My parents have bought my son a guitar.

Grin.

What's all this extra weight?

I found this great article (maybe from Parents magazine maybe?) about what the extra weight actually is when you're getting ready to deliver:

Breast Tissue = 1-2 lbs
Baby = 6-8 lbs
Uterus = 2 lbs
Placenta = 1.5 lbs
Amniotic Fluid = 2 lbs
Blood Volume = 4 lbs
Stored Fat = 4 lbs
Fluid Retention = 4 lbs


Not one mention of Nutella or kettle cooked potato chips. See, I told you.

Baby Shower!

Oh! I cannot thank everyone enough for a fantastic, beautiful day! We ate delicious treats–that were very well thought out to balance our many dietary restrictions. The decorations were adorable and all bird themed to match our bird-y nursery. We got crafty making customized onesies and bibs for The Dude. I got to open a ton of amazing, fun, sweet gifts. I feel so loved and supported. Much love and appreciation to you all. Even the women celebrating from afar. Hugs and Grins.

Here are a few great photos from the day, more are on Karen's Real Exposure site.

[squash - week 31]

20 lbs. of Slow and Dumb

Yep. It's official, I've reached the 20 lb. mark. Feeling like I'm carrying a really heavy backpack on my front and I can't ever take it off. I am slowing and growing more tired. My legs and feet are confused and kind of pissed about the extra workload. Hoping they won't go on strike. Forgetting something upstairs now gives me significant pause, "How much to I REALLY need my wallet? Is it worth another trip upstairs?" Conveniently enough, I'm really forgetful. Like stupid forgetful. And scatterbrained, yet fiercely organized. It's a weird mix.

I have always had this mental image of my brain like a large empty airplane hangar full of 4-drawer file cabinets. That's where all my memories are stored. In the center there's a large table where things that are pending filing (my short term memory) or things that are pulled from the cabinets (What's the name of that movie with that dude with the hair?) are stacked temporarily. 

Pregnant brain feels like someone (ahem, baby...) has pulled out one of those retractable walls, like in my old gymnasium, and rendered half of the hangar inaccessible. There are things that I'm SURE I know or knew, but there's no way to reach them. Being pregnant is like being a little wasted and stupid. I'm just saying, this baby better be a genius for all the brain cells he's pillaged.

However, my hair is fantastic. My fingernails are perfect. I don't have giant stretch marks so far. I can sleep through the night even after getting up to pee twice. I'm not on bed rest. My husband is smart enough for both of us. I can eat just about anything and not feel guilty. Burger with guacamole and bacon? Yep. Side of onion rings? You bet. Lemonade? Of course. Is there any pie? This isn't so bad...

Contractions

I'm having them. Braxton Hicks contractions that is. They're like "practice" contractions. Think of it like going on short training runs before a marathon. Periodically my belly seizes up like a rock. The whole uterus flexes for about 30 seconds to 2 minutes. It doesn't hurt for now. I'm told to keep track of them and make sure they don't get TOO rhythmic and close together or it's pre-term labor. More than 4 in an hour means I should call the doc to get checked out. 

So far I'm having about 10 per day. Sometimes 4 in a 1.5 hour time frame. So it's close! Just for the record, I'm guessing that "The Dude" might show squishy little face a bit early. We'll see, but I'm hoping against that. At least let us get past the 34 week mark to minimize any health issues... fingers and toes crossed for us please.

Like Mom, Like Dad

This is a fun blog with parent and kid re-posed photos.

Young Me, Now Me

This is another fun blog from the same source with more re-posed photos

Enjoy!

Henna belly!

Darcy (hennalounge.com) painted this gorgeous bird and nest on my belly today. LOVE.

[squash - week 30]

Belly. Whoa.

Belly button report: 1/8" deep. Not an "outie" but it's pretty much flush.

[squash - week 29]

One Year Anniversary

 

Mike and I celebrated our first anniversary this weekend. Honoring it with a delicious picnic on the beach in Pacifica. We reflected on how fast the year has gone...a third wedding celebration in January up in Toronto...a short but life-creating* trip up to Calistoga's Indian Springs in February...tandem trips to Massachusetts and Toronto followed by a SF visit from Cynthemum in April...bumped baby bellies with Jess in May when she and Ari visited...Orange county wedding in June...Mike's Israel and McGill reunion trip to Montreal and Toronto in July...playing music and helping out for Jeff and Ashley's St. Paul wedding followed by Dan and Erin's Toronto wedding in August...seeing family, including my folks in Toronto...more and more baby preparations...

