Bumping

Well, at 14 weeks 6 days I think I've officially "popped".  There is a bump and it's making dressing for work a bit of a challenge.  I've been wearing maternity work pants for awhile now (I think I bought out the Gap maternity/tall work pants section) which has been great because they were comfy when I was bloated , but I had been able to get away with my regular shirts.  Not anymore.  Yesterday I wore a regular shirt & sweater and my belly kept peeking out!  Luckily the maternity pants are a bit higher so I just pulled them up whenever I left my desk.


Today I tried my 1 maternity work shirt on, but its still huge.  So begins the in between stage.  Long maternity tank tops under regular shirts/sweaters seems to be my best bet (like the above picture snapped today - please don't mind the lovely Deloitte bathroom).  Not sure how long this stage will last, so I bit the bullet and ordered some more maternity shirts (yay for sales at Old Navy & Ann Taylor Loft).

The Nesting has Started

This weekend marked a big moment for me - nesting!  As soon as we found out I was pregnant Arthur was ready to nest (probably in part because we had just bought a new house so there are a lot of projects & he cannot sit still ever), whereas I couldn't quite think that far ahead due to sheer exhaustion.  I don't think I realized quite how tired I was until now.  My weekends were meant for resting, minor progress on projects, and internet research/planning for future nesting.


But not this weekend.  This weekend I had energy & motivation so I did 5 loads of laundry & grocery shopped - 2 tasks Arthur had mostly taken over when I was so tired.  (He's a great husband!).  Cooked real meals!  We picked out a paint color for our office/guestroom makeover, I helped finish cleaning out the room & Arthur did a great job painting.  Taxes were mostly completed, house vacuumed top to bottom (although I think I hurt my back a little), and the real nesting...a full detail cleaning of the refrigerator.  Every shelf & drawer came out - got a complete scrub down with hot soapy water and then all items were re-organized or thrown out.  I have definitely noticed my tolerance for dirty has gotten much lower.  My desk at work routinely gets a full Lysol scrub down (that Noro-virus thing is going around at work), and I'm finding my co-workers seem to be less tidy in the bathroom.  It actually kind of grosses me out (I do think its getting dirtier though, despite the daily cleaning!). Not good, as I probably use the bathroom at work more than the one at my house!


Good thing I always keep old toothbrushes for random cleaning projects...let the nesting begin! 

Stroller School

Warning - very detailed! 


Before actually getting pregnant I became very interested in 3 things: researching birth, strollers, and cloth diapers.  While I only made one pre-pregnancy purchase (more on that later), I spent many hours last fall researching strollers.  For some reason a stroller seems to me a pretty essential baby item, and there doesn't seem to be a perfect one!  First and probably the hardest: what are your wants/needs?  Compact or full sized?  Jogger? Do you want to use it with a car seat?  How big of a sun shade do you need?  Should it be able to hold more than one child?  How big of a basket? Is a cup holder important?  Do you want an adjustable handlebar?  Can baby use the stroller from birth?  Air filled, foam, or plastic tires?  What color?  What's the warranty/customer service like?  How much do you want to spend? A quick amazon.com search of "stroller" yields 8,110 results!  


Only in the last week or so have we really narrowed our list down:
-one stroller that does it all (so many reviews are from parents that are on their 5th or 7th stroller)
-ability to use from birth (with a car seat & bassinet)
-substantial, non-air filled tires.  I know me - I do not have the patience for tire maintenance
-washable seat
-large sun shade
-large storage basket
-full sized stroller of medium weight & easy maneuverability & compact fold
-ability to add another child (but a stroller primarily made as a single)
-adjustable handle bar (we are tall people!)


That is a big list, plus add to the fact that we are not truly an urban or suburban family.   I need my stroller to fit in my trunk and on the T.  (Many articles seem to divide families into one of the two categories.  Thank goodness we don't live in NYC where I believe parents must fold up their stroller before boarding any public transportation).  Overall I think my use will be daily walks with the dog, occasional trips into Boston (definitely not during rush hour - I admit I do get annoyed at parents with strollers on the T during rush hour), trips to Maine & the grandparents, and some car based errands.


