He's Even More Handsome in Person

My brother got this caricature done tonight at an Ostrich Festival in Arizona with my parents and it was just too great not to post. Happy Belated 29th Birthday, Ryan!

I'm thinking that beautifully manicured fingernail on top of the picture belongs to my mother!

My Butt is a Shelf on Which to Store Things

I have about one more month to go until our baby girl is set to arrive (deep breaths, Amanda, deep breaths) and for the most part am still feeling pretty good. Everyone has said to beware of the last several weeks because things can get really uncomfortable. I'm starting to see a few signs of that, but for the most part I feel good.

A couple of nights ago, I could NOT get comfortable. I don't know if it had to do with the fact that David and I switched sides of the bed or if it was the start of a month of restless nights, but I tossed and turned relentlessly. I also woke up with an extremely sore lower back. As a result, I took a 2 hour nap yesterday afternoon and then did various yoga positions while Dave fixed dinner for us. While the yoga positions made my back feel better, most of them involved my tail-end being higher than my head and shoulders (such a great visual image for you all), and thus, the afternoon snack I had eaten rested nicely in my chest. Ahhhh, the heartburn. Seriously though, it wasn't too bad yet, and I've been trying to combat the problem by drinking lots of water. Uh huh...can you see where I am going with this? My bladder, which is now compressed by a 5 pound baby (who, I swear is enjoying playing Whack-A-Mole with it), is taking a beating. But, I really don't have room to complain because I can still move around and if/when it gets bad, I'm able to kick back on the couch and put my feet up and relax.

I went to the doctor yesterday and she was able to tell that the baby was head down...something I had suspected for awhile. Our hope is that she will stay that way for the final weeks.

I have been reading up as much as possible on the actual birthing experience. Up until recently, I wasn't able to do that. I would read books all the way to the point of delivery and then put them away, but I've come to the realization that the Labor Fairy isn't going to point her magic wand at my belly and present me with our daughter, so I better suck it up and prepare myself.

Some of you may know that David and I want to try and have as natural a childbirth as possible. I know it seems really crazy, but it's something we'd like to try. Our hospital is really supportive of it and so we feel like we've made a good choice there. We can't predict how it will turn out, so we are open to all possibilities, but we have been learning about various pain management strategies that don't involve drugs. The benefits on the baby are enough motivation for me to try and deal with the pain for as long as possible, and hopefully that will be the entire delivery. Keep your fingers crossed for us, or at least David because I may try to make him feel as miserable as I do during the labor process.

Here's my latest picture...if it's any indication of how our belly shots from Sunday turned out, I'm SERIOUSLY scared. You'll be lucky to get a 9 month shot out of me. I don't think it helps anything that the shirt I am wearing is a non-maternity shirt or that we are in a hurry to get out of here. Oy, EXCUSES, EXCUSES!

Babies, Babies, and More Babies!!!

Springtime is approaching, and I suppose with it comes lots of babies. It's been so fun being pregnant right now because I have several friends who are pregnant at the same time. One of my best friends (and matron of honor), Tara, was set to deliver about a month ahead of me, so every couple of weeks, I would get a warning of what to expect next in my pregnancy. I knew I was going to wake up with a charlie horse in my calf about a week before that started happening. I've been really lucky that most of the little ailments that Tara had gotten have still not hit (although I am starting to get little hints of heartburn).


Last Friday, I talked to Tara on the phone as she was waiting for her weekly appointment with the doctor and instructed her that she was to call me the second she left so I could hear the doctor's report. She called about an hour later telling me that she was at the hospital and that her water had broken while she was in with the doctor. I know she was a little panicked because she is such a planner! Let me just tell you that this girl was the BEST person to partner up with in college for projects because she was always so organized and on the ball with everything. The one thing that probably drove her the most crazy about this pregnancy was not knowing the when and how of the labor. And, here she was, 9 days before her due date, probably expecting to go back home after the doctor's appointment and relax for a few more days before her baby arrived. Too bad he had other plans for her! (Haha, and I bet it won't be the first time!)

Anyway, Cassius Merrill Moter the FIFTH aka Quinn, arrived a few hours later and is absolutely beautiful. Both baby and mom are doing great and I am really bummed that I'm not able to be there to meet him in person yet or to give her a giant hug and tell her how proud I am of her. I'm so happy for Tara and Cash and am looking forward to the next stage in our lives when she preps me on all the things to expect with the baby milestones.

The very handsome Moter boys!

He may have his daddy's name, but I think he's got his momma's face! Oh, he's just too precious!

