Have a Lovely (Long) Weekend.
3 hours ago
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
38-Week Baby Bump!
Okay, this is a little gross since it is from my work bathroom, but with no full-length mirror at home and no gym this week, my options were limited!
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Weekend Developments
This weekend, my dad and brother joined Michael and I to face the floods of New York City. They came up to visit on Thursday, just in time to witness the craziest, rainiest, windiest, wettest weather we've had in quite some time. Simultaneously, on Saturday, we lost heat and warm water and gained a couple of leaks in our roof. Despite these major handicaps, my dad and brother - ever the relaxed gentlemen, kept a positive attitude, laughed as umbrellas flipped and pants got soaked.
We had a very nice visit - one we had hoped would be marked by the arrival of our little girl, but wasn't. We spent a lot of time sitting in warm restaurants, eating delicious food, and in a theater, enjoying some mindless entertainment. It was thrilling to see my dad so excited for his first grandbaby, sharing his enthusiasm with folks at the movie theater, at Home Depot, and a restaurant or two. Witnessing this kind of love we already share for our little lady makes Michael and I so thrilled for her birth.
Henry is getting ready to graduate from college, and every time he visits, I press him to move up to New York. I love spending time with him, with his relaxed, easy-going manner and nerdy enthusiasm for biology and (occasionally) history. My dream is to have him in the City, somewhere close by where we can meet for tea or coffee, where we can host him for a weekly dinner, where he can get to know his niece and she can know him. There is the slightest possibility that he will make his way up here after graduation. I'm holding out hope...
In the meantime, Dad and I compared stomachs this weekend - Dad is in red, I'm in white. Who's winning??:
We had a very nice visit - one we had hoped would be marked by the arrival of our little girl, but wasn't. We spent a lot of time sitting in warm restaurants, eating delicious food, and in a theater, enjoying some mindless entertainment. It was thrilling to see my dad so excited for his first grandbaby, sharing his enthusiasm with folks at the movie theater, at Home Depot, and a restaurant or two. Witnessing this kind of love we already share for our little lady makes Michael and I so thrilled for her birth.
Henry is getting ready to graduate from college, and every time he visits, I press him to move up to New York. I love spending time with him, with his relaxed, easy-going manner and nerdy enthusiasm for biology and (occasionally) history. My dream is to have him in the City, somewhere close by where we can meet for tea or coffee, where we can host him for a weekly dinner, where he can get to know his niece and she can know him. There is the slightest possibility that he will make his way up here after graduation. I'm holding out hope...
In the meantime, Dad and I compared stomachs this weekend - Dad is in red, I'm in white. Who's winning??:
Friday, March 12, 2010
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
The 37-Week Melt Down
Well, it finally happened. I had my hormone-induced (please, Lord, let that have been hormone-induced) pregnancy melt down. Yesterday, while walking around and making my way through our typical Sunday routine, I heard from many a stranger about what I can and can't do because I'm pregnant, about how pregnant I really look, about how much labor is going to hurt, about how my life will change when the baby arrives. At the farmers market, when the seven millionth woman looked at me, asked me when I'm due, pointed to her loud, obnoxious kids and said, "Good luck. It's crazy," my flip switched. I came home, laid down on our bed, and started crying. Hysterically crying. Ugly, gasping-for-air crying.
Michael immediately came to my side to start comforting me, and in about three minutes we were both laughing at how ridiculous these tears were (okay, maybe closer to five minutes...). Our lives are certainly about to be upended, but as Michael keeps reminding me, it will be fun! And we'll have a little one to share the insanity with!
I feel insanely big now, and pretty uncomfortable. I'm ready for this little girl to come on out and meet the world. She's officially full-term, which is thrilling. Of course, our doctors office doesn't induce until you are 42-weeks along, which is still FIVE weeks away. That is utterly terrifying. But I'm hoping she decides to join us sooner, rather than later, now that she's done baking and is focused on getting big.
So here's me at 37-weeks:
And, when I finally dried my eyes and calmed down yesterday, I realized Michael was making headway on the baby's room! He washed all our baby supplies, so they are ready to cloth and comfort our girl. And he got our crib all set up to look like this:
It doesn't get much cuter!