I love you more than ever sweetheart. Thanks for everything. I can't wait to meet our little boy, I hope he's just like you.

*You do the math. Wink.

[eggplant - week 28]

Splurge. 
Swanky nursing chair. Glider? Yes. Recliner? Yes. Melly approved? Yes.

[eggplant - week 27]

My niece meets The Dude.

[eggplant - week 26]

Adventure Travel
We've been busy at airports. Headed to St. Paul, Minnesota for a wedding. Then on to Toronto, Ontario for another wedding. His family lives in TO and my folks drove up from Massachusetts for a visit. Lots of good kid hangout time with the nieces and nephew (ahem, patience practice). Let's call it a "trip" rather than a "vacation" because I don't feel quite rested. Though I enjoyed every moment of the adventure and it might be the last for a while. November = sh*t + fan.

My photographer mom documented The Dude in the Belly, Mike, his mom and me.

Grandparent name discussion
My mom, Kate, will use the grandmother title "Kate"
My dad, Evan, is still undecided...
Mike's mom, Cynthia, will continue to use "Gramma"
Mike's dad, David, will be "Saba"


We collected photos of the Toronto family so we can put together an album of faces to introduce The Dude to the remote folks. Which is, um, everyone.

[eggplant - week 25]

Bouncing Bellies!

My buddy Greg found this little beauty. Says not to ask how he stumbled upon it. So I didn't.

Pregnant Girls Gone Wild

Alphabet

I want to make this alphabet wall. Perhaps this can be a maternity leave assignment...

Latest belly shot:
For the moment my belly button is still an Inny. But really, I'm seeing nooks and crannies of it that I have never before. As of today, my finger goes in to the 1/4" mark. Stay tuned...
 

[papaya - week 24]

Mila's Daydreams
This is such a beautiful idea. Though it makes me think the artist has a maid or else her nap times would be more precious. No? Nevertheless, I'm very impressed with how creative and simple these photos are.

[papaya - week 23]

Mike said the sweetest thing yesterday. So as a public service announcement to anyone who's around or will be around a pregnant woman, it is a very GOOD thing to say...  

"From the back you don't look pregnant at all."

I am positively aflutter with pride. Thanks honey.


p.s. Yes we're still at "papaya" stage according to the produce chart. That means about 11" long and a little over a pound. That's one big ass papaya if you ask me.

[papaya - week 22]

Dylan and The Dude are bonding.
Mike has gotten a lot of extra bonding time with Dylancat these days. He used to climb into my lap, but now my belly is occupying too much of the lap real estate. Yesterday Dylan decided he wanted to give it another shot and try to climb in. He kind of draped himself over my belly with feet in my lap. It seemed satisfactory and he began to purr. Suddenly, The Baby Dude started kicking like crazy. I guess everyone loves a good purr vibration. A cure for all your ills. Grin.

What my ass doesn't look like in these jeans:

A while back I got my first pair of maternity jeans (see above). I was young and unskilled. The pants are my "natural" size, but were conveniently upsized to accommodate a larger ass (read: Gap thinks that pregnant ladies will always be fatter than normal and in denial). They were too big. And too flare legged. And wouldn't stay up, gave me saggy dump ass (NOTHING like this marketing photo). Because I neeeed to look more frumpy. Oh yeah, I could return them if it wasn't day 53 of their 45 day return policy. Sigh. Am I actually wishing I'd gain a few pounds so they'll fit better???

They have a "demi-panel" which is shown above. Kind of a short elastic panel as opposed to the panels that come all the way up to the boobs. It gets all twisted and it's too tight. Apparently some women like this. I am not one of these women. I want my waistbands below my belly. And loose. Like they're staying up by magic skin-to-jean magnetism.

My new favorite denim leggings (minus the ridiculous heels of course):

It's a damn good thing I found these beauties. I actually went back to Gap again, even after being disappointed the first time. So yes, they are denim, but they don't have those lame fake pockets like some denim leggings, they're just superdark blue and made of thicker-than-yoga-pants cotton weave. The waist is nice and looow, but not too low to be vulgar. My holy grail of maternity pantware. I am in love. They look like skinny jeans. Nicely blousing at the ankle (cankle camoflage). Makes my legs look like tiny-ish sticks popping out from my giant belly-accommodating tops. I hope they still fit post-babe.

