So we’ve started Naomi on “solid” foods.  So far she’s had rice ceral and bananas.  Next week we will introduce an avacado.  Wow! How time flies!

She’s a good eater.  I was reading something on wholesomebabyfood.com that said not to be suprised if baby only eats 1/2 tbspn the first few times. Ha!  Naomi didn’t have a problem finishing everything off, once she got the hang of it.  This morning I gave her a sizable piece of banana (mashed of course) and she was opening up her mouth for more!  Funny… this is going to change the structure of my day considerably.  Especially since I want to pump to keep up my supply and create a reserve.  I’d like her to have breast milk for at least a year if not longer.

I need to spend the next few days learning how to make and store baby food.  I’m so excited!

 

i like curling up with you

Yesterday was a good day.  Mark and I met with Katy Vold regarding maternity photographs, then took off to Carmel for the afternoon.  The weather was chilly and overcast.  Absolutely perfect.  On the way home we stopped by Santa Cruz for ice cream, then at one of the beaches for some time in prayer for our family.

It was a good day.

Today has it’s task list, but I’m enjoying the cold morning and curling up in the joy of yesterday.  I’ve always appreciated the cold, but especially now (higher body temperature).   At the moment my cheeks are nice and tingly from a walk outside, and my nose has yet to defrost.  Too bad the sun is coming out

Tuesday she’ll be 36 weeks.  One more week and she’ll be full term.  This month has gone by so fast.  There’s still so much to do!

Breathe.

One that note, I’m going to go work on the nursery to make me stop panicing! ha!

 

The shower was great fun.  In retrospect, I should have allowed a friends shower and a family shower.  There were just too many people!  Oh well, live and learn I guess.  I just like events with lots of people

It was so wonderful being able to chat with everyone and share in the joy of our little one.  Mark and I are so excited, and it was great to be able to share that joy with the group.  Ok, ok, the “loot” was great too!

Today I didn’t get nearly as much done on the nursery as I had hoped.  I’ll be working on that this evening and throughout the week to get it right.  There’s returns and shopping to do.  Filling in the gaps and what not.  Kids are expensive!  I hope the next one’s a girl so we can reuse everything.  If not, it will still be cheaper than the first since the “functional” items aren’t gender specific.

I want to do cloth diapers.  However, with things getting closer I have a feeling we’ll be do disposable – at least at first.  Once things settle down a bit I may switch.  We’ll see how it all plays out.

 

baby shower

Baby Shower is today.  I’m so excited to get together with friends and family to celebrate our little one.  Seeing all that support is really going to be helpful later on down the line.  Whenever I feel <insert emotion here> I can think about today and find joy.

Thank you all.

 

i like your smile

I love my skin again.  Thank you Bare Escentuals!

I go through phases on my makeup wearing.  I start running out of things, don’t want to spend the money.  Wane in use.  Stop use.  Because it’s a slow process, my poor skin sneaks up on me.  Next thing I know, I have break outs and red spots (sensitive skin).

Recently, I finally gave in.  Time to make the purchase.  Grabbing my SIL we ran off to the mall.  I tried a liquid @ the Este Lauder counter.  Eh.  Wasn’t feeling it.  Went to the Bare Escentuals store and was reminded why I love this stuff.

Why?  Because it’s freakin’ wonderful!  I tried their face wash (a dry wash mixed with water) and noticed an immiedate difference in my skin tone.  Start wearing just the basics daily and within 48 hours a noticeable improvement.  Gosh, I can’t believe I let my face get that red and splotchy … and didn’t even notice!  Now that I have even tones again and smoother skin – ah. So much better.

Next purchase from there?  Probably the night treatment.  Right now I just wear my makeup to bed and it seems to work out very well.  Imagine how much better this product is going to be!

< / plug >

We have a set of railroad tracks that run through one part of the town.  Every time I come to the stop light there, I am amazed by the way people approch railroad tracks.  Instead of stopping behind the lines, they stop on the tracks.  Sit there, wait for the light to turn and then proceed.   Do they not understand why this is not a good idea?  The intersection is structured in such a way that should that train come, and should you be in the track … you don’t have a lot of options.  You might be able to wiggle free, up over the curb.  The question is … would you, dear idoit, have the presence of mind to find the right way to escape in enough time?

