Life as we know it...

Things certainly have changed around here in the past two and a half weeks. Although it seems like Sparky has been here much longer than only eighteen days. I guess when your day is split into three hour (or less) segments, each day seems much longer!

I've never been somebody who felt that I needed to be a mother in order to have my life fulfilled. When Dave and I began seeing each other, we were both of the mindset that we did not want to have children. But, when I hold my little baby and rock him and he curls up and falls asleep on my chest, I think that I can't imagine having gone through life without experiencing this.


Life is good.

Happy Birthday to... Us

Tomorrow is my birthday, and although I normally wouldn't post a birthday greeting to myself, it will also be Sparky's real birth day!

Since I am post-due, the doctor went ahead and scheduled us for an induction tomorrow morning. Dave and I will arrive at the hospital at 6 a.m. and they will start me on Pitosin to get labor going. If all goes well, Sparky should be here sometime tomorrow afternoon or evening.

My birthday is 04.10.80.

Sparky's will be 4.10.08.

Wish us luck!

Barefoot, Still Pregnant, and In the Kitchen...

....wearing nothing but an apron.

Okay, well, that part may not be true. But, you know, it isn't a bad idea! It is about a million freakin' degrees in here! (Then again, I feel like it is a million degrees most anywhere in any level of clothing these days...)

Sparky's due date has come and gone and we still do not have our little guy with us. He's totally content just hanging around in utero with no rush to come out here into this big, bright, scary world.

I am no longer working. I was sure that I would have a baby by now, so I arranged to have last Friday to be my last day of work. Since I have no work and no baby, I had to find something to keep myself busy. Call it nesting. I went to the store this morning and have spent all afternoon preparing some dishes that I can freeze and we can cook up once the baby gets here. I finished four of the six dishes. I had to take a break for a while and will finish the last couple either tonight or tomorrow morning.

What's on the menu?

1. Chicken Caesar Tetrazzini
2. Tuna Noodle Casserole
3. Zucchini and Chicken Pasta Bake
4. Meatloaf
5. Baked Cavatelli
6. Chicken Normandy Style

Paula and I went to the local "Let's Dish" place a couple weeks ago, so I am merely supplementing what we've already got stocked up in the freezer. Let's Dish, in case you haven't heard of it, is one of those places that you go and prepare a bunch of meals that you can freeze and then easily defrost and cook at home. It was a great experience! For me and Dave, the cost was reasonable and the best part was that everything is there ready for you to assemble and there is no clean-up! Can't beat that!

Dave mentioned that I must really mistrust his cooking to go to these lengths...

No comment.

T minus 1 Day

So, Sparky's official due date is tomorrow. So much for everybody who thought he'd arrive early, huh? (I was among them! How foolish of me!)

Last night, I was having major back pain and some pretty severe Braxton Hicks contractions; they were the strongest that I've experienced so far. I was sure that since the doctor "stripped my membranes" at our Thursday appointment that things were finally really moving and labor was imminent. (Sorry for the extraneous details there; you know that you wanted to know!)

But, Sparky just stayed put.

Dave and I woke up this morning and went to the park to take a walk to kind of jostle things around a little bit. Then we walked around Kohl's. Then we walked around Linens 'n' Things. Then we walked around Schnucks. All this walking indeed helped to get my back good and sore. But, I don't seem to be any closer to giving birth than I did this morning.

It is a beautiful day. Dave and I have been able to get outside and enjoy it. Hopefully, we'll be outside even more during this afternoon and evening. No matter what, this will be our last weekend without Sparky. We have another doctor appointment set up for Wednesday in case we haven't had Sparky at that time; in that case, they will set us up to induce on either Thursday or Friday. Hopefully, he'll join us sooner than that.

We'll keep you posted with any new developments.

Peace, love, and babies!

Catchin' Up...

Wow... It has actually been a full month since I've blogged. I'm such a slacker. BUT, to my own credit, at least I recognize the fact that I am a blogging slacker and I have accepted it.

Let's see... What's been happening around here? Why don't I give you short photo tour.

At the end of February, we had a "Leap Year" party.

Dr. Mike brought "Leaf Beer."

Mikey brought a "Leek." (He brought some "Peeps," too, but I didn't get a photo of those. Also, is Megan's face not priceless in this pic??)

And who said that men don't listen?