They are my first skinny jeans since that white pair I had in 6th grade with the zippers and ankle heart cutout. Who ever let a 6th grader get white jeans? They were filthy always. Remember those Sandi?


Oh! What's that Dude? You want what?? A frozen Snickers bar? That's not very healthy. Well yeah, I guess peanuts ARE pretty healthy-ish and full of protein. Good idea! Gotta go.

[banana - week 21]

Bubbles. That's what it feels like. As if I'm carbonated or I've taken a few too many gulps of air. At first I wasn't sure. Maybe it's just gas? When I get into bed in the evening and settle for a moment--that's when it starts up. Maybe I'm hatching a flock of gorgeous yet agitated butterflies? Something is moving in there...

Polka Dots

My cousin Jen sent me a TON of her retired maternity clothes. Here's me at the Bart station modeling the polka dot shirt. She shared a funny story...

"I was wearing the shirt while teaching one day. I was in front of the class sitting on the stool, teaching social studies. In mid sentence I had to stop because I noticed some of the kids staring at me funny with eyes wide. So I asked what was going on and one of the little girls near me pointed at my stomach and said, "The dots...they're moving!!" Apparently Nathan was being active and making the dots jump around on my stomach. It was a cute moment that I will never forget!"-- Jen

My belly isn't that jumpy bumpy yet, I'll have to wait another month or so. This shirt will be a fun one to watch then. Grin. Thanks Jen!

Crazy dreams #5, 6 & 7

5. I'm with the baby, really examining his features for the first time. It has my eyes (blue green) and Mike's lips (big). Kind of a combination of us. But he also looks like my cousin Scott with a full head of black hair. Cute but bizarre.

6. I am with the baby. He's very tiny, about 6 inches from head to toe, but that's normal. I am taking him for a walk across the Mass Ave. bridge in Boston (over the Charles River). It's fall and sunny but windy on the water. I don't have any blankets to swaddle him. He's clutching my chest like a baby monkey latched on. I keep checking him but he's not moving and his eyes are unresponsive. His body is cold. I pull him off and put my mouth over his chest to breath warm air. He stirs and I know he's okay.

7. It's a movie-like scene, very dramatic with long plot. The setting is a combination of two places. Half is at South Station (Boston) in the train yard. Down with the tracks, not on the platform. The other half is the Boston Globe warehouse with lots of gigantic reams of paper and forklift robots. The station/warehouse catches fire and portions are blocked off to prevent spreading. I am locked in and end up delivering the baby atop a very large ream of paper. A competent, but silent female security guard assists. Later I nonchalantly tell Mike and friends "Oh! I forgot to tell you, I had the baby today." But the baby isn't with me later, but that's not weird at all.

Nurseroffice? Officery?

We've been nesting. Carving out some space for The Dude in our loft office. Mike moved his workspace downstairs, so my desk is up there (to the left of my green bag, just out of frame) with what will be the Nurseroffice / Officery. The shelves have been paired down, bins purged, and drawers sorted (including our entire file cabinet). A massive effort with a very large "shred" pile leftover. 

 

The goal was to make the catch-all office storage space feel more streamlined and zen. Less visible clutter (note the white fronted cabinet doors--I covered the frosted glass to hide the shadowy contents).

Not sure how long we'll keep the guest bed, but as long as we can stand it. It's lovingly covered with the green and white striped bedspread. Hoping to get a cozy glider chair to reward my nursing efforts...

We swapped the guest bed mattress with the two low cabinets to create a changing station that wasn't under the hanging cabinets (read: perhaps questionably earthquake safe...no place for baby). I made the blue checkered runner a while back. That's an old map of Canada covering the junction box. Melly assures us that this space is peaceful and comforting. Her opinion matters. What a helpful girl.

I made a fun mobile from a simple alligator clip thingy and some swallows I found online. This highlights the "soft green / blue / with a pop of orange" color palette and the bird theme I'm working towards up here. Though I may save these birds for a few months and clip in some contrasty black and white bits if I get ambitious.

I also made the little cardboard birdhouse from a simple kit. The birds were Granny's, I'm so happy they've been integrated. Feels like a little bit of her spirit is present.