After probably six months of research, I think I've finally found it: the Uppababy Vista in red (Arthur loves red - I probably would have picked black or green, but red is nice too and gender neutral). 


It has
-Foam filled tires with rubber coating
-adjustable handle bar
-can be used with a car seat
-large basket
-large sunshade
-can add either a 2nd seat or rider board depending on age & preferences of older child.
-all materials can be removed and are machine washable
-toddler seat is one of the largest on the market, and the sunshade is adjustable for taller children.

The Uppababy Vista comes with both the toddler seat & bassinet.  I went back and forth on the necessity of a bassinet - kids outgrow them in 4-6 months, but at the same time the general opinion seems to be that limiting car seat time is better for neck & spine development.  What really sold me on the bassinet is that this is approved as a sleeper and so we can use it as baby's primary bed (and perfect travel bed).  I'm pretty certain I would have wanted something for baby to sleep in our bedroom for the first couple of months, so this does both.  Uppababy makes a nice bassinet stand too so baby isn't on the floor and in Mercedes's curious reach.  Also the interior materials are organic cotton & soy

Fully loaded with both rain & bug shields - all those extras really add up!  Doesn't come with a cup holder or snack tray, but those weren't on my wish list and can be added later if we decide we want them.


Great sun shade!  The silver part pops out when you need extra coverage and it's SPF 50 - perfect as you aren't supposed to use sunscreen before six months. Comes on both the toddler seat & bassinet.

 Very easy & compact fold, automatic lock & stands on its own. You also can fold with the seat still attached (unlike some other strollers).


Uppababy is a Massachusetts company based in Hingham.  Arthur and I definitely try to support American companies when possible, and the reviews are stellar concerning their customer service.  2 year warranty - pretty standard.  


Overall I think it meets our needs the best, but isn't perfect.  We will have to buy a car seat adapter (pretty standard on all strollers than can be used with car seats).  Cup holder & snack tray would also be add-ons too.  It's a bigger stroller and exceeds to 20 lb weight limit most airlines have to gate-check your stroller (Uppababy does sell a travel bag that gives you extra warranty against any air-travel damage so we could just check it with our luggage).  It also won't be the smallest stroller on the T (and will be impossible to use if we visit the Bargs in NYC). We could get a small umbrella stroller for travel, but we are trying to avoid buying multiple strollers.  It is on the pricier side (ok if we really do just buy 1 stroller) You can't jog with it (fine with me, I much prefer walking to running).  Will be a slightly bumpier ride than if it had air filled tires.  It isn't the best double stroller (also ok with me - we are only have 1 child right now and who knows how old baby #1 will be if and when we have baby #2).  Like I said - I've come to the conclusion that there isn't a perfect stroller.  Probably why so many parents end up with multiple ones! 


So yesterday Arthur and I went to a little session at Isis Parenting (great Boston based baby store) on strollers.  They called it "Stroller School" and they demonstrated 12 or so our their favorite strollers.  I had signed up for this class probably 6 weeks ago, before I had found the Uppababy Vista, but we went anyways and came away from the class still convinced Uppababy is the one for us.  Plus it was fun to play with all the strollers!


Other strollers I seriously considered:

Baby Jogger City Select: overall this seemed to be a better inline double stroller than single.  Can position toddler seats, car seats, or bassinet in 16 configurations!  While I do want a stroller than can possibly be used for 2 children, it seems a little silly to be buying a stroller primarily for 2 kids when we don't know what the future holds.  Plus it seems if we need to buy a real double stroller, most parents prefer a side by side to an inline.

Brittax B-ready: similar to the City Select - great double inline stroller with 14 configurations.  The materials seemed a bit cheaper though, and I was not a fan of the wheels.

Bugaboo Chameleon: ok this one mostly caught my eye on looks alone.  It comes with both toddler seat & bassinet, but you can't use the bassinet for sleeping.  Can only add a roller board, not a 2nd seat.  Only a 37lb seat weight limit (almost all I looked at were for 50 lbs).  Storage bag seems annoying as opposed to a basket.  Crazy expensive.  BUT its really pretty, especially in the limited edition Missoni print.  Rachel Zoe has it.  You can get snow tires (selling point for Arthur perhaps?) Customer service reviews aren't great.




