Lately

So despite the super-coolness of my new camera the card doesn't plug into the card reader like my old camera did which means extra steps are involved in retrieving images. This causes a side-effect of laziness. The other day we played with our kitchen.

We made a hat.

And today we hung out with Uncle Tom, who is informally referred to as "Tom." Luckily he's not so hung up on formality...

You think I'd learn

But I'm copying my husband again. Sshhh, don't tell the teacher.

C-Section

So Jack was a c-section delivery and I have the very lofty goal to have a VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean). Why? Cause it farkin' hurt and the recovery, well, sucked.

All of my prenatal care has been at "The VBAC place in MD." It's known for being the best place to have the support and care you need to have the best chance at a VBAC. Their success rate is 70%. Apparently, at the birth center, they have herbal drinks, acupuncture, chiropractic care, massage and dietary suggestions all to help me go into labor.

Why bring this up now? Well as I enter the 3rd trimester next week (how fast is this pregnancy flying by? SO FAST!!) I have an appointment with the OBs that my midwives coordinate with for their VBAC hopefuls. At some point in the next month or so I'll go meet with the OBs just so I know who they are in the event that I'll need them to perform a c-section.

My c-section is already scheduled. How weird is that? If this little man doesn't choose to make an appearance on his own, his birthday will be April 19th at 11:25am, with an EDD (estimated date of delivery) of April 7, I'm feeling really good about getting those extra 12 days to try to go into labor on my own.

My last birth plan was like a step-by-step of what I wanted and how and when I wanted it. This time my birth 'plan' is: "Don't have a c-section. And oh yeah, these other things would be nice too...." Yes, ideally I'd like to be completely unmedicated, but honestly if they tell me the only way to get the baby out the 'right' way is to drink motor oil, I'll do it. Whatever it takes

I don't want to talk about it too much, so call me on it if I mention it much more, because I don't want to psych myself out, but this VBAC is super important to me.

Cheater Cheater

Pumpkin eater.

In lieu of blogging for myself today I'm copying my husband's homework.

FISH!

We went to the National Aquarium on the 26th which was great because it was basically deserted. Maybe it was because most people wanted to play with new toys at home, or maybe because it was raining and you have to walk outside to get there, or maybe it's because all the walkways around the Inner Harbour were flooded (to the point of walking in the grass). Who knows?!
But we had a blast! And it was very nice because it was not super crowded! We enjoyed the Jellyfish.

The Dolphin show.

Some cool tropical-type fish.

The Sharks. (rawr!)

And the chance to see the the fossilized Megalodon jaw. (also rawr!)

Christmas

After an unpleasant 5am wake-up (that sadly lasted till 7) we finally allowed Jack to go 'downsairs'.

Matt decided that a good Christmas morning tradition would be to start with cocoa.

The "Cars" toys were quite the hit. We are now learning the characters names as a result. Which is funny because he talks to himself and his toys while he plays, and now he can call them by name.

This pic seemed like a good idea at the time to take but it just makes me think "Am I that pregnant already?!"

This is one of the gifts that Matt got for me. Major points in the creativity department cause he 'made' it himself! (With the help of Google and Photoshop, of course.)

Then we went for a Christmas morning walk. Which was really nice because we got to enjoy the snow at least once more before the rain washed it all away.

Jack enjoyed the kitty (his/my early present).

Then GiGi, PaPa and Uncle Tom arrived and we revealed the kitchen! (There was no need to earlier because the Cars cars kept him entertained for 3 hours strait).

My parents got Matt and I a Wii, so there was a lot of this in the evening when Jack was in bed.

Christmas Eve

We went to celebrate Christmas with Matt's parents this morning.

The concept of gift-opening was not lost on our little one.

He scored some cool loot.

Including a favorite, HATS!

Surprisingly this was not a torture device and when he took it off he asked for help putting it back on.

But, hard to top, was the Beta Fish. (A permanent fixture in Grandma and Grandpa Newton's house, we're not adding a pet to our little menagerie.)

Going Well

This whole 'second cat' situation could have been a disaster but this is a demonstration of how the results are better than I was expecting! Yay!

3 x 3

3 things about this pregnancy:

1. It's really 'the same' as Jack in that the movement and the fetal personality (if that's a thing) appear to be pretty similar. I'm also just about the same size as I was at this point last time.

2. It's completely different to Jack because I have not started retaining water (at least not that I've noticed) where at 25 weeks with Jack I was unable to comfortably wear my rings. I'm way more active, and since I have to feed a toddler my 'snack habits' are less Snickers bar and more fruit and cheese.

3. Weeks fly by, where with Jack I knew exactly how pregnant I was each day of each week. This also makes me feel guilty because I'm not "paying as much attention" this time around.


3 things about Christmas:

1. I love the sensory experience of Christmas, seeing decorations, smelling pine and cookies, tasting yummy holiday food, the feel of wrapping paper, and hearing holiday music.

2. I'm excited for the Christmas menu. We finally made some decisions today (I'll post pics later but since some of my readers will be enjoying this feast I'll leave it as a surprise).

3. Gift-Giving makes me super anxious. I like to surprise people but I have major fear that they won't like what I pick out. I also don't have a poker face, so I'm terrified that I'm going to not like something and it will be obvious.


3 favorite places:

1. The Beach. Really, any beach will do, but particularly a warm one with family there too.

2. Europe. History, food, booze. Europe has it all. The Lake District and the Costa del Sol are probably my faves so far. I hope to see more, soonish?

3. My couch with a book in hand.


Ok, I made this one up, but if you're a reader you should do your own 3x3 so I can learn 9 things about you!

So when exactly

does this Santa guy come to my house?!

The Aftermath

Things were a bit drifty. But that early-morning light on snow is undeniably beautiful.

Matt didn't waste time digging us out.

Because we definitely needed it!

Jack insisted that he help with the big-dig-out.

Earning himself some more hot cocoa.

Late Last Night

We had a fire in the fireplace. Our little pyromaniac, erm, son was mesmerized and he was a great listener about how close he was allowed to get. It was quite the low-stress experience, despite the fire and all.

Then right before bed we noticed that a certain kitten has a turquoise paw. Crap! Turns out he stepped in the paint but instead of walking out of the storage room and up the stairs my little genius wandered around the storage room until his paw was completely dry. Thank Goodness!!

Up-To-The-Minute 3

UPDATE: According to Emily 1 the final snowfall was 20 inches in total. But those drifts are serious business.

5:15pm The third shoveling of the sidewalk today.

The snow on the deck, it's bigger than a cat, way bigger than a kitten...

and past Matt's knee.

Jack thinks all this snow is very amusing.

Up-To-The-Minute 2

And 2:30pm

Up-To-The-Minute

These were the conditions at 9:15/9:30 this morning.

And these are the conditions as of 12:40 this afternoon.

Hot Cocoa

This seems to be an appropriate video for the weekend ahead.

How do you wrap?

A.After this step you fold the top and bottom triangles in and tape.

or

B. After this step you fold the sides in and then fold the bottom triangle up and tape.

or

C.

You use either method interchangeably.

Yoga

Tuesday is my favorite day of the week. Why? Lots of reasons, but the Tuesday night yoga class is up there. Now bridge pose (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana) is not a new pose but being able to do it and actually doing it right are two entirely different things. Tonight the stars aligned and true bridge pose was born. What a perfect end to a session and year of yoga! Yay!