signs you are growing up - Holiday Edition

• The discussion is about whether you should encourage the kid to believe Santa, not whether you believe.



• You decide to "give" each other a new sink (and are excited about it).
  You buy an extra jello mold, so you can make two cranberry rings (one for each side of the family).



• It's more important to make room for the nativity set under the tree than presents.



• You hang on to the stocking tradition for dear life (it's an excuse for the good chocolate to get in your shopping cart).



• You put clothes (even underwear) on your Christmas list.
  

Swenatic

I'm going to the Akron v. Kent game today. Go Zips!!!!!!!!

Any excuse to go to Swenson's is a good one.

Everyone keeps asking...

"What are you having?" - Well, I'm hoping a HUMAN baby.  If there's kittens in there, then we have a problem - I'm more of a dog person.

 

"Are you going to find out the gender?" - Hopefully this will be pretty evident when the baby is born.  If not, then we'll pursue genetic testing.

 

"Do you have names picked out?" - Yes.  But you may refer to the kid as "baby" until we see the kid in person.

 

"How are you feeling?" - I feel pregnant.  Thanks for asking.

 

"Is your doctor concerned about your weight?" - Um, do you really think it's a good idea to ask any woman this question, pregnant or not? (By the way...the answer is NO. I lost 15 pounds in my first four months because I was too nauseous to eat.  My doc has yet to say anything about this, so I'm not worrying about it either.)

 

"Are you going to breastfeed?" - What I do with the Girls is my business...  why are you asking such personal questions of any woman anyway?

Most days I only feel pregnant

I will be 23 weeks Friday, and I still don't think I LOOK very pregnant. I have a very small bump, but a lot of it is pre-pregnancy belly. So a lot of my non-maternity clothes still fit and still hide the belly.

The problem is that my pants don't fit correctly. None of my pants - maternity, non-maternity. My body mass has redistributed (thankfully, this includes my butt shrinking and the girls getting bigger), and thus I spend the entire day hiking up my maternity jeans or dress pants.

So today, I wore a dress. With tights. So far, so good.

But I still don't look pregnant.

of tea cups and impressionists

I have, hanging over my desk at work, a calendar.  I don't really write on it - it's just there for reference and looks.  This year I chose one that included works by Impressionist artists.  My favorite is Degas. 

 

For some reason, I always connected to his paintings, particularly the ones of dancers.  They seem to show a fascination with movement to me.  But not just movement - also that graceful pause in the arabesque, the moment before a jete, or just a break to allow the prima ballerina her solo. 

 

I think that's why I like them - they remind me to slow down. To pause.  To take a moment to savor and point out the anticipation of things to come and appreciate all that is now done.

 

I think after I move my cube that I'll bring in another Impressionist calendar for the new year.  And a nice china tea cup to use in my pauses.

new name

Can I just say that the whole pregnancy thing is seriously messing with my self-identity? Because now, I am not just “Nicole, Steve’s wife”, I am also going to be “Mommy”. Freaky. Neat… but freaky.

belated

I commit to a month of something and I can't even make it to day 2. So I am posting this on 11/3 and dating it 11/2 to make up for it!

NaBloPoMo09

Okay... here we go.

Since I haven't updated this since, oh, I don't know SEPTEMBER... I figured I would start off NaBloPoMo right and get y'all caught up properly.

1. I still have a job, for those of you know where I work and have heard about recent happenings. I was not affected. In fact, I will be getting a new cube in the next month. But not a better cube, just a different cube. Same job.

2. We painted one of the extra bedrooms. Guess why. If you can't guess, or haven't heard, see number 3.

3. I'm pregnant. Seriously. No... seriously. You can stop laughing now. And maybe pick up your jaw off the floor. I'm due March 5, no baby belly yet (thanks to my LONG torso/height), cravings so far include Sour Patch Kids, green olives, and pickles. And no, we don't know the sex, and we are going to wait until it gets here to find out. Because, I figure, that way, I have a reason to push the SMALL HUMAN BEING in my STOMACH out when it's time. And no, I will not tell you the names we have picked out. I don't want judging or copying going on.

4. I miss dippy eggs and rare steak. And Brie. Oh what I wouldn't give for some Brie with green apples.

That's about it. More to come in the next month.