Saturday, October 30, 2010

on having mah baby.

yes, that's right, everyone.  this is not a post about the misery that is the last few weeks of pregnancy because...  i am not pregnant anymore!  jack was born on wednesday, weighing in at 5lbs., 14 oz., 19.5 inches long.  at some point i promise a longer post on the story of his arrival, but, for now, the pictures will have to do.
little jack has already become his father's favorite tv watching companion...
and he also provides endless hours of entertainment for our two original babies, kingsley and gracie. (both dogs are enthralled by any whimper or cry he makes.  they stand guard at his bassinet.  gracie, particularly, is a little mama, and has taken it upon herself to assist in all things jack-related.)

anyway, just wanted to share the good news.  thanks for sticking with the blog reading even when it became months of endless complaining about swollen ankles and hands, and insane worries.

Monday, October 25, 2010

on being overly pregnant and stubborn.

a few months ago, my husband and i debated on whether we'd continue our tradition of hosting an oktoberfest-themed party for family and friends.  john's vote was a resounding "no;" he thought it was too close to the baby's arrival date, and too much for us to worry about.  he promised fuegerfest would be back at some point, but that this year, it was a definite no-go.  at first, i agreed with him.  it did seem like a lot to tackle in the last trimester, and husband is usually a tad more reasonable about these kinds of things.

but the more i thought about it, the more stubborn i became.  we needed to have this party.  i needed to prove to myself that no matter how pregnant i was, how miserable i felt, i was still the same person who enjoys planning/organizing/hosting creatively themed shin-digs for family and friends.  and so the me vs. john battle lines were drawn... and (you can see where this is going), i won.  at nine months pregnant, we hosted fuegerfest II.

while preparing for the event, i seriously thought i was going to cut my right hand off out of frustration.  really.  (but there's no need to rehash the carpal tunnel issues at this point.)  in fact, in one moment of desperation (after chopping apples for a good long while), i thought to myself, "curse you and your stupid pride!  why can't you ever listen to john and be reasonable!  you deserve every second of this numbing pain in your hand!" 

but a nice warm glass of apple cider and a short stroll around the block reminded me that i was not, in fact, going insane.  the smell of delicious baked goods permeated the house, and i remembered why i love fall, and why we ever thought of hosting this party anyway. 

it was a lovely day, and it was a great to spend time with wonderful family & friends.  i must admit, i was a little jealous about not getting to partake in the sampling of the delicious german brews, but i think i ate enough dessert to make up for it (calories wise).  my favorite dessert of the party was apfelstrudel kasekuchen (apple strudel cheesecake).  you can find the recipe here; it was aaaammmmaaazing.



my little nephew, michael paul, was the tiniest german (minus my little bean, in utero) in attendance, and he also happened to be the most popular guest.  what. a. doll.

another big hit was the arrival of some family friends... in traditional german lederhosen!  john joked that reinhardt and mary earned the honor of naming our firstborn as a result!

anyway, now that the food's been eaten...
and the biers drank, it's OFFICIALLY about time for my tiny (1/2) german bean to arrive.  c'mon little man!  we're oh so ready to meet you!

Sunday, October 10, 2010

tactical maneuvers.

i'm sorry if you're tired of hearing of my pregnancy woes.  i'm, frankly, sick of talking about them.  i'm at that stage where i've lost all patience, and every part of my body is failing me.

i've got some wicked pregnancy carpal tunnel in my right hand.  i've had some issues with carpal tunnel before (thanks three years of law school!), but my stylish wristbands aren't helping at all.  if i do anything (including type these few sentences), my hand goes completely numb.  apparently the remedy is avoiding repetitive movements and elevating my hands.

my ankles are retaining water.  apparently the remedy is elevating them.

my toe is recovering from it's little procedure.  apparently the remedy is elevating it.

dear lord, please tell me how i am supposed to sleep on my side, while also elevating my feet and hands?

any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

white flag.

today i had a little surgical procedure on my foot.

said procedure was necessitated by my refusal to accept that i can no longer wear my pointy toe work heels.

i am currently debating whether to wear teal blue crocks or black flip flops to court tomorrow.  (if you have a strong feeling either way, please let me know.)

is it any wonder that maternity and eternity sound so similar?  really.  i'm waving my white flag.