A Moment of Wellness

Whenever David and I go to Santa Barbara to visit Michele, we almost always stop into her Aveda store. David loves to go in there and ask either Michele, or one of the other ladies working, for a "Moment of Wellness." This "moment" usually involves some tea, smelling some special aromas, and getting a nice massage. Because we haven't been down to Santa Barbara in awhile, David is asking me to give him some treatments here at home.

He's so wonderful about rubbing my feet almost nightly, so when he asked for a Moment the other night, I couldn't say no. We pulled out the most wonderful smelling Aveda Hand Relief lotion and I went to work giving him a nice neck and shoulder massage. And, he was extra lucky, because Baby Girl decided to help out. She was moving all around and massaging his lower back.

I read somewhere that her activity level is supposed to start slowing down because there is less room in there for her, but that doesn't really seem to be holding true. She has been extremely active the last several days, and as much as it can sometimes drive me crazy (like at 3 in the morning), I really will be sad to see it slow down. As much as I am so excited to meet her, I think it will be a strange feeling for me to feel a little "empty" inside after she's born.

Have any mothers out there experienced that same feeling??

Insomnia Has Struck Again! So, Here's a Novel.

I woke up at 1:45 this morning with my unborn child pressing down on my ever-shrinking bladder, and haven't been able to fall back asleep since. At 3:15, after tossing and turning and telling my husband that I couldn't sleep (and hearing him mumble "Don't Sleep" to the tune of No Doubt's "Don't Speak"), I decided to just get up and come out to the family room.

I realized I haven't blogged about our AWESOME weekend, so hey, maybe there will be a wonderful outcome from my lack of sleep. And, maybe, just maybe, there's a single serving box of Froot Loops with my name on it as my small reward.

My parents got into town on Friday afternoon...I had spent the entire morning cleaning the house and doing my best to remove all of the Michele hairs from our bathroom. Our contractor was here working on the shelves and building our storage bins, so it was a busy day at the Michelson household. I was SO excited to see my parents, and not just because their trunk was loaded down with bags of baby gifts! I haven't seen them since Christmas, and that's just too long to go without seeing them, in my opinion.

They had a nice rest while David finished up work (and took a 90 minute nap of his own) and we all pitched in on making our beloved Kentucky Kernel fried chicken dinner. Oh, and that was followed up the next morning by my new favorite breakfast of ham and cheese souffles. We spent the rest of the day on Saturday running errands and getting things ready for the shower.

Sunday morning, Michele showed up early and the girls headed up to SLO to pick up the baby shower cake. And, can I just say, I have the MOST AMAZING HUSBAND AND FATHER!! We gave them a little honey-do list while we were gone and they crossed each thing off the list and then some! We got back and finished setting up just in time for people to start rolling in.

Um, can I just say how much I LOVE The Cakery?! They did our wedding cake, and this vanilla chiffon cake with raspberry filling and raspberry buttercream icing was to die for! Forget the Froot Loops, I'm going for leftover cake!

David and I had decided that we wanted to do a couple's shower for our baby shower. David has been so involved (obviously from the get-go) in the pregnancy, so it was only right for him to be a part of the celebration as well. We set up the cornhole and borrowed our neighbor's portable dartboard for the guys, and after torturing them with a game, turned them loose on the backyard. It was great having some alone time with the ladies, and as one friend commented, "There was beer and not a lot of placenta/after birth talk, so I was happy." I don't think we could have asked for a better summary to our party! :)

Yes, they had to work for their cornhole time! Here, the guys had to blow up a balloon and stuff it under their shirt and then tie their shoes without popping the balloon. I said they should try filling it with sand and then cleaning the house with it under their shirt...see how easy they think that is!

Our baby definitely made out like a bandit! Thanks SO MUCH to everyone for all of the fabulous gifts. She is going to smell so good and be so clean, thanks to all of the bath stuff. And, she FINALLY has some toys to play with. And, it was so great to hear all of the encouraging words from our friends and family and to know that they are supportive of us. (Thanks Michele for the 18 years of free babysitting!!!)

Sunday night, we put my dad back to work. (Have I mentioned anything about the list of projects David and I are making for him when he and my mom come to help after the baby is born???) The nursery, like I've mentioned, is a work in progress. There were four very large speaker wires coming out of the wall in ever corner of the room...right at eye level. The room is wired for surround sound...a feature we have never used. My thought was to just shove those wires back in the wall and cover up the holes, but apparently doing that means that the surround sound option is lost forever....so pretty much a non-option for David. His brilliant (and less than aesthetically pleasing) idea was to cover the wires with switch plates. No thank you. He and my dad finally came up with the idea of covering them with small banana plugs. So, they spent the evening cutting into the wall and spackling it back up. And, thanks to an accidental experiment by my father and his water bottle, we are assured that the Moonlight Slumber mattress our baby will be sleeping on IS really waterproof! We closed the night with a round of euchre and I'll be darned if David and my mom didn't win AGAIN. Seriously, everytime they partner up at euchre, they kick my dad's and my tail.