So I think my search for a stroller had finally come to an end.  Hopefully I can decide on things like cribs, car seats, pack N plays, high chairs, bouncy seat vs. swing, etc more quickly!  I think preparing for baby is much harder than wedding planning (although the constant research & evaluating seems very similar).

100 Days!

Yesterday I looked at one of my many iPhone baby/pregnancy apps and saw that Poppy was 100 days old!  I can't believe I've been pregnant for 100 days already (well 101 now).  The time is really flying.  Only 179ish days left, although for some reason I have a feeling it will be longer... 

We Heart L.L. Bean

When wedding preparations ended I knew I would need a new creative project so I set out to design a new chic bedroom for us (more on that in another post).  With the purchase of the Boothbay Harbor house I now have a huge project – decorating an entire house!  Awesome (and slightly overwhelming too). 

Between combining our 2 apartments, plus getting some new furniture together, plus our parents houses we actually have a surprisingly large amount of furniture already.  Great for the budget, trickier for creating a coordinated home.  I’ve decided the Boothbay house look will be “eclectic seaside/beach cottage”.  Don’t ask me what that means, but when I think beach cottage (as opposed to a cabin or English or French cottage) I think a mixture of natural and painted wood.  So anything that doesn’t fit – I’ll just paint it!  Paint fixes everything.

While we have lots of furniture, we were lacking in furniture for our living room.  We bought a house in Maine so we figured let’s check out L.L. Bean.  We found some stuff we really liked, and remembered that our favorite credit card (Discover) offered gift cards to L.L. Bean in exchange for points.  I have been saving my points for years just for a deal like this.  And Arthur had gotten a deal for 10% cash back on all purchases in Brazil so he had a bunch from our trip.  And they gave you an extra 25% value for converting to gift cards! 

We waited for a 15% coupon and placed our order on the phone…with 18 gift cards!  (3 were Christmas presents - the rest were from Discover points) The lady must have thought we were crazy.  And then we asked to pick up the furniture from the store to save the almost $350 shipping charge (and we aren’t exactly at the Boothbay house all the time to receive the shipment).  No problem, they can hold our stuff for 30 days, but then our coupon didn’t work :(  It was only for internet/phone orders; picking up at the store was considered an in store purchase.   We were sad, but happy not to pay shipping.  5 days later, what do we get…15% off in store purchases!! One quick phone call and a refund check was on its way.  We are pretty excited about our new, practically free, American made living room.  L.L. Bean rocks!

Here’s what we got:  

1 tan sofa

2 blue & white chairs

1 white futon (probably for the Den/Office to make a 4th bedroom - I did not get the floral cover shown in the picture)

1 white TV stand

Now I just need to find a lobster trap coffee table!! And a futon cover.

Dear Baby - Week 13

February 16-22 

Dear Poppy,

We've finished 13 weeks together! Yay!!  This is wonderful news for both of us – for you it means our chances of losing you have been significantly reduced (although we still pray for you every night).  For Mommy it means she has entered the part of pregnancy where she should feel her best.  We can't believe you are already 1/3 cooked!

Overall it was a pretty quiet week – Mommy physically felt the best she has been so far, but the pregnancy hormones are still very present, which took her a bit by surprise after she had felt so good.  Daddy made his first pregnancy food run on Friday night because the only 2 things Mommy wanted to eat were steak or Peanut Butter Puffins.   Daddy got her 3 boxes of Puffins (2 of which are already gone-they are so yummy!).  Your Gigi (Grandma McGowan) came to visit this weekend and we worked on cleaning and packing our current guest room.  Daddy is giving you his office, so we are creating a combined office/guest room.   Then we will work on your nursery!

Mommy has also noticed an increase in her appetite this week.  She has only gained a couple of pounds over the last 13 weeks, so it must be time for you to do some serious growing!

Current cravings: Peanut Butter Puffins!!  Steak.  Mushroom Risotto. 

