Happy Holidays! Now what?

We're a little late on Christmas, but we're still figuring out this whole baby thing, so you'll have to bear with us for another couple of weeks. Brice will be four weeks old on Thursday and we've decided to upset the apple cart by heading to Bethesda for New Years. Joel has a couple of days off from work and the cabin fever is starting to set in here. We'll see how it goes managing a 5ish hour car ride with a baby and two dogs, followed by a couple of days at Harvill South, which adds three additional dogs into the mix. I'm sure they'll be ready for us to go as soon as we get there!

Nothing much to update on this week. Brice continues to eat, poop, sleep and cry in normal baby fashion. Unfortunately for us, he has decided that he despises sleeping in his bassinet and will only sleep in bed with us. Joel and I have started taking turns sleeping with him on our chests for a couple of hours. We recognize that this is neither safe nor effective, but let me tell you, there comes a time when you want to sleep so badly that you're willing to accept any solution. He does sleep anyplace that is NOT the bassinet. He's comfy in the boppy, right at home in the swing and narcoleptic in the car seat. For some reason I fear that one day, Brice will end up sleeping in bed with the dogs and Joel and I will be passed out on the floor.

The coolest thing is that the little B-man is really developing a personality these days. He smiles at me and Joel throughout the day, opens his eyes wide when he looks at Shamus and Lucy and makes silly noises whenever he conquers the binkster.

I talked to Kelly today who is now about 6 weeks away from her due date and is starting to think about labor and delivery. We were talking about the do's and don'ts of the hospital and I realized that I should put down some of what I've taken away from my experience now, before I forget it all. So for all you pregnant or to be pregnant ladies, here goes:

1. Don't be afraid to send the baby to sleep in the nursery at night. The few nights you'll sleep in the hospital will be the last nights of calmish sleep you get, so take a break, let the nurses watch the bambino and get some sleep. The nurses will bring the baby back for you to breastfeed or bottle feed, so you'll still get your wake up calls throughout the night.

2. Stay on top of your pain medication because nobody will do it for you. I had a c-section and they were giving me painkillers every 3 hours plus some heavy duty aspirin every 6 hours. The nurses are managing many pregnant ladies so its up to you to remember when you took what and to ask for the meds BEFORE you need them. Easing minor pain is way easier than confronting major pain issues.

3. Let your husband/significant other be your champion. Joel was great at wrangling guests, telling friends and family when to come and go and making sure that I ate and rested. Let your husband be the one to tell people that you aren't up for guests or that they should be prepared to limit their stay to only 30 minutes. Again, its all in the name of you getting your rest.

4. Take ALL of the freebies. Norwalk Hospital was awesome and gave us a bunch of samples of diapers, wipes, formula, bottles, binkies, swaddle blankets and diaper bags. We took them all and initially we thought we wouldn't use most of it. Well, four weeks in and we've pretty much depleted the stash. The little bottles of formula come in handy when our little guy wants more milk than I can produce or if I'm sick and can't pump (the other night I was throwing up and instead of waking up to pump, I got my rest and Brice lived off the formula... we all survived and are happy and healthy).

5. Lastly, relax. There is no handbook to parenting and you and your significant other have to figure out a method to all the madness that works best for you. I found that it was great to get the advice from family and friends and combine it all into a system that works best for us. Oh and the other thing I've learned: as soon as you think you get a system down, the baby's schedule changes and you have to start from scratch. It happens to EVERYONE.

And, here are your photos for the week:

My lame attempt at a Happy New Year photo complete with his festive onesie. This did not make the cut for this year's holiday card.

Brice is showing off his birdie face (a.k.a. the "I'm hungry again" look

I promise another update before New Years... more to come once we get to Bethesda!

2 week update!

So I've learned that it is incredibly difficult to 1) type on the computer, b) talk on the phone and *) leave the house with an infant. Since I haven't returned many of your calls, e-mails and offers for a visit, let me give you the quick update on how everything is going here.

