Baby Update #1

So I know that some might consider a blog a little less personal than an email, but really, posting here saves me time. Plus, I think it's about the same as if I just sent a mass email with updates to everyone. Besides, now that school is starting, I'll have less time to email.

So... here's an update on my baby experience thus far:

-Morning sickness: Perhaps a better description would be all day sickness. I've been fortunate, though; I've just had to deal with the nausea (not fun but better than what usually accompanies it). Thankfully, that should be nearing the end (at least, that's what I've heard).

-As of today, I'm 13 weeks. Yes, I'm officially in the second trimester. Yeah!

-Baby C is set to arrive March 5 (And talk about timing: I have friends due March 4, 5, and 6!), though De is positive that the baby will arrive early (her exact words were: "Another February baby!"), probably because hers all did.

-Come October we should be able to find out what we're having. Scott's convinced that we're going to have a girl, but I think he's just trying to prepare himself for that scenario. (He really wants a boy.) I'd eventually like one of each, but I would like a boy first. That being said, you can see why we need to find out what we're having. :)

-Names: Well, we have several boy names to choose from as of now: Angus, Dwight (yes, after Dwight Schrute from "The Office"), Leroy (from the Worlds of Warcraft video on YouTube), Goliath Megatron (our #1 choice). Girl names are much fewer: Abysmal "Abbie" Medusa.

And no, we are NOT serious about those names, though it has been fun referring to the baby as either Megatron or Abbie. We do have some serious names selected, but based on our history with names, we've decided not to share the ones we like. (In the past, any time we've mentioned names we liked, our friends happened to choose them for their little ones. We have a boy name -- a serious one-- selected, but we don't want to share it in case someone else snatches it. And with so many friends and family pregnant and due either just before or around the same time as us, well, it's best we keep the names to ourselves.)

-This coming Friday we'll get to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time. I'm so excited! Though waiting all week will be tough, at least it'll give me something to look forward to... and hopefully make my first week back at school pass that much quicker.

-Which reminds me. Some have asked what we're going to do once the baby arrives. I definitely plan on staying home with the bambino. I know it'll be a challenge financially, especially in this area, but Scott and I truly believe that's what God wants us to do. Plus, we know it's possible considering how many of our friends also make it work. And can I tell you that I cannot WAIT to do that?

Luray Triathlon

This past weekend was the third annual Luray Triathlon (international and sprint distances). For the first time in a long time I was a spectator rather than a participant. (Scott decided way back when that I shouldn't compete due to the pregnancy; though I initially thought I'd be able to, I realized on a training ride that not participating was a smart move.)

I had a great time cheering on Scott and our friends, though I was a bit jealous of Nanette and Amelia; after all, I was training with them up until the race, so part of me wanted to jump right in. (Let me clarify the training: when I learned that I was pregnant, I stopped running, but I kept biking and swimming since I had been prior to becoming pregnant. I never actually completed any "bricks" -- combo of swim/bike or bike/run-- since that would've been too much for me to handle.)

Everyone did really well, besting their times from last year (or in JT and Nanette's case, setting the bar high for those of us who want to try again next year). Scott wasn't sure he'd be able to beat his 2:00 from last year, but he crushed it, finishing in 1:45. Cheering for him was probably the best part of watching, especially since I didn't see him at all last year once the race started.

The biggest challenge facing us spectators was locating everyone. We had a general idea of when we might see them, but we still had to find them in the midst of the crowd. Then, if they didn't appear when we expected them to, we'd get a bit nervous (did they crash? was the most asked question). Plus, we didn't know what everyone was wearing. Well, I knew what Scott and Amelia were wearing because I saw them transition to the bike, but as for the other three, it was a shot in the dark (though I was pretty sure I knew what colors JT and Nanette were wearing). Take Jason for instance. All of us thought he was wearing either a white or a black shirt for the bike portion, so that's what we looked for. No wonder Barbara (Amelia's mom) and I missed Jason as he blew by us on the bike; we were so focused on men in white shirts that we didn't even notice Jason in his bright red shirt until he was right in front of us (which, by that time, was too late to snap a picture). But wait, it gets better. Barbara and I figured we'd snap some photos of Jason beginning the run since we missed him on the bike. Of course, we kept an eye out for a red shirt. Seems logical, right? Well, Jason mixed it up on us yet again. This time, he wore a tan shirt. Maybe he didn't want us to take his picture. Hmmmm...