Current size: Peach (2.9 inches long)

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

My Bookshelf – Part 1

So if you know much about me you know that I love to read.  And plan.  I love researching things way before I actually need to so I feel extra prepared.  Yes, I was that freshman camped out in the library reading Princeton Review of the best colleges.   Yep, I applied to study abroad sophomore year instead until junior year like most people.  I just had to do an internship junior spring semester until waiting until the summer (I wanted my job all lined up before junior year was over!).  And yes, I joined the knot.com to gather wedding ideas before Arthur proposed.  It’s what I do.  So naturally when the thought of babies started getting a wee bit serious I had to buy a book (or a few) on it.   Here’s a peek on at my pre-pregnancy bookshelf/Kindle.

What to Expect Before You're Expecting  It seems like people either love or hate the “What to Expect” series.  I didn't even know this book existed, except one of my bridesmaids said she had recently acquired the entire series.  Confession: while getting ready on the morning of my wedding the discussion turned to babies.  Like I said – I like to plan ahead.   Overall this book seemed to be mostly common sense and fluff – probably a way to sell more “what to expect” books.  But it was fun to read a baby book that technically wasn't jumping the gun, unlike the next couple of books that I read before I was actually pregnant.

 The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth – eye opening book.  The book was laid out well, and I liked the way she challenged the more “traditional” thoughts on childbirth.  I think it’s important to inform yourself and this book definitely gives you a different perspective.  Not the most balanced book, but not outrageously biased it.  If you strongly prefer the medical model of care vs. the midwifery model you probably won’t like the book.  As it was my first real childbirth book I learned a lot (kind of wish I didn't know about episiotomies – ick!).  Going into the whole baby/child birth research I instinctively felt I was more comfortable with the Midwifery model and this book definitely pushed me farther in that direction.

 Ina May's Guide to Childbirth: loved this book.  After reading the Thinking Woman I decided to go straight to the mother of modern midwifery and see what she had to say.  Really amazing stuff and a very empowering book.  She made me excited about taking on challenge of pregnancy and childbirth, and confidence to trust myself and my body through this age old process.  I highly recommend to any pregnant women, regardless of your views.  Yes, it is very biased towards midwifery, but her points are based upon 30+ years of experience and research.  I can’t wait to read more of her books.

The Business of Being Born: ok this one is a movie.  Watch it.  I think it’s  pretty informative on birth today and I liked the way they presented their views, unlike Pregnant in America, which was overall same message, but too extreme for my tastes.  Both are available on Netflix streaming.

So there you have it.  My Bookshelf - Part 2 coming soon!

Oh Happy Day

Thursday starts week 14 (2nd trimester!!) and boy am I excited!  Everyone has been telling me how great the 2nd trimester is, and I am finally seeing what all the fuss is about.  


Yesterday was an amazing day.  I went to bed really early on Sunday night, and woke up on Monday 45 minutes earlier than normal feeling quite refreshed.  Blow dried my hair (something I haven't done in ages) and wore heels at work (I think this was the 2nd time I've worn heels at work while pregnant).  Was productive at work and not dragging all day.  After work I actually felt like cooking and made a real gourmet dinner, complete with a glass of sparkling cider.  During the first trimester our meals mostly consisted of quick fixes like pasta, mac N cheese, grilled cheese, cereal, etc, as I was so exhausted most days after work. 


It felt so wonderful to feel like myself again.  I know many tired days are in my 3rd trimester and the infant months, but I think its important to remember that days like this will come again too.

Dear Baby - Week 12

February 9 – 15

Dear Poppy,

This week your Mommy has been feeling great!  Practically no morning sickness!   She is very excited for the 2^nd trimester which is when pregnant ladies are supposed to feel their best.

The biggest thing Mommy has missed while being pregnant is eating sushi, so this week Daddy got her “fushi” or fake sushi.  Mommy absolutely loved cooked and vegetable sushi, although Daddy still has strict orders to bring Mommy a large platter of real sushi after you are born.

We also decided to go 100% public with our Poppy secret.  We were able to tell many of our friends in person and on the phone (although not quite as many as we would have liked), but finally we just posted it to Facebook.  It is so fun that everyone knows now!

Current cravings: Barbara’s Peanut Butter Puffin Cereal.  Amazing.   Mommy actually ate fish (cooked) twice this week too!

