Time seems to be flying by with no opportunity to stop and smell the roses. A quick update in the meantime...

Xmas holidays were wonderful - thanks to all the family members who made it extra special. We had so much fun giving this season, lots of fun things people really wanted. Except for poor hubby who really wanted socks and got what he asked for - athletic and dress :)

We seemed to return back to Chitown faster than we left, and the big bonus was all the trecherous snow and ice melted while we were away. An xmas present in and of itself!

This was to be a quiet week of work but has turned into a busy time here too - good news is lots of projects and plans getting knocked out. Thankfully b/c I have a short week next week -- we are off to the Dominican Republic for a long weekend.

Not before we celebrate the New Year, visit WI, have another doctors appointment, take a class on breastfeeding at the hospital, and meet with the financial planner and accountant. I'm also trying to get baby-ready now that I can't use the holidays as an excuse anymore. I cleaned out the nursery, organized gifts received, am making invite list for shower.

Phew. No wonder I feel so busy. Lots going on.

Hope everyone has and continues to enjoy what is left of the holiday season this week. Relax and enjoy. That is what I plan to do next week!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Hope everyone has a wonderful day, spent with family and friends.

We are home and enjoying a great visit, with more days ahead.

xo

Super Husband!

As I sit down to share this big news, I realize it is possible that I've not yet mentioned my biggest craving during the pregnancy. Anyone who has spoken to me live in the last four months would undoubtably be able to tell you in one guess, but somehow I've neglected a blog mention yet.

Peanut Buster Parfait.

Have you had one? It's a dessert from Dairy Queen (you know I work for the King and defer to him on most things but here the Queen has him beat), and I haven't had one in, um, say 15 years. But somehow I got the idea in my head about three months ago that I needed one.

Since then every craving starts with the PBP, but b/c I never actually get one, evolves into something else (cookies, cake, choc pudding, peanut m&ms). I'd guess not a day has gone by that I haven't mentioned it at least once.

So imagine my surprise when hubby came home with not one, but TWO yesterday! (Actually I may have said "don't come home without one" when he left, so it wasn't exactly a huge surprise, but I was still extraordinarily grateful). Obviously I ate one straight away (it was everything I thought it would be) and in his brilliance, I now have one saved in the freezer for a rainy (or snowy as it may be) day.

THANK YOU DEAR!!!

The funny part about this craving? I don't typically do sugar. My sis always makes fun of me b/c my xmas stocking candy is always still in my fridge in June. I'm a salty snack girl, and can always take a pass on dessert. But now, save the soul who gets in the way of my final course. I rarely leave the table without it.

And, in a second heroic feat, hubby also remedied a tense kitchen situation by bringing home xmas cookie cutters, after I unsuccessfully spent the day looking for them in my own house, at Dominicks and with friends in the neighborhood.

I'm SHOCKED, and frankly a little disappointed in myself, that I didn't own them and plan to soon call myself a MOTHER. What the heck?!? Anyway, I have a cookie exchange tomorrow and really wanted to make some festive cookies. It is way too cold to go specifically shopping for them and I was left to ponder hand-cutting or just using a bowl to make circles and decorate my way to reindeers (scary proposition for all involved).

And then, out of nowhere, he comes in from the blustery cold and drops off all different kinds of holiday shapes and sizes.

YIPPEE!!!

Is there anything better than nesting (and my super hero hubby)??

Let the baking begin :)

Oh glorious, lazy, pre-child, winter Sunday.

After braving the traffic, crowds and slush yesterday to check off the majority of my remaining holiday shopping, I'm thrilled to have done so. The thermometer on the porch is registering -5 degrees, without incorporating the blustering winds, estimated to drop the temp to somewhere south of -30. Yuck.

We knew it was coming and when I heard the wind this morning I just tucked in further under the covers. I read a little, went back to sleep. Basically just laid in bed a ridiculously long time. And it felt great.

I'm going to bundle up, run to the grocery for ingredients to make cookies, return to a toasty fire and hopefully not leave again today.

Enjoy the day, stay warm and stay inside!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Today is both my sister and my BIL's birthday - so here is wishing you both a big, happy day.

Hope it is everything you wished for, and that you're both celebrating with family, friends, and much alcohol :)

We'll be toasting one in your honor tonight.

Love you both!

Do you ever wonder what you would do if you were seriously hurt?

I had a weird injury this week - I ran on Monday morning and incorporated some additional pilates stretching afterward. It has been feeling so good, I thought I'd start doing some stretching work every day. Who knows what caused the problem. I still can't even isolate the pain. But sometime during Monday I started feeling really sore in my hip (as you may know I've had all kinds of complaints about my hips in recent months). By the end of the day, I couldn't walk on it or put any pressure on it.

Blah, blah, blah it is Wed and thankfully seems to slowly be getting better.

A few gals at work suggested it was caused by the ligaments loosening, as happens in pregnancy. Apparently it makes you more susceptible to injuries. I'm going to ask my doctor Friday b/c this is just one of many hip problems in the last few months, more to come.

But the whole thing got me thinking, what if I were seriously injured? Everything takes longer, is painful, and more challenging. It's just harder. It really gave me a renewed appreciation for people who've overcome adversity. Sometimes you don't give much thought to things when you're coasting through life, but a little hiccup reframes things a bit, you know?

A quick update - I think I'm over it. I can't guarantee that I won't continue to joke about it, but I think I'm mentally beyond the getting fat thing.

I can't really explain what brought it on or why it's no longer as troublesome. I think maybe I had a big growth spurt last week and it kind of freaked me out.

And I kinda liked the idea that it wasn't immediately evident that I was expecting - like a little secret I had and could share as I wished. But now my posture is changing. I have to work pretty hard to keep myself aligned and not carry all the baby weight incorrectly (per my glorious pilates instructors). And sleeping (or rather flipping over in my sleep) isn't as effortless as it once was. The best though is getting in and out of the car. Ha! The SUV is fine, I just spill out. But the sedan? Comical and needs to be surprisingly calculated to ensure I make it out with all my belongings in one try without straining something.

Anyway, the point is I get it. I knew it before but it is somehow more real now. It really isn't about me at all.

Just in time too - because once you try on a maternity bathing suit (we're going to the beach in Jan), there is really no looking back :)

And you know what? It's pretty cute.

OH, I get it! The posts went out in reverse order and I couldn't figure out until right now. Yesterday was Monday, not Sunday. Sorry for any confusion! 

Baby Moon, part I

This weekend we hit Sedona, AZ for a mini-babymoon.

Baby moons are all the rage these days, or rather I've become more attune to conversations surrounding babymoons. Though the name is a play off of the familiar honeymoon, I'd suggest there are a couple critical differences...

While I was the skinniest I've ever been in my life during the first few days of my honeymoon (God bless the south beach diet), I'm currently carrying around a volleyball in my jeans without much success of hiding it.

And of course I drank from sun up to sun down in glorious Tahiti, while Fresca (black cherry) is the most exciting thing on my drinking menu these days.

And on this trip, we weren't exactly alone like on our honeymoon. But we did greatly enjoy taking Baby S to the Grand Canyon, and on our other adventures. It is fun to have the additional company.

Food consumption for both trips is basically even. Post honeymoon I was thrilled to no longer starving myself (for the record my wedding was the only time in my life I've dieted and didn't really enjoy it) and therefore ate everything in sight; and one of the joys of pregnancy is the excuse that you have to eat every few hours. For the baby's sake of course.

But the weekend was really wonderful. It was extremely relaxing which was our primary goal. We did some great sight seeing, hiking, trips to the spa, shopping. Updates and pictures to follow this week.

The most wonderful thing about the trip?

I didn't take my laptop.

Yes, you read correctly.

I. Didn't. Take. My. Laptop.

And the world continued to rotate. Amazing. It is one of the most liberating things I've done in awhile (sadly). And I only missed it twice, and bounced back quickly. So outside of a few emails and a conference call, it really was a real vacation. A gift that happens when the worlds align perfectly. And thus, I'm refreshed and eager to dive into the holiday madness!

Not to overstate the obvious but the Grand Canyon is pretty, well, grand. In fact, it is so big I look relatively small in comparison!

As I mentioned, I flew in Friday morning to meet hubby who was working in Phoenix. We drove up to Sedona and checked out the town. The rocks are simply amazing. Driving north on 17 they simply appear out of nowhere and engulf the horizon. Sedona sits beneath a perimeter of ranges that come in all shapes and sizes, varying shades of red and are totally awe inspiring.