Michael immediately came to my side to start comforting me, and in about three minutes we were both laughing at how ridiculous these tears were (okay, maybe closer to five minutes...). Our lives are certainly about to be upended, but as Michael keeps reminding me, it will be fun! And we'll have a little one to share the insanity with!
I feel insanely big now, and pretty uncomfortable. I'm ready for this little girl to come on out and meet the world. She's officially full-term, which is thrilling. Of course, our doctors office doesn't induce until you are 42-weeks along, which is still FIVE weeks away. That is utterly terrifying. But I'm hoping she decides to join us sooner, rather than later, now that she's done baking and is focused on getting big.
So here's me at 37-weeks:
And, when I finally dried my eyes and calmed down yesterday, I realized Michael was making headway on the baby's room! He washed all our baby supplies, so they are ready to cloth and comfort our girl. And he got our crib all set up to look like this:
It doesn't get much cuter!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Monday, March 1, 2010
Preparations
Well, this baby's arrival is within sight! We have less than one month to go - at least, that's what we're hoping (26 days until her due date). Michael and I spent this weekend preparing, just in case she arrives early. We now have a mattress for the crib, diaper wipes, onesies, an adorable dress from BabyGap, an infant car seat and all the trimmings that we can anticipate. I'm still on the lookout for a good sling (any suggestions?), and the hospital bag needs to be packed, but we're doing pretty darn well, overall.
And now it's nearly impossible to think about anything else. We have baby things throughout the apartment - books on sleep training and making our little one the happiest of them all, strollers in the hallways, diapers in the living room, and her bedroom littered with supplies. Because of my size, it's now impossible to do any task without being reminded how very pregnant I am, as getting up and down, walking after being stationary, even being stationary, induces some discomfort somewhere.
I have an insane amount to get done at work before this baby arrives. This type of transition is such a difficult one. I need to stay committed and focused to get things done, but I also need to start letting go, should I have to leave work tomorrow. I am so grateful to my job and my colleagues - they are all so excited and supportive.
Oh, baby girl, we can't wait to meet you!
And now it's nearly impossible to think about anything else. We have baby things throughout the apartment - books on sleep training and making our little one the happiest of them all, strollers in the hallways, diapers in the living room, and her bedroom littered with supplies. Because of my size, it's now impossible to do any task without being reminded how very pregnant I am, as getting up and down, walking after being stationary, even being stationary, induces some discomfort somewhere.
I have an insane amount to get done at work before this baby arrives. This type of transition is such a difficult one. I need to stay committed and focused to get things done, but I also need to start letting go, should I have to leave work tomorrow. I am so grateful to my job and my colleagues - they are all so excited and supportive.
Oh, baby girl, we can't wait to meet you!
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Love on All Sides
We're in the midst of a week when Michael and I bask in love from all sides.
I won't do justice to the emotions of the week, but the events have included two baby showers, a night of poker, a communal birthday gift, and a lot of good will. I can't quite wrap my head around all the love that has been poured over us - from my colleagues, my friends, Michael's friends, our New York family. I just know how overwhelmingly grateful I am for it.
More details soon, but I just had to share the love!
I won't do justice to the emotions of the week, but the events have included two baby showers, a night of poker, a communal birthday gift, and a lot of good will. I can't quite wrap my head around all the love that has been poured over us - from my colleagues, my friends, Michael's friends, our New York family. I just know how overwhelmingly grateful I am for it.
More details soon, but I just had to share the love!
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Valentines
Happy Valentine's Day!
This morning, Michael and I woke early to enjoy our usual Sunday morning routine. He has already begun the trip downtown to attend our favorite gym classes of the week. Michael will take 2 classes, and I'll stick with one. While the first hour of a Sunday always leaves us wondering why we are wasting weekend mornings to wake so early, by 10:45 am, when we're both good and sweaty, we're grateful for the routine. After the gym, we'll pick up a Subway sandwich for my lunch and then park ourselves at Chipotle to read the Sunday paper and eat. Then we'll walk to our favorite bookstore, visit with our friends and head back uptown for a relaxing Sunday afternoon.