Current size: plum (2.1 inches long)

Love,

Mommy & Daddy




Well I think I am all caught up on my Dear Baby posts now - very excited to enter week 13 tomorrow - my last week of the first trimester!! 

Dear Baby - Week 11

February 2 - 8

Dear Poppy,

This week Mommy was feeling much better – her energy is a little better, and the morning sickness is much less intense.  Unfortunately this was immediately followed by her first pregnancy pain – very achy hips!  This is really making side sleeping uncomfortable and I have always been a side sleeper.  After a couple of day I visited our massage therapist and she made my hips feel much better – for a few days at least.

We also visited the OBGYN for the first time this week.  The practice Mommy is going to treats patients in OB & midwife teams which is perfect for us as Mommy prefers a midwife and Daddy thinks we need an OBGYN.  It was a very quick visit (part of why Mommy prefers a midwife) but everything looked great.  We got to hear your heartbeat with the Doppler this visit which was quite exciting! We also decided not to screen you for Downs Syndrome.  The screening does not actually diagnose you, but rather gives you statistics (and sometimes gives you false results) which will probably just make your Daddy very worried.  Given Mommy’s age the chance that you are completely healthy is already extremely good, so we will trust that you are growing just beautifully!  

Current craving: frozen yogurt.  Pinkberry is the best!  Also your Uncle Rich introduced me to a frozen yogurt bar in Quincy that is even better than Pinkberry, but sadly Quincy isn’t very convenient for us.

Current size: lime (1.6 inches long)

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

You know you're pregnant when...

February 5

You cry during the Superbowl!  Wow that one took me by surprise.  I don't care about football at all!  And I didn't cry when the Patriot lost, but rather at the beginning of the game when the teams were running onto the field and all the exciting "pump up" music was playing.  I think all the energy overwhelmed me but the football/crying startled me so much that I immediately changed the channel and watched the Sex in the City marathon (thank you E! - great alternative Superbowl viewing) until Arthur got home and wanted to watch the game. 

Dear Baby - Week 10

January 26-February 1

Dear Poppy,

Now that we have seen you and your heartbeat we are feeling more comfortable telling people about you.  We started telling a few of our closest friends our wonderful news!

This week we also visited the Boothbay house again.  On the drive up, Mommy read many many baby name ideas to Daddy, as we were having trouble finding any boy names we both liked.  We finally found a boy name that we both like and narrowed our girl name list down.  For now, our choices will be a secret.  While we were in Boothbay Daddy wanted to get started on working on the house, but he made Mommy sit upstairs with a mask on all weekend, just in case any of the dust contained lead.  Mommy actually enjoyed relaxing all weekend (except for the mask part) and finished reading the Hunger Games 2 & 3.   


This week Mommy had 2 days without morning sickness.  Hurray! 

Current cravings: macaroni & cheese

Current size: prune (1.2 inches long!)  You are over an inch!

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

Dear Baby - Week 9

January 19-25

Dear Poppy,

This week Mommy turned 26!  We had a little party and lots of Mommy’s friends came.  Mommy wanted to tell everyone about you, but it didn’t seem like quite the right time yet.  Instead it took Mommy a very long time to find clothes that covered her little bump/bloat.  She also secretly drank regular lemonade all night, even though she had made her favorite lemonade cocktail for her friends.

Later this week we got to see you!!! It was so exciting and you are absolutely adorable!  We counted 5 fingers on each of your hands and you were squirming around like crazy!  Daddy couldn’t stop saying “oh my goodness” the whole time he was watching.  This was definitely the most excited Mommy has seen him.  Mommy was a bit more quiet – taking it all in (and a little uncomfortable too).  The midwife said you looked like you were growing and forming perfectly, although you measured a little small and so they moved your due date from August 18 to the 23^rd. 

The midwife was a little concerned about how much Mommy has been working, so she put her on a 40 hour/week work restriction.  Mommy was a very worried about how her bosses would take the news, as it is a busy time of year and they are understaffed.   Mommy’s bosses were surprisingly very accommodating so now she can get more sleep to help you grow big and strong.  It is a huge relief for our family.