The reactions were the best. Scott stuck his tongue out at us (me, his parents, Amelia's mom, baby Connor, JT's sister, baby Katie, Henry and Nina). Nanette always had a smile on her face. Always. JT kicked it into hyper-drive at the end, sprinting past a few racers in front of him. Jason looked angry (maybe he was just trying to look intimidating) as he finished the bike portion. And Amelia gave me the death glare as I was rooting her on to the finish. (She claims I was screaming, but I don't know what she's talking about. I just wanted her to finish strong. Can I help it if in the midst of encouraging her my volume well exceeded conversational levels?)

Below are a few pics from the race.

Packet pick-up: Amelia, baby Connor, Jason, and Scott. Yes, my husband is purposely avoiding the camera.








At least Scott took a nice photo with his parents (Roger and Mel) before the race. Notice the skull shirt: Scott thought wearing it would intimidate the competition (no, I don't think he was serious).








Before the race: Scott, Jason, Amelia, Nanette, and JT.







After: Just a bit worn out... although Nanette's still smiling. I'm thinking she's ready to run again.







Amelia, Me, and Nanette: I'm so proud of my girls! They represented FBC well.

Just the four of us...

or maybe just the three of us. It depends on whether or not you include the elephant.

I was told recently (well, within the past couple of weeks) that I should post more pics. If you look at the picture, you'll see why I don't; my goofball husband can't (well, more like won't) take a nice picture with me. *sigh* Doesn't he realize that goofing off for photos just takes more time?

Here's another one from the beach. At least he's genuinely smiling here!

Top Ten

What better way to reveal a pregnancy to friends and family than through a Top Ten list?

10. Well, it looks like I'll be cheering for Scott during the triathlon with you.
9. Whispered to Kaiden/ Alyssa: Go tell Mommy and Daddy that Aunt Stinky's going to have a baby.
8. So Grandma, I hear you're going to have another grandbaby (I meant great grandbaby). How would you like one more?
7. I've revised my triathlon goals. My first goal: You have to beat your time from last year. My second: You have to beat Nanette.
6. Talking to my sister-in-law about her morning sickness: Well, I've found that drinking Gatorade and eating watermelon helps me feel better. Munching on crackers during the day helps, too.
5. Katie, next time I'm at your place, I'll have to peruse your library for maternity books.
4. In response to "when are you and Scott going to try again?": Well, I'm pregnant.
3. During a conversation about what a pregnant friend can expect at her first doctor's appointment: So, that's what I have to look forward to when I go in a couple weeks? Peeing in a cup?
2. Discussing lunch plans with a very pregnant friend: So, you can't eat at Arby's? I guess I can't eat there either.
1. Post it in a blog: I'm pregnant!

One goopy mess

Each year for Scott's birthday, I make some sort of special dessert, whether it's peanut butter cake with chocolate icing or a blueberry pie (two of his favorites). Since there are so many good looking desserts out there, I try to avoid making the same one each year. I'm thinking that was a bad idea this year.

When choosing recipes, I consider not only the overall final product/ taste, but also the ease in making it. (Thus I don't think I'd ever try making Baked Alaska.) Well apparently I somehow managed to mess up a rather easy recipe.

This is what the dessert is supposed to look like:
Mmmm, striped layers of peanutty perfection. How hard could that be?

This is how the dessert turned out:

I know it's hard to tell since one is a slice and the other is the entire dessert, but if you could shake the monitor you could see the dessert slosh about in the pan. (You might need to wipe off the computer now.) I have no clue what happened. The top layer is vanilla pudding mixed with peanut butter, but the pudding never actually set. Instead, it's more like peanut butter-vanilla milk. I followed the directions, so what happened? Oh, and I should mention that Scott and I did sample that dessert last night. Can't tell, huh? Again, that's due to the slosh factor; the liquid layer simply filled in the portion we scooped out.

Needless to say, I don't know if I'll try this one again. And I certainly won't be keeping the dessert in the fridge. Unless anyone wants to stop by for a bite...

Group therapy anyone?

Is anyone else addicted to Internet? I'm not exactly sure if "addicted" is even the right word, so let me set the scene.

Here it is Friday night, and I'm waiting for Scott to get home from work (not sure when that'll be seeing as how he's working OT right now). I had a few projects that I wanted to accomplish today, mainly sewing and scrapbooking (can you get any more removed from blogging?). Have I or am I doing either? Uh, nope.

After dinner, I lounged in front of the TV watching HGTV, even though I'm not exactly a fan of the show I was watching. After about an hour or so of that, I simply transferred screens. I have now been sitting in front of the computer for, oh, maybe a good two hours or so. In that time, I've managed to post 1 (almost 2 now) entries, check my email about a dozen times, and catch up on my friends' blogs. Oh, and play a game or two.

Why is this bothersome? Well, did I mention that I didn't accomplish what I had set out today? Or that I'm really pretty tired and should go to bed? Or that I could be reading, a much more productive use of time?