I’ve lived here three years and have never seen it put to the test.  I hope I never see (or hear about) it happening.  If people continue to approch this intersection the same way, it’s bound to happen.

Is it really worth risking your life (and the lives of others, as your vehical will cause additional damage upon impact) so you can get a wee bit closer to your destination?

I just don’t get it.

< / vent >

In other news, I interviewed a pediatrician today.  I’ve got a few more on the list before making a decision, but I have a feeling we’ll end up in Fremont.  I haven’t met with any of the Fremont PDs yet, but Mark’s doc, my OB, etc are down there.  Apparently we are attracted to the medical options in that city.

5 weeks and a few days.

Deep Breath

 

taking a break

I’m taking a short break from work.  I need to use a different side of my brain.  Well, any part of my brain, really.  At the moment I’m doing tedious data entry.  It’s great – we need the money.  It’s something I don’t know that I’d trust very many people with since it’s for my client.  One of those tasks that takes some level of intelligence, but little to no skill.

*yawn*

We are launching this thing tomorrow.  So I have to finish everything off by tomorrow morning.  Its about freakin’ time!  It was supposed to launch November, but due to the usual delays it’s now January.  I’m sure the client will have additional tweeks after launch.  He always does, heh.

Today was our last birthing class.  I don’t know that I’m ready to part with my classes.  I have my notes.  We’ll be practicing our breathing and communication, etc etc.  I know.  We’ll be fine.  I’ll be fine.  I’m just not ready for them to be over.

Tomorrow we have an ultrasound.  Next Saturday a hopsital tour.  The Saturday after is the shower.  The following week is our new parents class.  Then it’s the end of January and Feburary will be here.  She’ll be here in Feburary … well, unless she’s late!

 

2009

This morning, I was awake at 7am, dispite climbing into bed around 1am.  Something is wrong with me.

The past few weeks Mark has been great.  He’s helping me out more (especially when I’m not up to snuff), trying to pickup around the house more, and making efforts to address particular physical aliments.  The effect on me has been great.  I find myself not complaining as much, even to myself, as I pick up his glasses and whatnot.  It’s a nice place to be.  I like it here.

So it’s 2009.  Last year was full, this year is going to be full.  Both in very different ways.  For me, last year meant a lot of self discovery and adjustment.  Breaking free of some long time self inflicted limitations.  Finding new ground with God and taking small steps of faith.  Becoming pregnant and experiencing the mass of relational, mental and physical changes.  It was a year of transition.

This year is the fulfillment of that, or at least some of.  She’s going to come into the world soon.  We’re going to meet her.  Our lives are going to change, again.  This time into something completely new and unknown.  The next few months are titled “Waiting for Baby”.  It’s a time of self reflection, hard work, and prayer.  A quiet time and a busy time, but a time of being centered.  I’m really looking forward to it.  Preparing for her arrival.  For birth.  For having a new life in the house.  For the transition from inside to out.  I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like to have that empty apartment for a belly.  I hope it gets renovated quickly!

I love you.  Thank you for being my husband.  I can’t wait to spend these next few months bonding and sharing with you.  Loving you and being loved by you.  This experiance is going to be so incredible.  I don’t think either of us are ready for the intensity of it, but I’m glad that you’re my partner in this.  I wouldnt’ want to share it with anyone else.

 

I’m putting a title for my husband’s sake.

So I logged in to post and I had totally forgot about the new version release!  The WordPress dashboard is so different.  It’s going to take some getting used to.  I need to spend a few minutes poking around and getting a feel for the new landscape.  I wonder if there’s a way to change the color scheme… I don’t care much for the gray and black.

In other news, our birthing class today was great.  Last week’s class, I struggled with some things and how it relates to Mark and I’s relationship.  Over the past week we have had some good communication and we are both working on supplying the other with their needs (rather than it being a one-way back and forth street).  I believe the first sign of positive impact I’ve seen is today.  He was a comfort in class.  I enjoyed working with him and having him there.  I found myself looking forward to birth and his role in it.  This is really great stuff and I pray that it continues as we move forward.