We got our bearings, eat a delicious 'tex mex' lunch and toured town. After hitting the spa we enjoyed a nice Italian dinner where our server treated us like we were her relatives in for the weekend. That, following the same from the lady working behind the counter at Walgreens, left us welcoming the slow, friendly pace of the southwest.

Saturday we hit the road early for a trip north to the Grand Canyon. It took about two hours as we took the scenic route on the way there. However after passing through Flagstaff there really isn't much more to see or do before hitting the Canyon. And at the southern rim, you can drive nearly right up to the edge, walk the remaining 50 feet and peer right over the edge. So close to the experience visitors are, it left us wondering how many people accidentally fall in each year.

We had lunch over looking the canyon (well in theory anyway) and then walked about a mile along the edge. In short, it is dizzying in its enormity. There is a lot more to say but really you should just get there yourself to experience it firsthand. It is one of the wonders of the world after all!

That night we had a delicious dinner at the Enchantment Lodge, quite a ways out of town but tucked into another beautiful mountain range. The stars were so bright that while we were there in the pitch black of night, they lit up the range to give us a peak at what we were missing.

Sunday we did a big hike, about 6 miles roundtrip in the West Fork area. The air was clean, crisp and piney. The views, amazing. Another nice thing about the trip overall was being there in the off season. It was especially apparent during our hike, reportedly a very popular one in the summer. We saw about a half dozen people all day and enjoyed the peace and quiet.

Before heading out of town, we hit the spa once more and I must say, there is nothing as wonderful as a prenatal massage. All in all, a very relaxing weekend.

Enjoy the pictures!

Week 26

Do you think it is possible that I have an abnormally heavy placenta?

I ask because I've suddenly gained a lot of weight and frankly am in denial that it could be something like my ASS that is carrying all this poundage.

Sadly I was the largest belly in my pilates class last night, with the other gals all due within a week of me. One of whom was having her second (she should be much bigger than me based on the books).

Ugh.

And I think my ankles are starting to swell. Isn't that supposed to happen in the 36th week? Not the 26th week? I'm still working out. Shouldn't I be protected from all of this nonsense?

If you haven't surmised, the "glow" has officially faded to black, which incidentally is all anyone is going to see me in between now and next spring.

Hubby assured me last night that even if I do continue to grow at this rate and expand to three times this size when I deliver, that he will still recognize (and presumably love) me. I'm not so sure.

And yes, I know. My vanity is shocking to me too.

I'm creating life, carrying a miracle, facilitating God's plan. And I am grateful. Extraordinarily grateful. I love the baby. I love his kicks (he kicked Stella in the head last night and she shot up off my lap wondering where the heck that came from, hilarious).

But I gotta tell you, it is going to be a long 14 weeks.

OH Turkey Tour: #4

Saving the best for last, our final OH Turkey Tour stop was in Lima to visit Grandma S. We missed her dearly at Thanksgiving this year (she opted to stay in home due to a few recent dizzy spells), and sadly don't get to Lima as often as we should.

We dropped off sis and her pup in T-town before heading south to join the in-laws for lunch with gram. It was wonderful to see her. She is as cheerful as always, keeping up a fast-paced lifestyle with activities, exercise, shopping excursions and tons of friends.

She basically runs the place, friends with all the staff, fellow residents and volunteers. In fact, she was responsible for bringing a library to the facility when she arrived. She has read more books in the last five years than I will read in my life. Amazing.

We had a great visit with her, it was wonderful to see her. I've included a great pic here of grandma and hubby.

And so concludes our OH Turkey Tour.

It will be nice to get home, sleep in our own bed, and stop gorging ourselves at every meal. I can't wait to work out tonight. I feel HUGE and blame it all on those damn delicious French Silk pies that followed me everywhere this weekend...

Happy Turkey Day to all and to all a good night!

OH Turkey Tour: #3

PIZZA PARTY!! (yes, more eating)

In what now appears to be a tradition, MIL hosted the whole blended fam at her house Friday night for a pizza party. This night really makes Thanksgiving for me b/c it is more relaxed than Turkey Day itself, and everyone is together under one roof. My p's and sis come in from the west side, hubby's fam comes in from all around the east side. It's a nice opportunity for the extended family to catch up over cocktails and good eats.

And YES, I realize how lucky we are. In fact, we're MOST thankful at this time of the year that our families are in the same city, like each other and we like them :) It is truly brilliant. And that is why we celebrate like this!

Mom and sis came over early so we could do some shopping on Black Friday. Crazy but it really wasn't crowded. And being preggers cuts down on interesting items so I saved a lot of money.

Over dinner baby S performed with lots of kicks and bumps - most active for the nuns. I learned Mary Ellen is a dulla, very interesting. More to come on this and whether we'll actually have one in the room for delivery (or even use Mary Ellen herself). I'm definitely intrigued.

Sis has never experienced French Silk pie before tonight. Check out her response after trying a piece above (to be added when we aren't in the dead zone known as IN).

Another great night!

OH Turkey Tour: Update #2

Still riding what must be a turkey-high (or could it be a sugar fix from all that pie?), we're returning west in great spirits after our OH turkey tour.

I'm surprised how much we packed in - we hit Chip's for Thanksgiving #2 Thursday night. Spacing out our two feasts by just about two hours. Somehow though, we fought threw it and ate again. I even managed to find room for two pieces of French Silk pie, more on this later...

Overall Thanksgiving was awesome. We squeezed in a ton of visiting, caught up with everyone and managed to get through it all without being exhausted. Well, I'm not exhausted. Do you think could be the lack of alcohol? I typically consume pretty heavily between the two turkey-days and obviously refrained this year. And today I feel pretty damn good. I'm sure it is just a coincidence.

Stella was SMOTHERED with attention this weekend, but her undesputed #1 fan is Emily, seen in picture here (loading from car taking forever, will add when we get home).

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Stealing a page from my colleague and fellow T-towner Danielle, I'm blogging live from Thanksgiving. I've got nothing on her preparations for the day (check out what she is doing here), but we've been busy none the less.

Thanksgiving for us means a massive traveling tour of OH over the course of several days. We arrived at our first destination last night, rolling into Toledo about 9pm. Plenty of time to cram in a huge meal and a few drinks out at the bar (never fear, I had soda water).

We were up early this morning for our (now traditional) Smoke the Turkey 5K run. Sis gathered a bunch of friends to kick off the day of eating with a healthy start. Even Stella joined in the fun.

And then in the car for our next visit - one hour away to Sandusky for Thanksgiving with my side of the crew. Apparently baby S likes turkey, news to me since I'm not a big fan of the bird. Lots of eating, more than necessary in fact. Pie too.

And now we're back in the car making our way to our next tour stop - Chagrin Falls, 1.5 hrs away, for another Thanksgiving. Hubby's side of the lot. For a second turkey extravaganza!!

Lots to be grateful for today.

How are you celebrating??

Ugh - I think I'm getting sick. Do you think it was as a result of getting my flu shot on Friday? Does that happen?

I really have no time for sickness, especially with the wild holiday weekend coming up. And of course I can't take any medicine while preggers, thoough I'm not really a medicine taker.

I skipped my pilates class tonight so I can go to bed early and hopefully wake up healthier. Nite, nite.

Misc post of odd updates for tonight -

Super fun day with the girls. We went out to burbs to see KJ since she is somewhat housebound with new baby Gage. He is too cute and slept the whole time we were over. I walked away feeling a little more confident about the whole thing. He is only two weeks old and everything seemed managable. We girls are like the three little bears with Bid due in Feb, me in March and Carrie in May.

Our main mission today, outside of catching up, was testing cupcakes. Bid's shower is in two weeks and we need to select a bakery, so we brought cupcakes from various places and ate ourselves sick. Thank goodness my glucose test was yesterday.

KJ gave me a SICK amount of clothes. Seriously, I was embassed when my neighbor caught me unloading it all into the house for fear he'd think I'd actually purchased this many items. I could open a boutique with the haul I took in and it is all really cute. No surprise with my clothes horse BF but super time to reap these benefits. I need to treat her to dinner.

I checked out a good holiday bazaar and picked up a couple cute ideas for work people, always a tough one. Overall the shopping experience was a total cluster. I was running about 30 minutes late, not allowing enough time to get to brunch, so I tried to buzz through. There were way too many people, in too small of a space and not enough time to digest everything. I considered the work idea a major victory.