And yet, in spite of all those more appealing alternatives, here I sit. I'm not sure why. I think it's laziness at this point. I simply don't want to get up and go to bed because I'll then have to get ready for bed, which requires moving. And again, I'm just so tired that I don't feel like it.

Does this make sense at all? I don't think it does. And obviously, the more I sit, staring at the computer screen, the less sense this will make.

Please just tell me that I'm not alone in this. Maybe we could start a self-help group.

Seriously? That's funny?

You'd think by now I would realize that reality TV, including talent competitions, are hardly "real". I mean, does the most talented performer always win?

Case in point. Scott and I have watched "Last Comic Standing" for the past couple of years. Every year, as we watch the auditions, we try to predict who will move on to the next level. In some instances, the funny comedians actually do move on, but in most, the oddest performer is selected. Why? I thought the purpose of the show was to choose the FUNNIEST person, not the one with the most unusual social quirks.

Of course, this season was no exception. I don't understand why the producers (or whoever ultimately decides who will move on) feel the need to fill the house with annoying or quirky people rather than funny ones. Granted, it might make for more interesting TV since it's bound to create some drama or tension, but I think it would be just as funny to actually watch TALENTED comedians interact with one another. I mean, isn't that the point of the show? To find the funniest up-and-coming comedian?

Last night was the long, drawn out finale. Really, it could have been over and done with in 30 minutes, tops. (Even the audience looked annoyed and bored; glad I didn't pay for those seats.) Last week, each comic performed for about 5 minutes or so, and then "America" had a chance to vote starting at the end of the show. Based on their performances, I really don't understand how the woman (Ilisa) won. Three of the four other finalists were so much funnier than she was. Even a friend of mine, who enjoyed some of Ilisa's previous performances, admitted that she wasn't as funny as the others. And yet, she won. How in the world?

I have a couple different theories as to how that happened.
1. Exposure. Due to the program's short season, there weren't very many comic showdowns. Of those, Ilisa was challenged every single time. Thus, she had more exposure than any of the others.

2. Sympathy/ underdog. I'm wondering if people "voted" for her because she had been challenged so much. Think of it as a sympathy vote if you will. Poor Ilisa. She's been challenged again. We should vote for her.

3. Rigged results. Maybe the producers manipulated the votes (I'm not sure how; ask some of the protestors from the 2000 election) so that a woman would win. Again, my guess is that they wanted to play up the underdog and create a Cinderella ending.

I'd like to say that after yet another disappointing outcome from this show that I won't watch it in the future. But I know how I am; I, ever the optimist, will hope against hope that maybe next time the show will actually live up to its name.

Excerpts

I knew it had been awhile since my last post, but I hadn't realized HOW long until today. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised though; after all, for much of July I was busy with work, and then last week we were on vacation. With quite the hiatus, you'd think I'd post something light. Oh no, not me. Today are some excerpts from Azar Nafisi's Reading Lolita in Tehran, a book I highly recommend.

"The first day I asked my students what they thought fiction should accomplish, why one should bother to read fiction at all. It was an odd way to start, but I did succeed in getting their attention. I explained that we would in the course of the semester read and discuss many different authors, but that one thing these authors all had in common was their subversiveness. Some, like Gorky or Gold, were overly subversive in their political aims; others, like Fitzgerald and Mark Twain, were in my opinion more subversive, if less obviously so. I told them we would come back to this term, because my understanding of it was somewhat different from its usual definition. I wrote on the board one of my favorite lines from the German thinker Theodor Adorno: 'The highest form of morality is not to feel at home in one's own home.' I explained that most great works of the imagination were meant to make you feel like a stranger in your own home. The best fiction always forced us to question what we took for granted. It questioned traditions and expectations when they seemed too immutable. I told my students I wanted them in their readings to consider in what ways these works unsettled them, made them a little uneasy, made them look around and consider the world, like Alice in Wonderland, through different eyes" (Nafisi 94).

"A novel is not an allegory, I said as the period was about to come to an end. It is the sensual experience of another world. If you don't enter that world, hold your breath with the characters and become involved in their destiny, you won't be able to empathize, and empathy is at the heart of the novel. This is how you read a novel: you inhale the experience. So start breathing" (Nafisi 111).

"I have a recurring fantasy that one more article has been added to the Bill of Rights: the right to free access to imagination. I have come to believe that genuine democracy cannont exist without the freedom to imagine and the right to use imaginative works without any restrictions. To have a whole life, one must have the possibility of publicly shaping and expressing private worlds, dreams, thoughts and desires, of constantly having access to a dialogue between the public and private worlds. How else do we know that we have existed, felt, desired, hated, feared?" (Nafisi 339).