Well hello nearly defunct blog. It's been a while.
Mostly it's been a while because every time I sit down and write I end up complaining about something. And really, my life is quite cushy and I have no reasons to complain, so therein lies the conundrum of personal blogging.
Objectively, I look at the past few weeks and things have been pretty awesome:
Maybe Baby is almost here.
Maybe Baby is healthy.
We're getting a brand new bathroom and fixing other issues in our house that have long been on our list.
I'll admit, we're pretty spoiled.
But then there are the little things like our renovations dragging out a week later than expected because of the awful March ice storms we've had, and the cabinetry orders getting messed up and costing us more time and money.
And the bigger things, like this baby being stubbornly transverse. I had no idea that was even a thing until the ultrasound tech told us that baby girl is laying with her head on my left, her bum on my right, and her feet dangling down and around "like a little doughnut." Her positioning makes things fairly uncomfortable for me (my ribs feel like a hot poker is being pushed up against them at all times..hooray!), but mostly what it means is an automatic c-section.
We're crossing our fingers that she'll surprise us and flip into position, but we've scheduled a date just in case she is just as stubborn as I am. It was surreal to schedule with the hospital the exact date and time for baby's arrival (April 15th at 12:45 p.m. in case you're wondering - Best tax day ever!).
I know it's ridiculous to complain about not getting the birth experience I was hoping for when the baby is healthy and c-sections are so safe, but it's been a hard mental/emotional adjustment to make. I think what's been hardest is that the entire pregnancy process has been so, for lack of a better word, medicalized.
A doctor created the baby in a petri dish. A doctor put the baby in me. A doctor is going to cut the baby out of me.
Some good friends of ours used to joke that they were working on a new invention called the "Incu-baby" that would gestate a baby for you so that you didn't have to be pregnant. A sort of gestational carrier that you could set up in your living room and dump feed into every once in a while like a fish tank. Well, I've been joking with them lately that the Incubaby (TM) already exists. It's me! Put an embryo in. Feed it anti-nausea pills and the occasional milkshake. Take the baby out when it's ready. Voila!
All joking aside, I've been surprised at how difficult it has been emotionally. To feel like a gestational carrier instead of a mother. I'm sure that'll change the moment the baby makes her debut, but man, am I ready to have that day come.
I vow to get my writing mojo back soon so that I can share all about the fabulous baby shower that my friends put on for us last weekend, and the finished product bathroom (if it ever gets to that point), but until then, this is the Incubaby (TM) signing off. I need a nap. And maybe a milkshake.
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Friday, March 6, 2015
Six Years
Blake and I celebrated our six year anniversary this past Saturday. It's hard to believe that it's been six years since we got married, and over seven years since we started dating. Time truly does fly.
Before I regale you with tales of our anniversary celebration, let me was mushy for just a moment. Blake is a truly wonderful human being. Anyone who knows him will heartily agree that he is one of the nicest people they've ever met. You know how some people have resting grumpy face (always with a frown)?, well, Blake has resting happy face. There are very few times when I've ever seen him without a smile. He is incredibly socially gifted and is able to talk with anyone and make them feel at ease. He makes up for my awkwardness (and all my other shortcomings) in spades and has helped temper my anxious nature. He puts up with my constant projects and odd ideas and the fact that I never laugh out loud (I only shake and occasionally giggle/snort). He gallantly survived the past couple years when my hormones would have made most people head for the hills. In short: he's the best. There's no denying it. He's just the best.
But before I bore you all with more declarations of my affections...
Because I'm rarely making it past 9 p.m. these days and because Blake was recovering from a cold, we decided to do our celebrating during the day rather than the evening. Neither of us had done much adventuring in National Harbor, so we made reservations at Redstone American Grill and had a late lunch. The food was good (our favorite was the complimentary "morning bread" that they bring you, which was more like an entire blueberry poundcake with frosting - yum!), the service was great, and it was right on the water, so the view was beautiful. It was a gray and icy day, but that made it all the more peaceful to look out at the boats and the snow in the marina.
After lunch we rode the Capital Wheel, from which you can see more of Alexandria and the Potomac than you can of the Capital...but it was still fun. Of course the only picture we took together that day was the promotional one that the folks at the Capital Wheels try to make you buy for some outlandish price. Let me tell you, that was not our best photo. Not even close. Needless to say, we did not purchase it.
So here's a photo of us from this fall where we are not bundled up to the gills, and where we actually look somewhat normal. I further resolve to take more photos this year - I'm hoping that once Maybe arrives we'll have more of an incentive to document our lives and I'll worry less about how un-photogenic I am.