We visited a new church in the hood for 5pm mass, which was a MAJOR accomplishment. We've completely fallen off the religious wagon since Father Don left Chicago and need to get back on board. This place wasn't exactly love-at-first-sight, but has potential. We'll head back next week and see if we don't feel a bit more at home. Please pray for us :)

AND lastly, a new Middle Eastern restaurant opened around the corner from my house and I ordered carry out tonight. Chickpea. I'd intended to save it for lunch tomorrow but have already snacked on several items. It is AWESOME. And hubby likes it which makes it a grand slam. I've been stuffing myself full of falafel everytime I go to Toledo to visit my sis b/c I can't get anything worthwhile in Chicago. This place ROCKS and the owner's mom cooks everything. She helped me create my order, made great suggestions and seems geniune. I want her to succeed. And be open longer hours. I'll be back often. I can't wait to try everything else tomorrow.

Cheers to a great Saturday!

So we're out to dinner Tuesday night - our favorite Cuban place (Cafe LaGuardia) - and arrive much too late for a school night. It is nearly 9pm and the place is PACKED. There is a live Cuban band and a wait for a table. While slightly surprising for a Tuesday night, not totally unheard of. This place isn't afraid to pack 'em in and is so busyon the weekends, that pre-baby, we'd end up having far too many margs while waiting at the bar for our table to even remember that we ate dinner...but now I'm just teasing myself with memories.

The band is dangerously close to bringing down the house. There are two birthday parties, an 80+ year old man dancing with a waitress, and the music was really good.

So good in fact, that baby S got a little spirited too. I've said for awhile that it's been a dance marathon down below. Baby is always doing a jig - or so I thought. Nope, that was all just warm up for the show last night.

He was seriously busting a move!

And I couldn't stop laughing. The band would go on break, things would quiet down. Singers get back on their mics, baby S gets his groove on. A week or two ago the weekly update said babes would be able to hear outside noise and appreciate music. I guess we know we're on to something here. He is a rock star in training.

Or he simply hates Cuban food.

This week baby S is an ear of corn (again with my favorite foods!) at 24 weeks. He is over a foot long and gained 4 ounces since last week (when he was a mango and I neglected to provide faithful readers an update).

He is long and lean but filling out. His lungs are growing, air sacs branching. Lots of brain development this week too so big protein consumption time (I'm eating everything in sight these days so I'm sure I'm covering off on this important category without much thought).

His skin is still translucent but that is changing quickly too.

I'm thrilled to officially be at the six month mark b/c I feel like my belly is suddenly gigantic and six months sounds much further along than 5+. And I've started collecting pictures of me in my skinnier days and look at them so I don't forget what I used to look like.

When did I get so vain? I'm surprising myself. This belly is doing weird things to me. Clothes don't look good. Getting ready takes twice as long and the extra effort doesn't make any difference. Thank goodness the little thumper is kicking around and making me smile. I've lost that sexy "glow!"

(photo by racheliscoconut&lime, Flickr)

Wow, suddenly I'm so far behind. How did that happen??

Beginning with the most interesting, we had our first shower this weekend in Cleveland and it was awesome!

A dozen thoughts on this - baby showers are SO MUCH better than wedding showers. The stuff is cuter, the focus isn't on me, and all the items seem genuinely necessary. A mandolin is lovely for slicing and dicing, but a car seat? We can't leave the hospital without that! And everyone was SO generous. The whole thing really blew me away.

My SILs hosted at my MIL's house - everyone loves it there, it is big for entertaining and full of all kinds of amazing antiques and collectibles so all the guests enjoyed poking around and checking it all out. We had a great crowd of people, nice mix of family and friends. And Molly (SIL) made the most amazing diaper cake you've ever seen.

I had never even heard of a diaper cake before but this thing was the best of the best based on fellow guest response. Molly is a Martha Stewart protege so not totally surprising, but a site to be seen none the less. I'll include pictures once I get organized.

Hubby and the dads were darling, serving cocktails, lunch, and clearing dishes.

And the presents! We received our stroller (two in fact), Baby Bjorn, car seat, pack and play, every bathing essential from tub to toys to frog to put toys into in the tub, clothes and more clothes, blankets and stuffed animals! I'm still processing everything.

Thanks to all who made it happen - we (baby S, me and even hubby) had a great time and thank you all for your generosity!

Moms Rule

While my exposure to the "moms club" has been extremely brief so far, and obviously I'm not even technically invited in yet, I've been overwhelmed by what I've seen so far. The eagerness to share information, to help one another out, to make things easier on ourselves. It is really amazing.

I'm not even a big advise-seeker traditionally. I kind of like to do things my own way, perhaps that is the Taurus in me? :)

But this whole anticipated motherhood thing is exactly the opposite. I find myself engaging in conversations with strangers to gather information (there is a gal at my gym who looks fantastic, I haven't actually spoken with her yet but I'm dying to know how far along she is and how I can look like her at 8 months - she is not likely eating double cheese pizza for dinner like me, but still).

I'm talking to people I barely know about their experiences. With breast feeding. In detail. And I can't get enough. Even better, new moms seem almost desperate to share their information with other moms.

Strollers, car seats, bouncers, pack n' plays, cribs, OBs, breast feeding, health care, work/life balance (sadly a fairy tale but more on that later). And I've only scratched the surface. Imagine when this puppy pops out - hopefully that easily - and there is sleeping, and not sleeping, swaddling and crawling, socialization and feeding.

And trillions of moms who've gone before me. Totally amazing.

This is absolutely the coolest part of being a women I've experienced to date. The whole "sisterhood" thing makes sense for the first time and I'm left pondering the irony of all those years we spend being catty and competitive with each other earlier in life.

Thanks to all the moms who've shared priceless advice already. I look forward to talking to all of you in more detail soon. Keep it coming!

In the meantime, what is the best advice you gave or received to/as a new mom? Tell me please!

I promise to return the favor a hundred times over for those who come after me.

Spaghetti squash - now we're talking. At 22 weeks - baby S's lips, eyelids and eyebrows are more distinct. He totals nearly one pound and his teeth buds are growing under his gums.

The bump is growing too, no more hiding it. Earlier this week a waiter congratulated me and asked me when I was due. I found myself offended. Is it that obvious? Not really his fault I guess...but it really took me by surprise.

A couple other noticable changes - sitting on a three hour flight without getting up to both go to the bathroom and stretch is no longer possible. And it is getting colder which means I need to dust off the coats KJ gave me...

Speaking of which she had a baby boy on Thursday, must get out there this afternoon to meet the little cutie.

We lost a very special lady this week - a wife, mother, grandmother and sister - Grandma Chapman to me. She was the life of every party and had a smile on her face every time I saw her. She shared her love of Vegas with me (we all went together a few years back) and her love of wine. At 86, she lived a long, happy life but her absence will be felt deeply.

We all traveled in for the services Thursday and Friday. Everything was very nice. The one positive note, as is frequently the case I guess, it brought together many family members I enjoy dearly but rarely see. It was nice to gather together, catch up and share our favorite stories about her.

Grandma, we miss you already, though I know you're happier where you are today. Love you.

Pre-natal yoga, part I

I may have mentioned I negotiated approval to run 14 miles a week from my previous doctor.

The beauty of switching doctors midway through pregnancy is that you can pick and choose how you apply input. Every doctor is different, some more relaxed than others. I think 14 miles is the best I'm going to get so no need to push it and ask the new doc.

In spite of the allocation of miles, I still need to find a couple other workout options. For one, I burn through my miles by Thursday. I have a good muscle pump class on Fridays, but have started looking for prenatal classes. Inevitably I'm not going to be able to run forever and yoga is supposed to be so great, especially for those expecting.

Unfortunately, prenatal classes aren't really easy to come by - I guess odds aren't working in my favor that there is a large population of people interested in yoga and pregnant at the same time. I searched all the area studios and didn't find much. A couple mid-day classes during the week, a Tuesday night session I haven't been able to make yet. In other words, not much.

So I was delighted to stumble upon a studio right down the street one day on the way to the grocery that was set to begin classes Sat/Sun this weekend. Perfect!

I checked out the scene on Saturday and am left feeling like I need to keep searching. To start, I was the only person in the class. I was outnumbered by the instructors, who staffed up not knowing how many people to expect. This meant great personal attention. It was also a bit awkward.

Admittedly I'm also still trying to wrap my arms around the yoga concept. I don't sit still very well so laying down and focusing on my breathing for 10 minutes (twice in one class) is a challenge. Although I do think I had kind of a 'breakthrough' in that I figured out to some degree what this actually means. More on that another day.

I really like Bikram yoga, but likely because it is so hot and you're sweating almost immediately upon entering so it feels like you're actually doing something. That type of heat isn't allowed during pregnancy, regardless of which doc you ask. This class left me wondering after 1:45 minutes if I'd have been better off staying in bed.