I’m pregnant.  Yes yes, I know most of you look at me with that “duh” expression.  However, recently it has really hit home in a new way.  We’re going to have a little girl.  She is going to be beautiful.  My excitement and anticipation type has completely changed.  I feel like I’m entering a new phase and it’s wonderful!

The odd thing?  I am looking forward to labor.  I know that I can do it.  I am looking forward to meeting that challenge and doing well.  The pain doesn’t scare me (at least right now!) and the process is thrilling.  Perhaps this ties in with Mark and I’s good week.  Perhaps it’s part of the third trimester hormones.  I don’t know.  I do know that I’m going to hang on to this for as long as I can.

Another tie in, and perhaps the key, is our prayer and time in the Word.  We’ve been reading and praying together more regularly.  Our conversations about the text hasn’t been strained.  It’s been another good experiance.

I’ve been musing about the third trimester.  Throughout the pregnancy Mothers have told me to “relax.  Enjoy it.  It will go so fast.”.  Up until now, it’s felt pretty slow.  There’s been milestones which are met with celebration (seeing her heartbeat on the ultrasound for the first time, making it past the first trimester, switching to maternity clothes, etc).   But the changes in my body have been smooth and steady.  With her rapid weight and growth during the last trimester, I expect that the changes will be faster and more apperent.  I expect my aches and pains to increase with her size.   I’m looking forward to rolling out of bed because I can no longer sit up on my own.  This is the part that connotates “pregnancy” in most woman’s minds.  This is the time I want to savor and experiance.  This it the time I want to soak up and really reflect on later.

Her movements are pretty regular now and a great comfort.  It’s going to be odd, having her on the outside.  Her kicks, turns, hiccups, and body slams against me are amusing and heart warming.   Our (she and I) relationship is going to change soon in ways that I can’t anticipate.  I wonder what it will be like.

Today I hit the mother-load of garage sales!  A young woman down the street was a shop-a-holic for her daughter.  She had gotten rid of a ton of clothing a long time ago, and saved only the stuff that had a memory attached to it.  It’s been in her attic and she finally decided to clear it out.

This woman must have had a lot of memories with her daughter!  Oh my gosh, so many clothes!  I walked away with four large overflowing boxes of clothing like-new condition, incredibly cute and stylish, and there were still three tables full.  I would have taken more, except that her daughter was a September baby and some of the clothing was too off in season.  I have a small mountain of clothes in the living room all for a whopping $25.

So, it’s been a really great day.  Amazing shopping, great time with my husband.  The only downside is that I didn’t get to exercise (I skipped class to spend over an hour going through all the clothes).  I’ll walk extra far tomorrow

The crib piece should be in “any day”.   Then the crib can go together and I’ll finally start to feel like the nursery is real.  It’s been very difficult not to buy the bedding, but with … stuff… I really need to wait for the shower.  The big things that I need to come from the shower are the nursery bedding/decor items, travel system (stroller & car seat), breast pump, high chair, and the health & safety stuff.  If we at least get those then we’ll be set.  The rest is frosting.

I’ve got work-work to do tonight.  We’re heading over to John and Jean’s for some family time.  I’ll bring my laptop, but I doubt I’m going to do much on it.  I’m just not in the mood.  Tomorrow will = crunch.

Night night all.  Happy Saturday!

 

I could watch this over and over and over and over again.

 

She was dancing last night.  4am.  My baby’s a party girl.

Yesterday was our first birthing class.  Fun.  I like the group of parents that are there.  Particularly V&J, they just seem like really fun people.  I didn’t learn anything new, but Mark was able to pick up some specific information.  After the class he seemed more interested and talkative about the baby and pregnancy than he has been.  I was hoping for that, but at the same time it frustrated me…. I could ramble about it, but I’m going to spare you.

Today’s piorities are – HOMEWORK.  I am incredibly behind in my classes and I need to spend some time today getting caught up.  It’s difficult because school is not a piority to me right now.  I’m done and moved on.  I want to focus on getting myself, the baby, the house, the nursery, etc.  Not school.  Although, being in perinatal Friday was a great reminder.  I want to be in medical.