Brice got an A+ at his 2 week check up with Dr. Lialios. He's managed to get back to his birth weight and put on an additional half pound. Brice is now a hefty 9lbs 6oz and grew half an inch, putting him in the 75th percentile for height and weight (apparently you don't want to be in the 100th percentile as that means you have a pretty obese child on your hands). Needless to say, I patted myself on the back for my many hours spent breastfeeding and pumping away. The doc told us that the sooner we get him to double digit weight, the sooner he'll be sleeping better. At present, Boy Wonder (yes, we've given him another nickname) only sleeps for about 3 hours at a clip with the exception of his afternoon nap that usually lasts for about 4 hours (and of course, I never nap then because I feel that its my only chance to get things done around the house... we'll see how much longer that lasts).

We have also conquered Brice's first cold. He managed to get a nasty case of the sniffles and Joel has made it his job to be the "snot sucker" and tortures our poor son with the booger suctioning device throughout the day.

Okay, so most of you just visit the blog to see some pictures, so here you go.

Brice is showing off Senor Binx, AKA the binky. Yes, we rename everything in this household. Brice is a piranha for this thing and I fear the day when we have to take it away.

Doing what he does best...looking cute.

Here is Brice chillaxing in his boppy. Life is tough.

Brice donned the snowsuit for about 5 minutes before he got hysterical.

And baby makes three...

We're finally home from the hospital and getting settled back into life as a family of three (or five if you consider Shamus and Lucy too!). Brice is doing so well and is really just the sweetest baby I've ever seen (yes, maybe I'm a little bit biased).

Since most of you have been following the entire journey through this pregnancy, here's a little of what happened before hand.

Tuesday night Joel and I decided to go out for our last hurrah before the c-section. We knew that by Wednesday I would be getting pretty nervous so we figured that we would make the best of it and do date night on Tuesday instead. Here's my last belly pic at just a little over 39 weeks:

On Thursday, we headed to the hospital at 6am to check in. They had us set up in a room right away, hooked me up to an IV and got me prepped for the surgery. The nurses were awesome and talked me through every step of the process. By this point, I was so ready to meet our little guy that I wasn't even that nervous.Dr. Pandeala showed up and told us we were ready to go. Joel got into his fancy outfit so that he could be with me in the operating room. Doesn't he look like something out of a Beastie Boy video?

By 7:45 a.m. they told me we were ready to go. They had me walk into the operating room and let me tell you, it doesn't look anything like Grey's Anatomy. The room was very bright and very cold and there was no funky music to sing along to. The anesthesiologist put in the epidural and I have to say, it didn't hurt that much at all. The sensation is very strange as your legs become numb. Within ten minutes, they began the c-section and by 8:10 a.m., Brice Samuel Harvill gave his first mighty cry. They brought him around the curtain so that I could see him and my heart was immediately flooded with the most overwhelming sensation of love. It was wonderful. The nurses cleaned him up, brought me to recovery and by 10:00am we were in our room with our new bundle of joy. Here's one for now. I'll post more later as we take some more today.

The Boy has Arrived!

Brice was born at 8:10am, 8lbs 14oz and 22 inches long.

More pictures and videos to follow.

And the winner is...

C-section! Hooray!


Okay, so for those of you that know me well, I'm sure you can assume the sarcasm. I am neither excited nor calm regarding the idea of a c-section, but unless I go into labor today or tomorrow, its looking like the option of choice.


We went back to the doctor today for our 39 week ultrasound and checkup. The ultrasound confirmed that Baby Harvill is big. After taking measurements of his head, tummy, arm and leg, they determined he is measuring about 9lbs 8oz. We met with the doctor and talked over the pros and cons of inducing labor versus scheduling a c-section. Then, Joel and I did what we do best... we ate. We mulled it over while we had lunch at the diner and in the end, determined that a scheduled c-section was the best way to go.

I called the doctor to let them know our decision so we're all set for 7:30 a.m. on Thursday, December 4. I've been told no eating after midnight on Wednesday and to arrive at the hospital at 6:00 a.m. for prep. Basically, by 9 a.m., barring any emergencies, Baby Harvill should be here!

Now I have to figure out some way to pass the time between now and then... how many mani/pedis can I have?!?

Still no baby...

Just wanted to give everyone a quickie update. We've reached the 39 week mark and still no baby. I had a few pretty painful contractions last night but they never got any closer than 15 minutes apart and by midnight, they were gone. Nothing whatsoever today. We went to Best Buy and bought a new video camera, so Joel has been messing around with it all day, including videotaping me on the toilet... have I mentioned how lucky he is that I am huge and can't move very quickly?