We've gotten the nursery all finished. It looks awesome. If you want to see more photos, you can go to the baby's website.

For our St. Patty's Day feast on Sunday, I made an Irish Creme Bundt Cake. It actually had Bailey's Irish Creme both in the cake itself and in the glaze on top.

It was pretty tasty. Dave even enjoyed the batter!

Ella was visiting the other day and Paula had the bright idea to put her in a box. It was pretty freakin' funny. At least I thought so at the time. As you can tell by my narrative from behind the camera. (Hey, in my defense, I've got a baby pushing down on my bladder, so most things make me feel like I'm going to pee my pants!)

My spring break is almost over and I am not looking forward to going back to work on Tuesday. My mindset is completely focused on the arrival of Sparky (17 days and counting!) and after this week off, I'm not sure that I'm going to be able to easily get back in the swing of things. However, I've been feeling pretty good and have no real excuse for "bed rest," so I guess I'll have to suck it up and work until the little munchkin decides that it is time to arrive. Probably better than sitting around, I guess.

I mean, what would I do with all my time if I didn't go back to work? Blog???

Surprise Snow Day!

My alarm had already gone off and I was in bed, thinking about how I really didn't feel like getting up when the phone rang. The phone only rings that early in the morning at our house for one reason: Snow Day!!

Based on the weather reports last night, the freezing rain/sleet/snow wasn't supposed to hit 'til this afternoon. I was dreading the drive home today and halfway hoping that they'd call school off for tomorrow. Today, though, was a snow day that occurred without me actually NOT having to do the traditional "Snow Day Dance."

Unfortunately, the motions of "Snow Day Dance" are a secret, carefully guarded by a few teachers across the world, so I can't really divulge what that would look like. You'd be amazed at how similar it is to the "Rain Dance" that lifeguards often perform on cloudy days.

Anyway, after watching the news to verify that my district was indeed among the closed, I rolled over and went back to sleep. I am currently in the process of baking chocolate chip cookies, except I'm using M&M's because Walgreens doesn't carry chocolate chips. Bastards.

I did get to use my fancy-schmancy Kitchenaid Bowl Mixer for the first time to mix the dough; I got it for Christmas and haven't had the time/energy/motivation to bake anything that I would need it for until today. Let me just tell you: That mixer freakin' rocks.

Plans for the rest of the day include doing some scrapbooking, playing some Guitar Hero, taking a nap, getting take-out from Chevy's for dinner, and watching American Idol.

Life is good.

A Little of This, A Little of That

While at work today, the conversation turned, as it often does, to the subject of cake. And the virtues of Butter Cream vs. Whipped Cream frosting.

Don't ask. I work with a bunch of women. Two of us are pregnant and I'm sure that at least one of us is PMS-ing at any given time.

The specific cake that was being discussed today was the type of cake that would be ordered for the shower that they are throwing for me. I think that they are getting me a marble cake. With butter cream frosting, of course.

I remember discovering marble cake when I was a kid. We cut into the cake, and, lo and behold, it was not just a single flavor! I thought that this was probably the best culinary invention since sliced bread! Can't decide if you want chocolate or white cake? Have both! What a wonderful world it is that we live in!

I am also a big fan of Neapolitan ice cream, for much of the same reason. Strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate ice cream, all in one fell swoop. Does life get any better than that? Plus, when it gets a little melty, you can totally stir up all the flavors and get a totally new choco-nill-berry flavor that you won't find anywhere else.

And, of course, when getting soft-serve ice cream, I always go for the swirl. I mean, let's be honest. Does anyone really know how they get the ice cream to swirl together like that? How freakin' amazing!

When eating my Skittles or Sweetarts, I always mix the flavors. My favorite combos? One green and one purple Skittle or One blue and one purple Sweetart. Try it sometime. You won't be disappointed.

I have an admission to make, though. I don't really care for frosting at all. I usually just scrape it off and eat only the cake. But, if butter cream frosting is what makes people happy, that's what we'll have!

Groundhog Day Party

Life around here has been pretty uneventful lately. Well, that is, if you discount all of the chaos surrounding the upcoming arrival of the baby... But, other than that, it has been pretty uneventful.

As was exhibited by our thrilling Saturday night, a la Groundhog Day Style.