After the ultrasound we decided to tell your Great-Grandma.  Your Andersen Grandparents have been dying to tell her, and we knew she would be so happy hear the news.   We all went out to dinner and she told us how happy she is and that family is the most important part of life.  She has been praying for your arrival even before we told her you were coming! 

Mommy also starting wearing maternity pants this week.  Her old pants still fit, but she cannot really button them any longer.  Her new pants are so comfy!!

Current size: green olive (.9 inches long)

Cravings: grilled cheese, cereal, pasta.  No interest in fish (a usual favorite)

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

Dear Baby - Week 8

January 12 - 18

Dear Poppy,

This week we had our first official appointment with our midwife!  Everything looked great – Mommy has excellent blood pressure, hasn’t gained or lost any weight, and our family history doesn’t have any red flags.  Sadly the midwife could not find your heartbeat with the Doppler, which was a little disappointing for Mommy & Daddy.  She did say everything felt like it was growing well and you have an excellent home (aka uterus) to grow in.  To make us feel better, she scheduled us to come in for an ultrasound next week so we could see you. 

Mommy continues not to feel great-very sleepy and not enjoying food much.  Another 70 hour work week probably didn’t help.

Current size: raspberry (.63 inches long)

Cravings: grilled cheese sandwiches along with cereal & other carbs.

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

Dear Baby - Week 7

January 5-11

Dear Poppy,

The holiday season is over and you must be sad because you are making Mommy very sick to her stomach.  Or perhaps you don’t like that tax season has also started this week and Mommy’s 70 hour work week.  Either way, Mommy has not felt well at all.

On a more fun note – some baby stuff arrived this week!  Mommy has decided she wants to use cloth diapers and ordered a few off of a Christmas sale.  They are so cute, you will be helping your environment, and saving Mommy & Daddy lots of money too!

Current size: blueberry (.51 inches long)

Cravings: same as last week, but now cannot think about eating raw veggies.

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

Dear Baby - Week 6

December 29- January 4

Dear Poppy,

This week we took another trip, this time to Iceland.  You did not like jetlag at all, and Mommy felt very sick to her stomach when we arrived.  We visited many beautiful sights and it was very exciting to visit Mommy & Daddy’s shared Scandinavian heritage.  You will have quite the variety of European heritages – English, Scottish, Irish, French, German, Polish, Russian, Norwegian and a bit of Native American too!  As Andersen is a Norwegian name and both Mommy & Daddy have Norwegian ties, all things Scandinavian hold an extra special place in our hearts.

While we were visiting we bought a few souvenirs – hats for the whole family.  Hopefully yours will fit you for winter 2012-13.  I got you the bigger baby size, as large heads run in Daddy’s side of the family.

You started craving things this week mostly cereal with cold milk (especially Cheerios) and anything hot & full of carbs like pasta & pizza.

Current size: sweet pea (.25 inches long)

Love you lots!

Mommy & Daddy

Dear Baby - Week 5

December 22-28

Dear Poppy,

After last week Mommy and Daddy got used to keeping you classified.  It was fun having a little secret just for the two of us.  At the same time we both really wanted to tell your Grandparents so Mommy searched for a fun way to tell them.  She bought your first baby item, 4 bibs that say “I love Grandma/Grandpa”.  Mommy and Daddy decided that Christmas would be a good time to tell your grandparents, so Mommy wrapped each bib to give as a Christmas present.

On Christmas Eve we visited each home and gave your grandparents their bibs (while secretly video tapping their reactions).  They were all ecstatic!  You will be the first grandchild in both the McGowan and Andersen families – a very big deal!

During this week you continued to make Mommy very sleepy, but otherwise you were quite well behaved.  Mommy was only a little sick to her stomach this week. 

You are now the size of an apple seed.  Keep growing!

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

Dear Baby - Week 4

December 15-22


Dear Poppy,

Until we find out if you are a boy or girl, we have decided to call you Poppy.  When we found out about you the chart said you were the size of a poppy seed, so Poppy you will be.