Monday was my dad's birthday, and instead of making him work on various household projects, I decided to chauffer him around to Target, Babies R Us, and French Hospital. He's such a trooper! My parents got the grand tour of our hospital and made plans for their arrival into town. When David got off work, we went out for a nice dinner at...Red Lobster. I'm not sure what it is about our family, but we sure do love our chain restaurants. Maybe it's these three words that do it for us: Cheddar Bay Biscuits! Back at the homestead, it was game time again. I decided to partner with my mom for a little Music Scene It, and sure enough, she is the good luck charm. We came from behind and won the game with a little Simon and Garfunkel knowledge.

Unfortunately, my parents had to get back to Arizona so Dad could compete in a club championship, so Tuesday morning they took off for the long drive back. Can I help it if my dad is the Tiger Woods of the senior citizen "compound"??

It was so great having them around, even if it was only for a few days. They are such an inspiration to me and David and we always have so much fun together. If David and I are even half the parents that mine are, our baby is in for a lifetime of love.

Thank you, again, Mom and Dad for ALL that you have done for us and for all the help and support you have already given us with our daughter. We love you, and can't wait to see you in less than 6 weeks!

40 More Days of the What-Ifs....Hopefully!

Seeing as how tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent, we've got a good 40 days until our baby girl arrives.

For the most part, I've been pretty good at staying calm, cool and collected throughout this pregnancy. I do have my moments, however, when my mind starts to play the What-If game. It keeps me up at night, distracts my mind while I'm talking to someone, and gives me mini-panic attacks during our childbirth classes.

When I see pictures of newborn babies in the hospital, I get a little nervous. And by nervous, I mean woozy, anxious, and sometimes a bit on the nauseous side. My mind starts buzzing with What-If scenarios. What if she comes out crying and doesn't want to stop and EVERYONE is staring at me thinking, "Um, hello, she's your daughter, can't you calm her down?" What if she cries in the middle of the night and we sleep right through it? What if she doesn't like my milk? What if none of the clothes we have for her fit her? And, oh, I shudder at the thought, what if she looks more like David than me? (Okay, I never said these were rational thoughts.)

I know deep down that David and I are ready for our baby girl to arrive. No, our glider chair isn't in yet and no, the shelves aren't up on the walls, and no, David doesn't know how to change a diaper and I don't know exactly how to breastfeed a baby. But, I guess most first-time parents are the same way. We're ready to meet her, to get to know her, and love her, and yes, even sacrifice more than a few hours of precious sleep for her. I'm willing to wait the 40 days...and I sometimes even welcome them, so that we can get those shelves up and, I don't know, DECIDE ON A NAME! But, I am looking forward to the What-If game being over.

Oh Lord, What if the What If game continues through infancy?!

Jumble This: MERITSLOD

David and I know that we are officially old and boring when one of the highlights of our evening is crawling into bed and doing our version of "Got It Crossword" and a Jumbler puzzle or two. (The other highlight involves judging American Idol.) The Jumblers are the puzzles found in newspapers, like USA Today, where you unscramble four words and then use specific letters from those words to unscramble the final puzzle. And, "Got It Crossword" is our safe version of doing a crossword puzzle where one person can't just shout out the answer...we wait until we both know it (or both don't, which is sometimes the case) until we say it out loud. We do the "Got It" with a number of our trivia games that we enjoy...the Will Shortz Puzzlemaster books being our personal favorites for road trips.

So, last night, after completing our crossword puzzle and first Jumbler puzzle (in record time), we decided to do another jumbler. Our first challenge was to unscramble JOING. For the life of us, we could NOT figure out what word that was supposed to be. We finished the other words and I made David look in the back of the book to find the answer....JINGO. Who in the world has ever heard of a jingo (well, except for you, Marissa)?? I asked David if he had ever heard of it and he got all flustered, saying, "I know what it is, I just can't think of one...oh, wait, I've got one," and then he proceeded to sing, "G.E. We bring good things to life!" in the cheeriest tone I've ever heard. I barely had the heart to tell him that, no, that was a jingle, not a jingo!

I discovered today that a jingo is a "person who professes his or her patriotism loudly and excessively, favoring vigilant preparedness for war and an aggressive foreign policy." Thank you dictionary.com!

Oh, and today's Jumbler answer: Old Timers!