own practice.

Digest: You'll be commuting back and forth when the baby comes?,
Marshall: Yes.
Hutchison: We've got challenges here.
Marshall: I talked to Walt [Willey, who plays AMC's Jackson and commutes Santa Fe, NM to see his wife and son] and said, "How are we going to do this?" he said, "You'll do it"
Hutchison: Well, if it's any consolation, first month to six weeks is the hard time, and it's great that you'll be together for that.  I took a job in Australia when Hutch was 7 weeks old.
Keifer: [to Digest]: It's hard to follow this act, I've got to tell you.
Hutchison: I'm just saying that it gets easier.   John was in L.A. [when Hutch was born], so I flew there every two weeks. You sort of get in a mindset of baby, work, baby, work.  In some ways, it works quite well.  But in the very beginning, you really need [the husband] around, because of the exhaustion from breast feeding and sleep deprivation.
Marshall: ‘It’s a wonder anybody ever gets pregnant.  I'm scared to death.
Keifer: It's really intimidating. [To Hutchison] I was saying to Amelia how great it is to get step-by-step advice from you, Fiona.  You told me I was being normal for feeling crazy.  I thought I was out of my mind.
Hutchison: There's nothing wrong with that!  And all of a sudden, it goes away.

Digest: What are your biggest fears?
Keifer: Breast-feeding.  I'm scared, to death of that.  It's such a responsibility.
Marshall: I figure the labor, because everyone says how difficult it is.
Keifer: I'm astounded that so many women have gone through it.  I look at all the people on the street and I think, "Every single person was carried.  A woman went through all this." And I just can't believe there would be that amount of patience in the world.  It's astounding to me.  And then choose to do it again!
Marshall: God bless Kelly Ripa [Hayley, AMC, who had her first child last summer].  I walk in and go, "Am I feeling normal?  Is this physical thing normal?" You just need somebody to ask.  It's a need.  She speaks to the baby every day.  The baby's going to come out saying, "Hi, Aunt Kelly!"
Keifer: That is so sweet.
 
 

Digest:  So, Fiona, you're the only one who gets to be pregnant on-air.
Hutchison: At the moment, yeah.
Keifer: The official word on me is "No comment' "

Digest:  With newborn twins, I can see how writing another new baby in for Blake would be tough.
Keifer: [to Marshall: Are you aware that I had twins with two different fathers?  If it can happen to Blake, it can happen to anybody!

Digest:  So, Liz, are you jealous of Maeve Kinkead [Vanessa] because she is pregnant on-air?
Keifer: Yes!  Something's wrong with me pretending I'm not pregnant while she's pretending she is.  It's such a bizarre business we're in.
Marshall: We were doing that with Marcy Walker [Liza] for a while before we decided to write that baby away.  I think Marcy's character and I were in the same week.  The progression was exactly the same.

Digest: [to Marshall: Are you wearing any of Kelly's pregnancy clothes?
Marshall: No. Because Kelly's character and my character are too different.

Digest: How about Eva LaRue Callahan’s character, Maria?  Didn't she have nice matenity clothes?
Marshall: Yes, but Belinda's not pregnant, so I'm not wearing matenity clothes. We just pick larger sizes that will hang and cover the front.
Hutchison.  I've been very fortunate because [GL is making maternity clothes for me.
Keifer: I was wearing Fiona's clothes until I got my own.  I had a three-week period where I had no clothes that fit me.  I had grown out of my size.  I kept saying, "Can I wear something of Fiona's?" I was begging for it.  I've got my own clothes now.
Marshall: “I'm jealous”.

Digest: What's the biggest surprise about the pregnancy?
Marshall:  My parents' reactions - they'd given up on me!  I wrapped up a baby rattle and gave it to them, and when my dad opened it, he didn't get it.  Then the light. bulb went off.  I said, "Oh boy, dad!" After they recovered, my dad was like, "Too bad the baby won't be here tomorrow," because now they're so anxious.  It's their first grandchild.

Digest:  How long are you taking off?
Marshall:  Hopefully, six weeks.
Keifer: I want six to eight weeks.
Hutchison I think I'm doing eight weeks.
Keifer: Good, because I want to do eight weeks.  You set it up.
Hutchison: I don't know, though.  I'm just going on how I felt the first time.
Keifer: I've been very surprised at how difficult it's been emotionally.  I thought it would be all bliss - the best time of your life.  But I've been all over the place.  I expected it to be rough because my mother passed away weeks before I conceived.  So, I'm going through pregnancy and the grieving of my mother at the same time.  Although, I believe she was a major part of why I'm pregnant and has more to do with it than I'll ever know.  But I can't pick up the phone [and call her].  I miss picking up the phone.  I didn't get the opportunity to have the conversation with her: "I'm pregnant!" There are times that I want to call her and just cry at night.  Or say, "I wonder what's going on?" Or, my biggest thing is, "How did you carry? What happened to you?  Did you have morning sickness?" It would be lovely to have those questions answered.
Hutchison: I agree.  That was the hardest part for me during the first pregnancy, and it still hits me during the second one.  I don't know any of those answers.  I never asked my mother any of those questions.
Marshall: [tearing up]: You can call my mom.

Digest: What's the best thing about being pregnant?
Marshall: I love how everyone's treating me. It's wonderful.  I'm milking it too, boy.
Keifer: The best thing for me is that I'm treating myself so much better.  For the baby.  I stand up for myself, from cigarette smoke to seatbelts to walking across the street to food to cleanliness.  And I think, "Why didn't I do this for myself before?"
Hutchison: I think having a baby is one way to get healthy and happy.  Mother Nature gives you that direction. Marshall : I think the most wonderful period is right now because I'm not overly large and my back doesn't hurt.  But there's -a little person inside of me wiggling.  I look down at my stomach sometimes and see him moving, and I'm just fascinated.  I'm a walking miracle.  I can't get past that.

Digest: What's the worst thing?
Keifer:  The morning sickness!
Marshall:  How about being clumsy and slow?   I don't want to put a damper on things, but, in my experience, the worst thing about pregnancy is going into labor and delivering the little tyke.
Keifer: I have not processed that yet.  I keep thinking somebody else is going to play Liz when the child comes out!