And today is Valentine's day! I already feel like I have 2 valentines to celebrate - Michael & our little lady. We're now officially in count-down mode. Sleep has become more difficult, and my body aches almost constantly now. The baby is 34-weeks now, and in just 3 more, she'll be full-term! I'm still trying to convince myself that she'll be born in early April (her due date is March 27th), but it's hard to not dream that she'll be a little early. Yesterday, as Michael and I talked about plans for visitors after she's born, we both started getting anxious, realizing how soon our lives will be turned upside down.
It's a pretty thrilling enterprise, this having-a-child business. I'm tired of worrying about how our lives will change, how our marriage will shift, how my professional life will upend. I'm really tired of people telling me how I'll never be prepared for these realities, how I'm going to be "SO TIRED," how hard the first few months are. I'm ready to go for it now! I guess this is the beauty of a 40-week growth process - we're given time to anticipate, to mentally prepare, before getting thrown in.
Because this baby girl is getting bigger, her movements are much more visible. My stomach is right out of Alien when she's active and awake. Last night, while reading, she was jumping and running so powerfully that I had to just put down my book and watch. She's already amusing me! Our lovely little girl, how excited we are to see you!
Does it get much better than this? Surrounded by love on all sides. Sharing my life - and soon another's - with a wonderful husband. Building a family together.
Happy Valentine's Day!
This morning, Michael and I woke early to enjoy our usual Sunday morning routine. He has already begun the trip downtown to attend our favorite gym classes of the week. Michael will take 2 classes, and I'll stick with one. While the first hour of a Sunday always leaves us wondering why we are wasting weekend mornings to wake so early, by 10:45 am, when we're both good and sweaty, we're grateful for the routine. After the gym, we'll pick up a Subway sandwich for my lunch and then park ourselves at Chipotle to read the Sunday paper and eat. Then we'll walk to our favorite bookstore, visit with our friends and head back uptown for a relaxing Sunday afternoon.
And today is Valentine's day! I already feel like I have 2 valentines to celebrate - Michael & our little lady. We're now officially in count-down mode. Sleep has become more difficult, and my body aches almost constantly now. The baby is 34-weeks now, and in just 3 more, she'll be full-term! I'm still trying to convince myself that she'll be born in early April (her due date is March 27th), but it's hard to not dream that she'll be a little early. Yesterday, as Michael and I talked about plans for visitors after she's born, we both started getting anxious, realizing how soon our lives will be turned upside down.
It's a pretty thrilling enterprise, this having-a-child business. I'm tired of worrying about how our lives will change, how our marriage will shift, how my professional life will upend. I'm really tired of people telling me how I'll never be prepared for these realities, how I'm going to be "SO TIRED," how hard the first few months are. I'm ready to go for it now! I guess this is the beauty of a 40-week growth process - we're given time to anticipate, to mentally prepare, before getting thrown in.
Because this baby girl is getting bigger, her movements are much more visible. My stomach is right out of Alien when she's active and awake. Last night, while reading, she was jumping and running so powerfully that I had to just put down my book and watch. She's already amusing me! Our lovely little girl, how excited we are to see you!
Does it get much better than this? Surrounded by love on all sides. Sharing my life - and soon another's - with a wonderful husband. Building a family together.
Happy Valentine's Day!
Topics I've Been Thinking About
I've wanted to write posts lately about the following things:
- Commuting;
- My addiction to technology;
- How nice people can be to pregnant ladies;
- Obama's State of the Union;
- Obama's exchange with the Republicans;
- Priorities.
- The State of the Union is Comatose by Frank Rich;
- Camus Fired Up by Maureen Dowd;
- Adults Only, Please by Thomas Friedman;
Monday, February 8, 2010
Heart
I know the picture is cheesy, but here's 10 seconds of our baby's heart beating from my last doctor's appointment!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Zen
Do you want to know one of the most relaxing sounds Michael and I enjoy in our new apartment?
The cries of seagulls.
We are only 2 blocks from the Hudson River, and we often hear seagulls crying out as we eat breakfast in the morning. It's such a shock, living in the City, to hear birds, let alone ones you associate with warm summer days at the beach. Lovely.
The cries of seagulls.
We are only 2 blocks from the Hudson River, and we often hear seagulls crying out as we eat breakfast in the morning. It's such a shock, living in the City, to hear birds, let alone ones you associate with warm summer days at the beach. Lovely.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
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