Next to the birdhouse are my three mom generations. Me as a little girl with blond(!) hair, a painting Granny did of my mom and I out for an autumn walk in New England, and a photo of the three of us few years ago gazing into a beam of sunshine in Worthington.

More to come as it progresses...stay tuned.

[canteloupe - week 20]

Holy Toledo. We're half way there.

[mango: week 19]

Ok. It's official. The belly ring is out.
It's been 11 years and feels pretty weird to be missing that part of me.

This weekend I splurged on a prenatal massage at Kabuki. It was fabulous. They have this pillow with belly and boob cutouts so I could lay on my front. I could have cried with joy. It's been a while and I miss that position like you wouldn't believe. I even took a quick dip in the not-too-hot-to-be-dangerous-for-baby hot tub. I am one lucky girl.

Why Having a Toddler is Like Being at a Frat Party
So it's a little early for this, but any toddler parents will appreciate this hilarious blog post from Suburban Snapshots.

Latest Craving:
Vegetarian Ceviche from Herbivore. I can't get enough. (use oyster mushrooms instead of fish)

[green pepper - week 18]

It's a boy human.
I knew it. Remember my FIRST post??
I had a dream the night before taking the pregnancy test that the results came up saying "it's a boy!"
Talk about a premonition...

Lots of names in the works. Nothing final yet. In fact, we may just keep mum about it for now on...

[onion - week 17]

Long weekend in Southern California. Making sure the baby gets some Vitamin D. We lounged on this beach before heading to the hotel. Unfortunately my vision of spending the days lounging by the glorious pool were thwarted by the clouds that quickly rolled in and stuck. Instead we went to the mall next to the hotel. And to the Disneyland mall. For real. Really.

On the bright side, we laughed our asses off watching Get Him to The Greek matinee. And we had a lovely time at Robert and Dana's backyard wedding. Grin.

[avocado - week 16]

This weekend...lots of things and energy for baby:
Friend's garage sale. 1.5 hours. Scored tons of baby loot. Books, clothes, bouncer, Boppy pillow, a big farewell hug from an amazing momma I truly adore. Check.

Birth and Baby Fair. 3 hours. Scored tons of baby loot. Gift bag (!) with diapers, stripey baby legwarmers, crawling jeans with padded knees, lots of brochures, coupons and gift cards. Check.

Home sorting goodies, saving coupons and reading brochures and magazines. 3 hours. Check.

I'm pretty spent on baby studies after all this. The "to read" pile is very tall. If we have a quake, I just may be injured from it toppling. Knock on wood.

...and something special for me: 
One of the awesome goodies I bought at the Birth and Baby Fair was a Comfy-Cozie shoulder warmer. It's a lovely cotton pouch full of rice. Pop it in the microwave and rest it across your shoulders. It's luscious and makes me all melty. This is extra helpful after reading mountains of baby information or if you're back is all janky from hunching over your keyboard all day. Plus, it's lovingly made by Rebecca in SF! Mine is in this gorgeous Amy Butler fabric which is enough to make me smile in itself.

I like this book: The Girlfriends Guide to Pregnancy 
It's got a very cool perspective. Not the "Everything is dangerous and will hurt you and your baby. Stay home and hibernate" sentiment of many books/blogs/sites/people who shall remain nameless. It's pretty much my favorite book to hold my hand so far.

[orange - week 15]

I don't have a ton of news this week.

But, I will share a VERY funny blog: Shit My Kids Ruined
While it is kind of awesome birth control, it's a little late for that. I'm thinking of it as a baby proofing lesson. I have a LOT of Sharpies to hide...

[lemon - week 14]

I went crazy last week. Spinning exorcist head with tears spraying out like a sprinkler. Then, I had some amazing conversations (ahem, therapy) with a happy and balanced mother of a 5 month old and another woman who's due this Wednesday. Now my head is more sorted and facing the right way again. Mike totally deserves his World's Greatest Dad mug.

He's been extra happy to relinquish his designated driver status lately. As much as I loathe driving around San Francisco, I owe him for the dozens of times he's carted my drunk ass around. Plus he's a very funny passenger. FYI: If you're trying to reach Mike by phone and cannot, ask him about kayaking with electronics in pocket...