So the next question is whether this odd session of laying, breathing and a couple poses, is in fact what prenatal yoga is all about or if there are different interpretations. I have since found a few more local options, including a prenatal pilates class that I'll try once I'm back from Miami.

Until then, I'll be lacing up. See you on the pavement.

Indian Summer Day (in November). Mani/Pedis. One extra hour.

Isn't it amazing the power of an extra hour? It seems like the gift that keeps on giving today.

I allowed myself the sweet luxury of sleeping in (gotta take advantage of this now from what I hear), and didn't roll out of bed until 9:30. After making some coffee, straightening downstairs, eating my cereal, it was still only 9am with the time change. Awesome!

And even now, with a full day of errands behind me, I'm shocked to see it is just after 6pm.

Would life be easier if we simply received an extra hour here and there? Is it that all we need? Maybe there is a way to schedule more of these 'fall back' days throughout the year.

What did you do with your extra hour?

Happy Halloween!!

Thank goodness the trick-or-treaters finally showed up! I have been sitting with a big bowl of candy in front of me since 3pm waiting for them to start coming by and subsequently eating chocolate and sugar by the handfuls. They finally started arriving about 6:30 and fortunately there was still candy left.

Is that because Halloween is on Friday night this year?

In years past they always started much earlier.

They really aren't the friendliest bunch either...only a handful of "Trick or Treats" and "Happy Halloweens"... even fewer "Thank yous." Whatever, I'm having fun.

I have had a couple funny visitors...one girl started chatting like we've known each other for years...'oh you have a dog? we have a dog. a chocolate lab. she is really bad. she poops in the house.' Right about that time her dad cut in and said it was time to go. Too bad, I could tell she was just getting started.

Another boy came in an awesome werewolf costume. I said 'wow, you're costume is scary!' he said 'thanks, check out www.werewolf.com for real-skin werewolf costumes.'

Really? Do you think he received the costume free with the stipulation that he deliver that key message at each house?

Stella hates Halloween. So does my hubby. She wants to bark and growl at the kids for no reason other than they dared to walk up the stairs. Hubby just likes to be grouchy. I'm having a great time. They better keep coming. I have six more bags of chocolate I must give away or face the chance that I could polish it all off before Monday.

As an aside, I found a flaw in my favorite new site Flickr - all the cool Halloween pictures I wanted to lift for my POD were copyright reserved. And now that I've been to my online ethics class, I can't violate the rule. Bummer. This one is pretty good though.

Tomorrow I buy a new camera, carve my own pumpkin and perhaps have a late entry to showcase. We'll see.

I also try a new prenatal yoga class tomorrow morning. Can't wait!

Gratitude list: Baby kicks. Dog park friends. Voting.

Pa-few! I blew out of training 10 minutes late and jumped in the car in order to crawl all the way to Bucktown, at a near-comedic snail's pace, towards the early voting location in our neighborhood. Tomorrow is the last day, I can't go, and I'm in Miami all next week. AH!

I parked illegally, threw on the hazzards and flew into the building, up the stairs and prayed I wasn't too late.

I made it!! I even had time to go to the bathroom before getting in to line :)

Early voting rocks. I waited about 30 minutes but it went by very quickly. It is refreshing to see so many people already out making a point to voice their opinion.

Please do the same. Get out there and cast your vote. It is too important not to.

Carrot-time

Gratitude list: Running belt. Halloween candy. Cold sleeping weather.




Baby S is a carrot this week. And growing eye brows! Babycentered showed, actually you just have to see, hopefully this doesn't freak out any unsuspecting readers but look at this image...

There is a PERSON in there! In my belly. Isn't that amazing? I realize I continue to come to the table shocked and flabergasted about this but you can't deny this process is a miracle. And part science project. Anyway, I digress.

I still don't know the sex but I can tell you there is no way he is facing the direction shown here. He is tap, tap, tapping me all the time so his little feet have to be pointed out rather than towards my back as shown here.

I've also been thinking a lot about the ultrasound machine and how awesome it would be to own one. We talked about it during the appointment. And someone reminded me later that Tom Cruise bought one when Katie was pregant, and everyone said he was crazy.

I promise you if money were no object (I have no idea how much one of these would cost but it has to be a lot), I would absolutely buy one. In a heartbeat.

My three best friends are pregnant. Imagine the fun we'd have with one of these in the living room! Everyone could come over, take turns dialing in. I bet we could even figure out how to introduce the kids prebirth.

Anyway, how is that for a randy rant? I don't suppose anyone has an ultrasound machine they want to loan me for the next couple months?

Nite, nite from the carrot.

My grateful list: Baby kicks (it's awesome everytime). Black cherry citrus Fresca. Airplane-free week.

I mentioned I'm in training all week - it's a class on online ethics, how to engage in conversations, an overview of what is happening out there, communities that are rising in influence, interesting evolutions (or "mashups") of sites. We cover blogs, Facebook, Twitter, podcasting, and so very much more.

I've been trying to get in for about 16 months.

Clients are interested in getting into various areas of this space and while I can speak to it, at times I have to do the old "I'll have to check and get back to you," which I'm hoping to do less of after this.

I'm also hoping to make some cool upgrades to this site so keep an eye out! Actually, the whole reason I started cityretreat in the first place was to get a better understanding of blogging. Same with Facebook and Twitter. I have to learn by example.

One thing I learned today was the awesome content available on Flickr. See how much nicer the carrot photo is over there (I attributed the source, per the lesson today)? Nothing like that popping up on Google Images!

And DW said she'll help me figure out how to organize my RSS feeds which has been making me feel kind of slow and out of touch. I'll be back with more updates this week as I get smarter. Stay tuned!

And just like that the weekend is over...Friday night event was a big success and clients were thrilled so that made working on Friday night managable. Hubby came home from JAX, late but home all the same.

I was so excited to show Winona to two strong perspective candidates - neither showed. I don't know how to get appearance rate up. Any suggestions? Rental canddiates. I spoke with "Cheryl" four times over the course of last week about her dog, her son, monthly rent. She sounded legitimate. And another guy called Friday afternoon, we booked an appointment for the next morning.

We spent two hours there yesterday for nothing - neither showed. Maybe this is what property management is all about? How hard is it to call and cancel an appointment if you're not going to show? It's rude.

In-laws were in an out in an instant, though we had a lovely visit. And I worked most of today, trying to catch up from the last two crazy weeks and prep for being out of commision this week (in training).

Hubby is in Phoenix much of this week; I'm in MIA all of next. I think, I hope, there is a light at the end of the tunnel coming soon...

Hum, ok I still can't figure out how to get the baby pics up. They are saved as PDFs, DW resaved as jpegs but I still can't figure out how to get them on. They aren't showing up as jpegs when I try to attach. AGH! Hubby will resave tomorrow so you can see the cuteness soon.

This week was a big pile of garbage which means I still haven't written about how awesome the ultrasound was. Coming this weekend, promise.

Instead of bitching about all the things that were SO annoying about this week, I'm going to share a few great things that did make their way in - more than three things I'm grateful for:

- Ultrasound was truly best 30 minutes of TV I've ever seen. More on this but can't be said enough.
- Baby S is wiggling and dancing all the time now and every time I feel him, I smile (for some reason I feel like I have a secret no one knows about - though at this point the belly is no secret).
- I found $80 on the sidewalk Thurs while walking the dog - how sweet is that?!?!
- I love other moms. I have a whole post on this coming soon but moms rock and I can't get enough of their tips and advice. Keep 'em coming!!
- We had a great event tonight for BK, thanks to my kickass team who pulled it all together with very little help from me.
- We have two renters lined up to look at Winona tomorrow. Fingers crossed!
- I'm diving into Twitter ("cityretreat" there too but I'm going to have to watch for a bit before I dive in, not totally sure how it works just yet).
- Bellydance maternity store is having a sale tomorrow, I'm buying.
- My airplane did not snap in half and fall from the sky as I was positive would happen on Thursday night.
- Hubby agreed to Bugaboo suddenly after initial resistance.
- Went to great muscle pump class this am and my instructor is preggo too so she is going to take a few prenatal classes and bring back the moves for us.

I'm off to bed. Making the list of positives has nearly washed away the week. Hopefully tomorrow I'll wake up liking everyone around me :)

Happy weekend!

As a follow up to my recent post on "gear" - I did recently buy a new item that has proven to be remarkably handy and I never would have known it existed without a tip from a fellow mom/runner.

Over marathon weekend my sis' s-i-l mentioned she ran into her third trimester using a running belt/support band.