Before I regale you with tales of our anniversary celebration, let me was mushy for just a moment. Blake is a truly wonderful human being. Anyone who knows him will heartily agree that he is one of the nicest people they've ever met. You know how some people have resting grumpy face (always with a frown)?, well, Blake has resting happy face. There are very few times when I've ever seen him without a smile. He is incredibly socially gifted and is able to talk with anyone and make them feel at ease. He makes up for my awkwardness (and all my other shortcomings) in spades and has helped temper my anxious nature. He puts up with my constant projects and odd ideas and the fact that I never laugh out loud (I only shake and occasionally giggle/snort). He gallantly survived the past couple years when my hormones would have made most people head for the hills. In short: he's the best. There's no denying it. He's just the best.
But before I bore you all with more declarations of my affections...
Because I'm rarely making it past 9 p.m. these days and because Blake was recovering from a cold, we decided to do our celebrating during the day rather than the evening. Neither of us had done much adventuring in National Harbor, so we made reservations at Redstone American Grill and had a late lunch. The food was good (our favorite was the complimentary "morning bread" that they bring you, which was more like an entire blueberry poundcake with frosting - yum!), the service was great, and it was right on the water, so the view was beautiful. It was a gray and icy day, but that made it all the more peaceful to look out at the boats and the snow in the marina.
After lunch we rode the Capital Wheel, from which you can see more of Alexandria and the Potomac than you can of the Capital...but it was still fun. Of course the only picture we took together that day was the promotional one that the folks at the Capital Wheels try to make you buy for some outlandish price. Let me tell you, that was not our best photo. Not even close. Needless to say, we did not purchase it.
So here's a photo of us from this fall where we are not bundled up to the gills, and where we actually look somewhat normal. I further resolve to take more photos this year - I'm hoping that once Maybe arrives we'll have more of an incentive to document our lives and I'll worry less about how un-photogenic I am.
Thursday, March 5, 2015
The Abominable Snow Dog
DC is pretty much at a standstill today because of the massive snow storm we're getting. The Federal Government is closed (exceptionally bad timing seeing as Blake is down in Texas for work and doesn't get to take the time off), schools are out, and no one is on the roads.
I've taken bear on a couple of off-leash walks today and let him play with all his muppet friends in the park. Each time we come back inside he has to spend 20 minutes thawing out in the bath (the snowballs he collects on his legs and stomach are outrageous with this heavy, wet snow!) and then another 20 minutes drying off, but it's worth it. He is just so darn happy outside exploring and romping with his neighborhood pals.
Off-leash walks are really lovely for me right now, too, as I'm fairly slow and cumbersome in the snow. Bear runs circles around me and checks back every few feet to make sure I'm coming, so he gets even more exercise than I'd be able to give him on a normal walk. And I get to waddle along at my own pace. It's a win-win.
Our neighbors have been ridiculously nice to us all winter - shoveling our walks, clearing our car, helping us lift heavy things. What with my carry restrictions and Blake's back being on the fritz, we've been like a couple of 85 year olds around here. I've been baking lots of cookies and delivering lots of flowers to say thank you, but I'm still feeling guilty. All of our direct neighbors are quite a bit older than we are, so I feel like we should be the ones helping with their walks (and most years we do). Let's just add this to the list of many reasons why I'm excited to almost be done with pregnancy. Only six weeks left!
We're probably going to come down to the wire time-wise with our bathroom renovation. The horrible weather (ice and snow storms for the past week and a half) have made the progress on our bathroom slow and it looks like our timeline will be pushed back a week.
Unless Maybe is born super early, that should work out fine. I'm just ready to be living without the dust...and without a bathtub hanging out in the study. Though, if those are the worst of my worries, it's fairly obvious that life is pretty darn good right now.
I've taken bear on a couple of off-leash walks today and let him play with all his muppet friends in the park. Each time we come back inside he has to spend 20 minutes thawing out in the bath (the snowballs he collects on his legs and stomach are outrageous with this heavy, wet snow!) and then another 20 minutes drying off, but it's worth it. He is just so darn happy outside exploring and romping with his neighborhood pals.
Off-leash walks are really lovely for me right now, too, as I'm fairly slow and cumbersome in the snow. Bear runs circles around me and checks back every few feet to make sure I'm coming, so he gets even more exercise than I'd be able to give him on a normal walk. And I get to waddle along at my own pace. It's a win-win.
Our neighbors have been ridiculously nice to us all winter - shoveling our walks, clearing our car, helping us lift heavy things. What with my carry restrictions and Blake's back being on the fritz, we've been like a couple of 85 year olds around here. I've been baking lots of cookies and delivering lots of flowers to say thank you, but I'm still feeling guilty. All of our direct neighbors are quite a bit older than we are, so I feel like we should be the ones helping with their walks (and most years we do). Let's just add this to the list of many reasons why I'm excited to almost be done with pregnancy. Only six weeks left!
We're probably going to come down to the wire time-wise with our bathroom renovation. The horrible weather (ice and snow storms for the past week and a half) have made the progress on our bathroom slow and it looks like our timeline will be pushed back a week.
Unless Maybe is born super early, that should work out fine. I'm just ready to be living without the dust...and without a bathtub hanging out in the study. Though, if those are the worst of my worries, it's fairly obvious that life is pretty darn good right now.
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