This week has been tough for Mommy & Daddy because they are not ready to tell anyone about you yet, but it is the Christmas season and we will be seeing lots of friends and family!  First, we visited Maine on December 16 to close on our Boothbay Harbor house.  We happy we found the house last fall, so we can work on it this year and hopefully it will be ready for lots of fun family weekends once you arrive.  After the closing we visited your Aunt Sarah & Uncle Chris’s house for a dinner party with some of Mommy’s childhood friends.  The topic of discussion soon turned to babies and when we should all start having them.  Our poppy secret almost slipped out when your Uncle Dan noticed Mommy was only drinking water and said “Stephanie could be pregnant now!”  Mommy and Daddy quickly learned to always accept 2 glasses of wine and then have Daddy secretly drink both.

The next day you met a good portion of your McGowan family at our extended family Christmas party.  Luckily nobody brought out any wine so we didn’t have to pretend.  We thought we were in the clear, but I guess your Great-Aunt Shelley somehow suspected!  That evening was another Christmas party – this time with Mommy’s college friends.  By that time Mommy & Daddy had their pretend drinking routine down, so I don’t think anyone noticed.

This week Mommy also started feeling very tired and starting sleeping 10-11 hrs each night.  It’s a lot of work creating a Poppy!

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

Dear Baby

During our extensive baby research Arthur came across the cutest blog where a couple wrote little notes to their baby during their pregnancy (after have continued to afterwards).  I thought it was such a wonderful idea, so I've been writing weekly notes to our baby too.  While their blog is exclusively dedicated "to their little one", I think it would be a fun series to add to our blog.  So here is my first entry (Weeks 1-3)

Dear Baby,

Sometime late November or early December you were created, and immediately started traveling the world!  Right around your assumed first day, your mommy and daddy visited Argentina & then Brazil, and towards the end of the trip you gave us your first clue that you had arrived – frequent bathroom stops!  Mommy also fell asleep during a boat tour, but that may have been due to jetlag rather than you.  You visited lots of pretty sites, and ate lots of steak.  I don’t think vegetarianism is in your future (at least not your genes). After the trip we visited New York City too and you met your Aunt Etienne & Uncle Michael (although nobody knew it).

On Sunday, December 11 at a mere 3 ½ weeks we took a test and confirmed you were on your way!  Mommy pretended not to know how to read the test and gave it to Daddy to check.  Daddy was a bit surprised (and white) as he did not think you would join our family so quickly, but we were both so happy that our family was expanding.  Later that week Mommy had a doctor’s appointment and they also confirmed that our family would be adding a new member in August.  We are so excited to meet you!

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

We're Expecting!

So I know its half way through Feb and I have not been a very faithful blogger, but I do have a small excuse...we are having a baby!!! I've been wanting to blog about this for quite awhile, but we hadn't made the news widespread yet.  We are so excited about becoming parents and have been dying to tell everyone.  So now that the word is out I will use this post to answer the Top 5 questions everyone has been asking.


#1: Do you know if its a boy or girl?  Nope not yet.  I'm told most people find out between 16-20 weeks, so we will find out then.  We are both eager to find out - Arthur because he's hoping for a boy, and me because I think shopping will be much more fun when I'm not limited to green & yellow.


#2: When are you due? August 23 


#3: Was this a surprise?  The answer to this is overall no, but a little yes.  Arthur and I have never been shy about discussing children - we both knew before we were engaged that it was something we both wanted and we didn't want to be "old" parents.  After we were married we started talking more, and couldn't really come up with a good reason to intentionally delay having kids, we decided not to try to prevent it and see what happens.  The surprise part came a few weeks later - neither of us expected it would happen so quickly, but no complaints either.


#4: When did you find out?  December 11th.  Towards the end of our trip to South America I was peeing every hour, which is not typical for me.  On our last day in Brazil we actually visited 4 or 5 pharmacies trying to find a pregnancy test, and finally googled "how to say pregnancy test in Portuguese" and asked a lady (apparently they keep them behind the counter).  The test read negative, but it was a bit early to test so we waited a few days and tested again when we got home.    


#5: Are your families excited? Ok I think most people mean this as more of a rhetorical question, but the answer is an overwhelming YES.  All babies are exciting, but Baby Andersen will be our first, both our parents first grandchild, and Arthur's grandma's first great-grandchild.  It is definitely a big deal.