This is safe, by the way, running that is. For those of you concerned. I've slowed down my overall pace, never run more than 4-5 miles a day and have doctor's clearance to log 14 miles a week. Running is what I do (besides eating) so I'd like to try to keep it up as long as possible.

I'm anticipating the hateful stares at the gym will become more uncomfortable before the baby itself. I promise though, it is safe. Natalie Morales (Today Show) ran the day before her baby was born. I just read about it in a pregnancy mag.

Anyway, I went to Running Away to see if they had anything like that. God bless 'em, three dudes working behind the counter and I dared to even ask the question. The best part is, while they didn't carry the band themselves, one of guys actually called his wife to ask her where she got hers. Pea in the Pod. Super.

While I had no idea that I needed it, and wasn't experiencing any sort of discomfort, it really was amazing the difference it made. It wraps around the belly, tightens in a couple place (though not like the crazy-ass contraption advertised in some of the mags), and viola! Support. I'll be a running fool until March!

See you on the treadmill (or outside as long as possible)!

Check him out!!!! More to come later but you must see...

By the way, healthy report from doctor. Baby looks good, normal. Growing at a good rate, heart is strong (we could actually see the four chambers beating in the ultrasound - crazy).

Cheers!

Baby update - part 1

Cheesy popcorn. Stella's smile. Hugs.

This week we're a banana, which isn't as exciting as an heirloom tomato in my personal opinion (nor necessarily bigger based on my farming experience) but I digress. AND, even better, this weekend we officially moved from internal baby kicks that only I could feel and speculate were actually kicks, to movements hubby could touch too.

It probably goes without saying, it is pretty awesome. And weird.

It seems to happen much more often in one particular position - a completely lazy near, lay down pose I've perfected on the couch, laptop in place, feet on table. It started on Friday and I checked out the scene myself to double check. Sure enough: thump, thump, thump.

Hubby came over and he kept going, bless his little heart, so hubby got in on the action.

And of course it is a little weird too b/c there is a BABY growing inside of my belly?!?! No amount of high school science can really prepare you for this.

Tomorrow we go for the 20 week ultrasound and get to see the little critter on the big screen. I'm pretty excited. We are not going to find out the sex. I've had shirts made saying as much, just in case.

Much more to come tomorrow or Wed regarding the big day. In-laws in town tomorrow night so might not get a post in but will try.

Mental capacity to do my job. Thursday night date. Baby kicks.

Baby S is an heirloom tomato this week - 19 weeks. I love the choices for the comparisons, my favorite! Hair is growing on the head and apparently he can hear my voice now. It would be easier if he could hear my thoughts. I'm talking to him in my mind but not out loud yet. I'm sure that will come soon.

I can feel him moving. It is pretty neat, just little pulses or nudges but from the inside out. Nothing on the outside yet and I can't tell when or where it will happen. Next week we have the Level 1 ultrasound (20 weeks). We're half way, can you believe that??

This is supposed to be a great appointment because you see the baby (I haven't seen him since 6 wks old and I was looking at the wrong thing on the screen), big as day. I can't wait. We'll upload some pictures.

We're both taking tomorrow off. We were supposed to go on away for a long weekend but cancelled it b/c neither of us can stomach the idea of getting on a plane. Instead we're thinking about going to WI for the day. Regardless, it will be lovely. I'm going to try to avoid the bberry and see if the earth stops rotating on its axis.

I'm enjoying one of my two glasses of wine in October and the vacation is fabulous already.

Finding Balance

Bisco. Ethiopian food. My bed.

I’m losing my balance. Or rather my distorted view of balance.

I’ve logged approximately 25K miles with American since Labor Day with at least another 2 flights booked by early Nov (in case you’re wondering, that is four trips to Miami and one trip to LA to date) . I’ve been drowning at work for weeks with no real end in sight. I am behind on my real life responsibilities and I’m really tired.

This happens. Things ebb and flow and I’m in a really deep state of flow I guess. Something needs to give because I can’t keep up the pace.

I’m sitting on a flight home from Miami (shocker) and found an article in American Way about the power of positive thinking. Of course I’m not even supposed to be reading this mag, rather reviewing the three decks sitting in my inbox, but my brain needs a minute to relax so I’m allowing it.

In reading the article, it suggests noting three items your grateful for at the end of each day. It strikes me that incorporating this into my routine couldn’t hurt. I could use a little dose of positive and this doesn’t seem like too much to add to my already overloaded plate.

For the short term at least, I’ll include them at the top as a reminder for you to do the same. I won’t go into what they mean, though I will tell you that Bisco (the cat) somehow slept outside on accident last night and I was pretty surprised to see her meowing on the deck this morning when I left for the airport.

In making the effort to do the list I already feel better.

Or perhaps it was the 30 minutes I allowed myself to break away from Outlook?

Alas the break is over. Whatever doesn’t get done tonight will just be waiting tomorrow with 10 more things piled on top.

Immediately following the marathon yesterday I headed out to do the baby registry. Horrible timing but Bid and I both needed to do it relatively quickly b/c we have showers coming up and KJ offered to help us out.

She is slated to deliver in a couple weeks so our window of opportunity was pretty small. We jumped at the chance to have her on hand to explain all the things we needed but didn't understand why.

Bid and I arrived early, got our scan guns and turned to stare blindly and naively into the infant feeding section. We even approached the shelving before quickly turning away totally confused.

Throughout our time there, several thoughts struck me:
1. There is a tremendous amount of crap out there;
2. It is really overwhelming how much crap there is to choose from;
3. Most of it is plastic and that makes me environmentally disappointed and concerned.

I guess my way of contributing to the solution is that I can't deal with clutter so I will be registering for a minimal amount of the aforementioned #1.

Seriously though, if you didn't make a trip in there yourself, you wouldn't even know the glut of stuff out there. I'd estimate 50 different types of car seats; same with the strollers; and the travel swing, which isn't the same as the full-sized swing or the bouncer. Oy.

And everything is so expensive. I'm not one to really get easily ruffled about the costs of things, especially as I tend to lean towards the nicer things. Admitedly I'm a little bratty. But even I am slightly turned off by the costs of things and the suggested "must haves" on the registry. Does one person really need five different types of strollers (lest you think I'm exaggerating: travel, full-size, umbrella, jogging, convenience stroller are listed on the checklist)?

As I put together the registery I realized there are whole categories I will not include simply because I don't want subject those nice enough to purchase gifts to these options.

Perhaps I'm naive and soon my house will be wall-to-wall with bouncing, swinging, playmats and mobiles.

I'd like to think the little one will survive just fine with only a careful selection of the 'necessities.'

WOW! It is such an amazing experience I can't believe everyone doesn't partake. We had the best day today cheering on the marathon runners.

The weather was perfect, actually it was a bit hot for the runners but perfect for spectators. We made our first appearance at mile 3 and caught both hubby and Loren come through at a great pace for both. We crossed the street and marked our spot at the 11th mile. Much easier as fans than for the runners to shave those 7 miles.

We saw everyone come through: wheelchair participants, the elite men and women, oh boy it is so amazing. I was on the verge of tears a dozen times for a dozen reasons - the man with abnormalities on his arms and legs, yet somehow beat the odds to participate; the man from Mexico pushing his daughter, ala Hoyt style; and the elite runners...there is just no way to describe the ease with which they move through the race without having witnessed it personally and also struggled yourself, to fully appreciate it.

Sadly I missed hubby here but was astounded to see him hit the half way point at 1:53 (via text alert). He hasn't run a long run since the half marathon in early Sept so it was really hard to know what to expect today. With half completed he seemed to be out of the gate very strong.

We hustled to mile 21 where I was slated to jump in with him and run the rest of the race -- though I was a little leary of his blistering pace. We barely made it to the meet up spot on time before he rounded the corner. I eased on in and he was fantastic! Looked good, seemed to feel pretty good. He made his way through the toughest part of the race - facing south, into the sun, towards Sox field. It was hot. I didn't want to make too much mention of it but I was warm and I had only been running for 15 minutes. It had to suck but he just kept truckin' along.

I ducked out at mile 25 - disappointed not to finish the race with him but it just didn't make sense to try to keep pace with him - baby S has a lifetime to set records in the marathon, no need to start today. I knew hubby would push it even harder the last mile (how did he have any gas left?) and I wasn't bringing any speed to the team.

He finished with an amazing 4:00:10 - his best time ever, by nearly 20 minutes (previous PR was 4:17). I cried when the text came through. Totally awesome. He, of course, is pissed he came 11 seconds short of his goal of sub-four. I say pooh to that. Four hours rocks, no matter how you look at it. Congrats baby, I'm so proud of you.