I actually felt up to cooking, since I hadn't done much of anything all day long. Mike, Paula, and Ella came over to join us for some Mexican Lasagna.


It was pretty good. Won't be a staple in our diets, but for a change, it was nice. It is basically lasagna with chicken, but you use tortillas instead of lasagna noodles and chili powder and cumin instead of the traditional Italian seasonings in lasagna.

Then, we had a bit of "Independent Study Time," as Paula put it.

Dr. Mike worked on creating his apparel for the Super Bowl Hot Wing contest. Gotta love a guy who isn't afraid to wear a puffy painted sweatshirt, right? Especially one featuring a chicken with his wings on fire.

Dave finally set up the Wii that "Santa" brought him for Christmas. You know, for someone who bitched and moaned about not being "allowed" to get a Wii, it sure did take a long time to get the game system set up.


And Paula and I ate ice cream. (Hey, we're pregnant. Otherwise, we'd have been doing tequila shots.)


Once everyone reconvened, we messed around with the Wii a little bit. I think Kramer got more enjoyment out of the whole experience than everyone else. I don't think I've ever seen him so excited.

And everyone was home and in bed well before midnight, because, as everyone knows, if you aren't, the Groundhog Fairy will turn you into a pumpkin.

Or something like that.

Everyone Needs a Mini-Me...

Throughout the baby-item-registering ordeal, Dave and I found the perfect little outfit that we knew Sparky would just have to have. Dave's typical spring/summer uniform is some type of variation of the following:

I think Dave is thrilled at the prospect of having a little clone. Like father, like son. Soon, we are going to have a little miniature Dave running around here. Only, hopefully, he will drink less scotch.

**********

We've also had the joy of attending childbirth classes over the last couple of weeks. Between watching videos of births from the late-80's and early-90's (who knew giving birth could be such a hairy and squishy ordeal?) and practicing breathing throughout imaginary contractions (hee-hee-hoo), Dave tried on The Empathy Belly.


Doesn't he look maternal?

**********

On another note, I would like to draw your attention to the fact that this is the second time that I've posted within two weeks - an infrequent feat for me these days. (No applause needed... No seriously... Oh, you're too much!)

I happened to look back through some of my old blog posts today and found myself laughing. I really enjoy blogging and hope to try to set aside some more time in the near future to do it. I miss reading everyone's humorous or thought-provoking or petulant postings.

While I can't promise that a lot of them won't revolve around the upcoming birth of our son, I do intend to at least post more often. If nothing else, it is nice to be able to look back and remember what I was thinking/feeling/doing at a previous time in my life.

"Life Was Happening Here"*

How time flies...

With Sparky getting bigger and bigger each day, Dave and I are reminded that in only a few short months, our lives are going to change dramatically. We watch him kick and jab from the inside of my tummy and think about what the future holds.

Mentally, I am excited and ready for him to arrive. Physically, we still have so much to do. We spent last weekend "registering" at our local Baby Store... I about had a meltdown within the first fifteen minutes. There are just so many decisions to make. I have no idea what type of bottle to buy or what "travel system" I want. Five hours later, we called it a day. We spent several more hours on Sunday looking at furniture and have also spent considerable time the past two days revising and changing the registry online.

Work has been spent getting ready for my extended absence once Sparky arrives. Preparing copies and lesson plans for an eight week block is somewhat time consuming and has drastically affected my ability to waste a few minutes here or there surfing the net.

I'm glad that the holidays are over; they were more stressful this year than anything else. We were able to visit family on the East Coast, many of whom I haven't seen in several years. It was nice to visit with everyone, but also nice to get home and relax before going back to work on the 7th.

I think that Dave and I have made the decision that next year, I will stay home with Sparky and continue working on my master's in Counseling and Family Therapy, instead of working full time. I am not taking any classes this semester (what, do you think I'm completely crazy?) but will enroll again for the summer semester. It is very strange for me to think about not working... Although with being enrolled in classes full time and taking care of the Sparkmeister, I know it isn't like I'll be bored. I'll probably also try to pick up some students to tutor to make a little extra cash here and there.

Anyway, I know that is a pretty boring blog update, but c'est la vie. You're invited to check out Sparky's website, if you'd like. The most recent pictures of his ultrasound are really pretty freakin' cool.

*A quote from the play "Up The Down Staircase," adapted from the novel by Bel Kaufman.