The nesting instinct has aggressively begun. After breakfast I HAD TO clean up the kitchen, disinfect the bathroom sink and toilet (including Windexing the freaking mirror and washing out the sludge that collected in the toothbrush cup). Why this absolutely could not wait until after I'd done some work, who knows. But it's just lovely now. Lucky me since I'm in there to pee about every 30 minutes.

Oh and here's The belly. Just a tiny bit bigger...

Might need to cut a crescent shape out of the front of my desk to make room. OR I'll just let the desk cut into the belly so I have a convenient shelf for snacks.

[peach - week 13]

Last Friday we went to our first Giants game. Being the good mother that I am, I fed the baby a hot dog, some roasted peanuts, a sugar bomb of an ice tea and several handfuls of cotton candy. Then, like a child, I had a tummy ache. The Giants beat the Astros, whoever they are. I wore my Red Sox hat proudly. One of my favorite parts was post-game when the fans leave and the seagulls swarm the stands. It's a scene straight out of The Birds. Squawking and fighting and birds trying to swallow nacho chips whole.

I am wearing maternity jeans now. They have a wide elastic below the belly panel and no zipper. They pull right up and are still too big–despite Friday's meal. I'm going to eat a few spoonfuls of Nutella and see if they fit better. Here is a photo of me in my new pants. Sucking in my gut for who the hell knows why.

Before you report me to child welfare for malnutrition, I've begun my prenatal yoga classes. I had no idea there were so many pregnant ladies in my neighborhood. It made me feel slightly less isolated in my hipsters-not-mamas-unless-you-count-Hoochie-mamas neighborhood. Plus the classes are at Yoga Tree 10 blocks away and therefore bracketed by a mile walk each way. I like it. I also like snagging some salsa and a burrito from Papalote after class. Speaking of that, I'm pretty sure it's snack time...

[plum - week 12]

Phew! We FINALLY got to tell everyone. What a giant relief. It was so joyful calling the family to share the good news. Mom-mom wants her great grandmother name to be Grand Ma Ma. So classy.

Coincidentally, for Mother's Day weekend we threw the first brunch of the season out on our deck and came clean with our dirty little secret by way of my tiny round belly. For the record, brunch with several Mimosas (last time...) is way better than brunch with only a sip of champagne (this time...). Humph.

Wendy & Paul gave me some swiss-water decaf from Kaua'i Coffee! Oh my, it is fabulous. So velvety. So sweet. I'm purring. I first had their regular roast on our honeymoon. This rich, creamy decaf latte is so nice after months of tea. I cannot thank you enough guys, so thoughtful. Pregnant lady = happy.

Offbeat Mama

After I'm all sugary, sticky and paranoid from reading too much of The Bump, I like to counter it with some realism. I take some time to recenter with the help of Offbeat Mama. It's very creative and balancing.

I first got on board with their down to earth sentiment when I was wedding planning. Reading Offbeat Bride to remind myself that there really aren't any rules. It's quite refreshing. Check it.

Crazy dream #4

4. Can't remember where I was, but I found a toilet. The toilet seat cover was blue patterned rug. And I mean the actual seat, not just the lid that matches the floor rug set. I shudder to think of how filthy the carpeted seat would be. Gag. I was trying to tear pieces of toilet paper as a seat covering before sitting. I could only tear off teeny tiny pieces. So annoying.

Lucky for me (and Mike!), I woke up at this point. Please keep your fingers crossed that my next post doesn't involve questions about removing pee from a bed. Sigh.

Baby's first ABCs

Our good friend Paul wrote a book! It's an adorable ABCs book with fantastic little characters... "A is for Ashley who's always asleep" LOVE LOVE LOVE

Get one for yourself on his site

Is it just me?

Or does this movie look fascinating? Babies

 

Watch the trailer. Really. I like the idea of getting a glimpse outside of the American way of baby raising.

Oh, and Mike wants to get a goat for the baby to have as a pet.

Belly.

It's either starting to pop out. Or I'm bloated. Or just fat from my 12 meals a day diet plan. Stay tuned.

[lime - week 11]

We see the baby even bigger with actual arms legs now. And a big fat head. Ultrasound for Downs Syndrome screening - likelyhood is 1/16,000. We breathe deeply. 
Phew.

Here's the baby's bum. (No, you can't see it's bits yet.)

Here's the baby camped out. 4D ultrasound. Wiggly spindle legs.

We're a day away from the 3 month mark and finally can spill the beans.