And congrats to all the other American Brain Tumor fundraising runners. Loren and Brad both had great races too, coming in at 4:25 and 3:54 respectively. We had such a great day and saw so many amazing runners accomplish their goals. AND we raised $5500 along the way.

Go Runners!!

It's marathon eve and we're preparing for the big day tomorrow. We had a nice dinner tonight at Club Lucky - our traditional pre-race event. Brad and family were in town, totaling 10+ guests. Sis' inlaws and our crew totalled another 10. We had a nice night and are home early.

Hubby has ipod loaded, bagels packed. I'm trying to figure out how to spectate a race I've run the last three years. As I've said all along, I'm thrilled to have an irrefutable reason for not running, but will definitely miss the excitement of the race tomorrow (MUCH easier saying with baby on board).

Hopefully I'll jump in and run the last few with hubby.

More race highlights and results tomorrow. Good luck to everyone running.

Nite!

Baby Report

Last week we were a turnip and since I don't know what a turnip looks like, nor do I like the sounds of it, I skipped that report. This week we're a bell pepper (I prefer to think of a red pepper myself). Baby S is supposedly kicking arms and legs and moving all around.

I had two doctor's appointments last week - I'm in the process of switching OBs (brilliant timing, right?) -- but the fun part was I heard baby twice.

Let me back up, in the early stages (i.e. first two trimesters), I go to the doctor every 2-3 weeks. At these appointments the doc just asks me how I'm feeling, answers questions and listens to the baby.

They use a Doppler which I think is a type of sonar that allows you to hear the heartbeat. A little jelly to the belly, place the wand and viola! Heartbeats. Mine and baby S. And also intermitent static, which means kicking! Crazy.

So I have one recorded heatbeat from 14 weeks but still haven't figured out how to upload it. And last week was 17 weeks and I heard it twice - still a boy based on old wivestale of number of beats per minute. Hearing it never gets old. He is thumping away in there and kicking too.

I can't tell if I feel anything. Sometimes I think I do but it is really hard to say. As I get further along it will become more obvious (that too is obvious I guess). And the bump is still there, though now it just seems like fat. Can't wait for the beauty to kick in :) No complaints though, I feel fantastic.

I have been eating like absolute garbage the last few days though so need to get back on the wagon to provide nutrients rather than pure sugar and chocolate. :) Sorry buddy.

Toledo-stravaganza

So word trickles my way that my little sis is being recognized for some award from her alma mater, University of Toledo. I don't even think she was the one who originally mentioned it, rather my parents. When we discussed, she blew it off as no big deal and she didn't know any of the details. I put it in the calendar just in case.

I was able to duck out of work early on Friday and head over to T-town. Hubby was working in Vegas for a long weekend, so Stella and I packed up for a mini-road trip. There was a dinner on Friday night and then a parade and a football game following. No big deal says sis.

UT would have us thinking otherwise shortly...

We enter the ballroom Friday night and there are at least 500 people in the room (mom counted). The individual colleges recognize people of interest, approx 25 of them, all leading up to the three highest awards of the evening -- sister being one of them! She was recognized as "Outstanding Alumni of the Year" for her work in community service.

They put together an amazing video (we all cried), highlighting her work for the Toledo Young Professionals organization, American Cancer Society, the Ryan Serber Run, her March of Dimes and Leukemia Society work to name just a few! (Where does she get the time??) And then she goes on stage and delivers an amazing acceptance speech in front of all these people. Totally, completely amazing and impressive.

Saturday, while she is still unclear on details (and while I'd like to tease otherwise, she is so modest, I honestly believe she didn't pay attention to the details b/c she thought it wasn't a big deal), we find ourselves in our own car of the Homecoming parade!

It was SO MUCH FUN!

Her friend drove us, the car had a big picture of sis and her title on the side, and we threw candy to onlookers all around town. Some of us actually aimed and threw candy AT people, not me. Sister waved like a beauty queen and of course dozens of her friends lined the route to cheer her on.

AND THEN, we were invited to the President's Suite to watch the football game where my sis was recognized on the field during half time!

Can you believe this? I had no idea the magnitude of this award. Everyone wanted to meet her, congratulate her. It was so fun to be there!!

A seriously awesome award to a seriously amazing lady (and kick ass sister too).

Congrats to you and thanks for inviting me to celebrate with you!!

First Born

While obviously not human (actually not obvious to me, but probably to most of you), Stella is truly our first born.

She came to us a few weeks old, unable to fend for herself, sleep through the night, find an appropriate place to "get busy," and so on.

She taught us our first lessons in caring for something other than ourselves (yes, the cats but they don't really count). We coould no longer leave for a Cubs game at noon with no plans of returning home before midnight. We actually had to check with each other before booking business trips to ensure someone could care for the pup (she doesn't do boarding, a story for another time).

She's also taught us a thing or two about unconditional love. Nothing says forgiveness like allowing the dog in your bed who just ate a big chunk out of your brand new area rug. Most of the time, while neither of us would admit it, we love her the best. She gets the first kiss when one of us walks in the door at night - and why not? She is the only one wiggling and wagging and smiling!

As I mentioned earlier, anyone who knows us has asked about how Stella will do immediately after hearing the Baby S news. Hopefully, this weekend wasn't an indicator...

We watched Rocco, the adorable lab puppy featured above, for our friends and Stella's behavior overall left a little to be desired:

First, she barely left the bedroom. Primarily because it is upstairs and Rocco couldn't figure out how to get up there. Instead he stood at the bottom of the stairs barking for her to come down. No sign of her. Because she was spending all her time sulking, Rocco got her place next to me on the couch. Wouldn't you know it, I look up a bit later and she is sitting on the landing, half way btw upstairs and down, peering down at us sitting together? And I felt GUILTY! Why is this my fault?

The final straw was yesterday afternoon, when Rocco calmed down (he is only five months old) long enough to chew quietly on his raw hide. A delightful peace fell over the house. It was glorious. Stella noticed too and came downstairs to check things out. When she found him, enjoying his bone, she promptly took it out of his paws and proceded back to the bedroom (Rocco-free zone) with it.

So charges that come immediatley to mind, include rude, possessive, jealous and unsocial. And Rocco has to be WAY more appealing to her than a baby will be, at least he is a fellow canine! Looks like we have a bit of work ahead of us.

Coincidentally a friend and pet lover who recently also had a baby gave me a book today about how to prep your pup for baby. It can't hurt, right? Maybe Stella and I will read it on the couch together tonight over a delicious raw hide.

Good sunny Miami morning to you - it actually isn't sunny today but I am in Miami. Two more days until I'm home! It isn't that I don't like Miami, I actually love working down here. However 5 days is a long time and I HATE the food at the hotel we stay at. And since I live for food, it is depressing to say the least. And of course the simple pleasures like hubby, Stella and my own bed are missing.

But the days fly by and I'll be home before I know it. Most of the clients are traveling this week so I left relatively early last night (if you call 6:30 early) to work back at the hotel on the patio. A nice advantage I often take for granted here.

Avacodo is doing well - and growing! Last Friday, literally sometime during the day, I grew a belly.

Truth be told, I've been both dreading and dreaming of the belly. Dreading because what girl wants to get big and fat? Horrifying. But also dreaming because it means it's real, it is proof. I've been feeling so fantastic (thank you God) that I want a little reinforcement that I didn't make this whole thing up.

Consider it done.

I put on my favorite pair of jeans and worked from home. It wasn't until I left later to run an errand and was sitting in the car, that I realized I couldn't breathe. I had to unbutton my pants!

Part of me still wondered if I was just creating the belly to make myself feel better but then hubby came home after having been on the road for a couple days and said'whoa,' upon seeing me. That said it all.

This week I'm using the belly band for the first time. A facinating little thing that looks like it came straight from Units in the '80s. You wear it like a giant belt over your unzipped pants. It keeps you in real clothes longer, delaying the inevitable ugly maternity clothes. The only real draw back is it takes longer to organize yourself after going to the bathroom and of course I go to the bathroom a dozen times a day b/c I drink so much water. I would guess I've slowed down about 10 additional minutes due to the band overall, but I'm still wearing cute black pants so hardly a trade off.

Ok, off to work. Friday is on the horizon. I'm plowing through the vampire books and I have already gotten my upgrade confirmation for the flight tomorrow. Things are looking good! Have a great day :)

A friend at work recently turned me on to the vampire series that is all the rage right now. She blew through Twilight and New Moon while we were in LA and I would guess has finished all four by now. 

She lent me Twilight and I was surprised how quickly I got through it too. I reminded me a lot of the Ann Rice books I fell in love with ages ago. First the Witching Hour series, and later the vampires. 

In fact, I even went looking for Witching Hour in the house b/c I was considering rereading it. I've never reread a book but if you're going to make the leap, might as well choose one that is a thousand pages and I really loved that book. 

Alas, I couldn't find it and I guess I should focus on the task at hand first. I'll finish book #2 tonight and while R's planning to send me #3 in Miami, I'm guessing I'll be at B&N by 9am tomorrow picking up the remaining two. I've got a week in Miami, starting with a four hour flight Monday morning. 

It's finish the series or register baby S. Is there any question which I'll choose? 

Apparently Stephanie Meyer dreamed up the whole series one night, has never written a thing before in her life. Brilliant. 

I tuned into True Blood last night too, the new series on HBO. May just be a bit too many vampires for me. My interest is piqued but I think I went through this phase years ago and Ann Rice is a far better story teller. 

We'll see, maybe I'll get bitten again. 

I've been hearing rumors of dissatisfied Facebook users lately. I may have even seen a note on my homepage once indicating a change was coming. I have to say, I didn't believe it. Why change something that isn't broken? 

And yet, they've done it; and I really don't like it. Honestly I haven't tried to like it. I was just there and everything was different and wrong, so I ran away. Why? Why did they change it? I just joined this exciting community (yes, you could argue that means I should adjust to the change better than say my young colleagues who've been in on from the start - they must be really pissed), why change now? Everything looks wrong and out of place. 

You don't see Google suddenly changing things up and moving the search bar on us, do you? 

I'll have to go back. I love Facebook. And I'll have to figure it out. But I'm definitely going to sulk a little more first. 

Does anyone know why??

Babycenter has this weekly newsletter you can sign up for and each week they send an email with news on what is happening with the baby. Thankfully there are a million woman who have gone through this before me and everyone wants to share their tips, this one has been a favorite so far. 

Rather than discuss potential names for baby S, we refer to him/her by the size described in the weekly emails. This week we are an apple. Most descriptions seem to be fruits so far. 

Oh, fruit, that reminds me. I have so many posts to come...

Anywho, this week we're an apple and the funniest thing is hubby signed up to get the alerts too and he somehow receives his a whole 24 hours in advance of me so he always scoops the fruit type on me. 

This week her legs are longer than her arms and she can move all of her joints and limbs (they change sexes each week, the apple is female). And she is already moving around - can you believe that?? I can't feel it yet, not for a few more weeks I guess. 

Totally crazy! I have a few books too, some I read more than others. The "Girlfriend's guide" is great and funny; I also like "What to expect." There was another I bought and read five pages of before totally scaring myself senseless and vowed never to pick that one up again. Apparently I didn't screen it very well in the book store. 

Lots to learn I guess but taking it one week at a time definitely helps. Much less daunting. And like I said, everyone offers their input and tips and these are far more welcome to me than I ever found input on wedding details to be. Perhaps because I am so completely out of my element??

Without further delay, the news teased in an earlier post (not the LA celebs, this is better I promise!)...

It is official. In March we will be welcoming a little S into the world, into our home, into our lives. 

WOW! 

Crazy, right? It still kind of is to me. We had been trying for awhile,  in kind of a relaxed fashion. And, surprisingly enough, it isn't really that easy! But we kept at it :) and then suddenly, like we weren't expecting it at all, it happened! 

We found out at the end of the 4th of July weekend - ironically Independence Day meant something all together different for us - and have been soaking it all in ever since. 

We had a couple blips in the beginning so we were extra careful about telling people until the first trimester was behind us. Yesterday marked 14 weeks so we're officially official! I saw the tiny little being via an ultrasound at six weeks - boy that really drove home the whole miracle of life concept. Totally amazing. 

And on Friday we heard a big, strong, healthy heartbeat (trying to upload, stay tuned)! Doc says its a boy b/c the heartbeat is 140 (over 160 means a girl). He says he's right 50% of the time :) We aren't going to find out so your guess is as good mine. 

The journey begins and topics here will shift from tomatoes and cucumbers to baby socks and car seats (OMG that is scary to even type), fall is coming upon us and I needed something new to keep me busy until the garden goes in again anyway. 

Do you think I'll even have time to plant a garden next spring??

Lots more to come!!

Catching up - other news I promised details on...

The King made an appearance at a hot Hollywood party last weekend. Part of my job, glamorous indeed, is to occasionally escort the King to events. He is actually a great ticket to fun. I've been to several Super Bowls on his account, the Halo 3 premiere,(my colleagues followed Jonas Brothers around this summer) and most recently an afterparty for the VMAs.

I'll give you the scoop and it was awesome, but also totally reaffirmed my believe that I could never live in LA. It is fantastically fun, more like surreal, to visit and revel in the fact that people live like this everyday. To wake up and do it myself, not possible.

The deets - it was the young who's who of Hollywood - Paris, Nicki, Lindsey (with her new GF Samantha). Some old favorites including Matthew Perry, David Spade and Kid Rock. Micheal Phelps even came. Hubby joined and had a blast. The royal experience alone is a good one, toss in all the celebs and it is hard to beat your first time out.

But the paparazzi were overwhelming, and the hangers-on. Regular people hanging out beyond the party gates, hoping to see someone famous. And all the people on the inside hoping to soon be. Again, it is awesome to take it all in but overall not my scene. Maybe my tune will change when I'm show in the rags next week alongside the King...

The other little wrinkle in my consistency of posts is that I've picked up reading again. Apparently I can't walk and chew gum very successfully because the reading has been all consuming. It started, I believe, on my way down to Miami a couple weeks ago. I was looking for a diversion to keep my mind off the real purpose of the visit (staff thing), so I bought a book.

And then proceeded to stay inside all of Labor Day weekend reading it (In the Woods, if you're interested). To follow, a colleague turned me on to the new vampire series, and I plowed through Twilight this weekend and moved on to New Moon on our way home from Toledo.

So while I had grand plans of typing away my deepest thoughts all weekend long in the car, instead I was reading.

That and we got an extremely late start on Saturday which made me mad, so all I could do was read. Torrents of rain came down Friday night and all morning Saturday, flooding at both our house and Winona. Hubby spent lots of time cleaning drains and gutters, time well spent, but we were super late hitting the road.

Long story long, we made it to Toledo in time for the festivities associated with the Ryan Serber Classic - the annual 8K run sis and Brad organize in Ryan's memory. Brad hosted a big spaghetti dinner at his house, tons of people and a great time. We all anxiously speculated what race day would hold in terms of weather since it been raining in the midwest for days with no signs of stopping. The race was anticipated to be its biggest ever but much of that depended on the weather. Who wants to run in the rain?

We woke this morning to a sunny day. I kid you not. Sun. We had braved the worst rain storm in recent memory to get from Chi to Toledo and when we got up there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Everyone was there, my p's, the inlaws (ps and sisters), aunts and uncles, it was wonderful. In fact, it was HOT?! Ryan was undoubtably with us today, smiling upon us with a blessing of good weather. Thanks buddy - we'd have rather had you with us but definitely appreciate the great day. xoxo

I know, I know. WTH? I do have a few pretty good explainations though and even better stories to follow soon.

Briefly, here is the scoop - we had a pretty significant staffing change at work which required a trip down to Miami for a few days at the end of August. I made it home late Friday night in time for a nice, long, relaxing Labor Day weekend.

That weekend we finished Winona and officially put her on the market - we laid sod, ordered all new appliances, painted. I'll include some pictures in the next couple days but everything looks fantastic.

A short week at work followed and I jumped on a flight to LA. I had a couple events with Seth MacFarlane, creator of Family Guy and American Dad, one Friday and another Tuesday. Chris joined me and we made a fun weekend out of it.

As it happens, a King appearance opportunity came up at a VMA afterparty at Chateau Marmont over the weekende. For some that will mean absolutely nothing, for others, you'll recognize it as the coolest work assignment I'll ever receive. More to come in a couple days.

Everything went smashingly well across the board and I'll have pictures and deets to follow. I got home last night, SO HAPPY!

Continuing with the fast pace - I dropped everything off at home and went over to AMB's to visit her tiny new little Kate who is just 6lbs and too cute for words.

And I can promise a pretty exciting announcement that most of you already know but we'll go live on the blog and start including fun details on that subject regularly.

We have the Serber Classic in Toledo this weekend which means I'll have several hours to catch up and update posts.

For now, consider this a teaser of great things to come!

The moms were floored by the garden and I've had a few surprising trips out there myself this week so I thought I'd provide a few pictures of what we're harvesting right now...

The cucumbers have stopped their proliferation but those in the garden are HUGE. Check out POTD. I made a delicious feta/cucumber recipe yesterday, thanks DW. 

And the toms are out of control. I have little Sun Gold's that taste better than candy, and lots of heirloom varieties. I made gazpacho this week, delicious. 

The most surprising are the squash - remember I realized in retrospect that I don't even really like zucs? Worse yet, the plants have grown like crazy and while they continue to flower, the veggies are surfacing. They appear, grow about 2 inches and then rot out. So the other day I cut down a ton of the growth. I couldn't do a clean swipe, don't ask why, it's like I can hear them crying. Anyway, I was out getting a cucumber last night and was almost taken down by an ENORMOUS zuccini. I have to get out to take a picture. You aren't going to believe it. I could make a dozen loaves of bread...

Never a dull moment in '08, that is for sure...so the much anticipated dads/NYC, moms/Chicago visit went down last weekend and ours took an unexpected turn.

First, the dads had a blast. They toured the big apple, saw the sights, took in a 13 inning Yankees game, ate their hearts out, and washed it all down with several Dewars. The perfect guys weekend.

The gals had a fantastic start - lunch at Table 52 was even more spectacular than expected. We walked off our indulgent meal with a stroll on Oak Street and Michigan Ave. Great shopping, perfect day. Friday night we met more family in town at Old Town Brasserie and had a wonderful evening.

Woke up Saturday to my mom experiencing more curious bruising on her body, in fact it had escalated further with the addition of red blood spots all over her legs. After several calls to various GPs and our doc in the family, she is advised to get a blood test (immediately) at the emergency room. We didn't really sweat it, headed down the street to the closest hospital on our way out to do some shopping.

Note this is a bit long, but I've condensed...

Doc reviews bruises, takes blood and tells us we're going to be looking at the platelet count. Normal levels are 150K - 500K but anything over 100K is OK; under 10K is considered serious. She says no need to go into more details, lets wait for results.

Doc leaves. Doc returns.

Mom's count is 2K. As in two thousand. (Later, after she is checked in to her room, several nurses and a PA come to see the "2K platelet patient" because they've only read about levels this low in textbooks).

Understandably, my mom wants to go home. Don't you always want to be home when you're sick? She wants to get on the first flight back and check into a hospital there. Doc says with her levels so low, she is at risk of spontaniously bleeding out.

Que first wave of extreme panic, (for both of us).

Doc speaks with the hemotologist (blood doc), who thinks it is ITP which is a virus that could be caused by a low grade fever or lupus, lymphoma or leukemia.

Que second wave of extreme panic, (for both of us).

Ultimately, we convince her to check into the hospital in Chicago. It helps that the doc says we'll have to sign forms saying we'd be leaving against their medical counsel since if she were to fall, get into an accident, etc. she would die.

You got it, third wave of extreme panic.

She finally gets a room at 5pm and we nestle in for what will be a five day stay. I'll skip ahead to the good part...she is OK! It was ITP but not connected to any of the scary "L" words. While very slow to respond (which is normal), her platelet count finally did start to bounce back and she tearfully shouted to anyone who would listen "I'm a 28K!" on Tuesday night. By Wed morning she was a strong 66K and could safely wander the streets without any danger.

And, as it turns out she did go shopping immediately upon being released from her wheel chair, gotta love her enthusiasm.

A huge, scary experience. The blessing was, outside of the platelet count, she felt fine so we catered in all her meals and ate really well; MIL was in town (remember, it was moms weekend?) so we had a big party in the room Sat night; my sis happened to be in Milwaukee visiting a friend and came by Sun morning to say hello; and my dad flew in Mon to do bedside duty and I hadn't seen him in months. So if you eliminate the life-in-danger part, it really was still a great weekend.

Never a dull moment...

What could be better than a boys' weekend in NYC, spent enjoying a Yankees game and steak dinners? A girls' weekend in Chicago filled with gourmet meals, shopping and enjoying the outdoors! Chris surprised the dads with flights to NYC and tickets to the Yankees game for Father's Day earlier this summer and the time has arrived. Meanwhile, the moms are jumping on a plane and visiting me. 

It is sure to be a fun time for all, just hard to say which adventure will be better. We're looking forward to it! A full recap when the excitement comes to a close :)

In spite of myself, I can't get enough of the Olympics. I'm totally enraptured by Michael Phelps (join the legions, right?) and find myself practicing my dolphin kick now that I'm back in the pool once a week. I have a little way to go, especially since I can't hold my breath five yards, let along five body lengths. But I am inspired. I'm reaching a bit further in my freestyle stroke and building endurance. Each week I start with my longest leg, this week a 400. Good news is I'm not training for anything so plenty of time to improve :) 

I'm really excited for the upcoming marathon event. It is fun to see the best compete against each other. Women's cycling was pretty good too. 

At the end of the day, a little dose of the Olympics never hurts. It creates a nice, warm "Go America" feeling that seems absent from most of us these days. USA!

Cheers!

Early start today as the boys all ran the half marathon. It was a 6:30 start time so really early rise. Perfect day though, cool at the start and probably didn't get above 70 degrees at the finish. Everyone did really well, hubby had a PR with 1:53 (average hr: 152). Check out his sweet runner's stride featured in picture of the day. They ran on the ABTA team which we'll be raising money for this fall during marathon season. 

It was weird to sit out. In fact I can't remember ever not running with the group. Stella, Vicki and I cheered them on though which was fun. 

Off to eat a big breakfast as if I ran 13.1 myself!

Oy - I've completely fallen off the face of the earth. For a variety of reasons, work has taken over my life and I still haven't come up for a breath. In fact, right now I'm trying to coordinate a previously confirmed camera crew to tape the Jonas Brothers in Madison Square Garden tonight. Late this afternoon I got word that they are no longer allowed on site. Awesome. 

No rest for those solving the world's biggest issues I guess...

The only real news I've neglected to share recently is the amazingly enormous storm we had on Monday night. Two storms actually, and potentially a tornado. Biggest either of us could ever remember. As the tornado sirens went off in our neighborhood we rushed upstairs to the biggest window in the house to search for funnel clouds. 

Now I realize that we've always been taught to head to the basement for shelter, AWAY from windows, but when the world is being blown sideways right before your eyes, it is hard not to watch. 

Everything at the house, with the exception of my poor tomato garden, made it through pretty much unscathed. I restaked all the plants after the first storm and another one hit in the middle of the night. It wasn't until last night that I was able to spend any time fixing them. Aside from a few casualties, I think they should be OK. We'll see. 

Off to see if we can get our crew backstage. Rock on. 

 

But wait, there's more! I forgot to mention the perfect addition hubby made to the backyard: a hammock!!  

I bought it a few weeks ago (at Smith & Hawkin - same time as the composter, which is going quite well actually, but more on that later). Anywho, I have always loved a good hammock. My parents have one at home. There was one at JackFest. We were at Gaston's earlier this summer and some guy was sitting on his roof in one drinking Coronas. I think that was what finally did if for me. 

So I bought it, but it's really big and obviously was going to require some expertise to hang. I pulled out all the stuff and attempted it myself but didn't get very far. Back into the garage it went. 

Yesterday I tried again and thankfully hubby jumped from his chair, pulled out the tools and threw it up for me straight away. 

It's on the second deck which is perfect because outside of the pig roast it sits literally unused all summer. Now my hammock is nestled in, stretched across, beautifully positioned and beckoning me to it all day long. Picture forthcoming. Glorious. 

I may call in sick to work tomorrow...

Another wonderful weekend of maximum fun within a limited parameter. We've noticed lately that we rarely leave the 10-block radius of our house. In many ways, there is really no need. New restaurants are opening almost weekly, new markets and shops too. This weekend was the Wicker Park street festival so live music, food, drinks and artists set up, all within walking distance. 

Brad and his friend are in town visiting so we headed up to check things out. It was a perfect afternoon, warm and sunny but not hot. Great people watching - our neighborhood has a unique mix of multi-colored mohawks, full-body tattoo "suits," LP-like prepsters, families wheeling strollers, everything you can imagine. All coming together to provide a great, scene. 

Hubby bought three T-shirts (street festivals provide the best selection of one-of-a-kinds), and likely to be his new favorite of all times "Super C," modeled after SuperMan. He stripped down and change into it right at the festival. Not joking. 

We came home for perhaps our first summer Wicker Park People Rock Band concert and then back out for some delicious Crust pizza. Yum. 

Today a few errands, a little work but mostly just enjoying a lazy summer day. Hooray.