Anyway, we're heading back to the doctor tomorrow at 11:40 a.m. for another ultrasound and visit with Dr. Pandeala. It'll be interesting to see how much Baby Harvill has grown in three weeks. At this point, I am so uncomfortable that I would really like them to start the induction process tomorrow, if possible. I know I've survived 39 weeks of this, but for some reason, this last week has been really difficult. We're both suffering from cabin fever as the weather has been pretty horrible and we're a little afraid of migrating too far from Norwalk... you know, Murphy's Law.

So stay tuned... I'll post an update as soon as I get back tomorrow.

Zip. Zero. Zilch. Nada.

That's how much progress I've made. None. We ran through the usual gamut of tests at the doctor today. Pee in cup. Check. Weigh in. Up one pound. Blood pressure. Normal. Then, onto the glorious internal. It didn't hurt at all and quite frankly, I don't know what all the fuss is about if you've ever had a regular annual exam. Anyway, Dr. Pandeala said that I have zero dilation. At this point, the most probable outcome is that nothing will happen this week and that we'll go back to the doctor on Monday for the final ultrasound and check up. At that point, we'll get a better estimate on Baby Harvill's size and make a determination of course of action. Unfortunately, my lack of dilation not only makes the induction success lower (raising the chance of a c-section) it also lengthens the average process for labor. Basically, hours could become days. Thankfully I was never anticipating a natural child birth, so at this point, I guess I'm game for whatever comes my way. Moral of the story: marry a midget and have tiny babies.

Part of me is a little disappointed that I have no progress. Secretly, I was hoping for a Thanksgiving baby and an excuse to make Joel come home from work early at night to go for stupidly long walks with me in a lame attempt at inducing labor. Part of me feels like a success. I guess I'm a pretty good incubator after all and I've provided this kiddo with a healthy, warm and stable environment full of all the sheet cake he can consume. I told the doctor that maybe I'll switch over to lima beans and asparagus since kids hate vegetables. Maybe that will get him moving.

All I have to say is, Joel and my doctor are pretty lucky that I've got a good sense of humor. There I am, naked from the waist down on the table with Joel checking the baby's heart rate (Dr. Pandeala lets him play with the fetal heart monitor and the goo) and my doctor is assessing the swelling of my feet, ankles and legs. She turns to me and says, "Nice cankles!" and Joel responds, "They're not cankles, they are kneegles since they go all the way up to her knees!" Then they both share a good laugh over my sausage feet. Har, har, har. I told them both to watch out because one day, my feet would go back to normal making it easier for me to kick both of their arses.

Harvill, OUT!

Today is my last day of work. The words happiness and excitement do not even begin to explain the rapture that I am feeling currently. In hindsight, since I started working full time back in 1998, the longest hiatus I have ever taken from work has been 2 weeks. It took me just 2 days after graduating from college to start working at ABC. It took 2 weeks to drive across country and start work at KTVU. Joel and I didn't even take 2 weeks off for our wedding! Now, I'm off until March 1. Bliss.

I love my job, don't get me wrong. I think I'm one of those people that actually gets to do or learn something new every day. Just when I think I've got this whole communications thing down, BAM! A crisis takes place and I have to learn how to think again. Its really great. I have to assume that parenting is pretty much the same thing. Just when you get a routine down, BAM! A change happens and you have to start from scratch.

I am thrilled to turn the page and begin this new chapter. That's what my mom has always said to me when an unexpected life occurrence takes place. "You're just writing another chapter in your book, Er." This new chapter is titled "Mom." I'm not really sure how its going to pan out at this point. Who will the main characters be? The protagonist? Will it be an adventure or a comedy? Perhaps a little of both? For the first time, I'm entering uncharted waters. I'll admit that I have no idea what I'm doing or what to expect. I think that's the fun of it though. For once, I'm looking forward to facing the unknown and doing it in my pajamas!

So for now (until Monday when I've got an update from the doc) I say, Harvill, OUT!

37 Weeks = Nothing New

I feel badly that I have nothing to report to you, other than the fact that we have made it to 37 weeks. We are officially full term! Yay! We went to the doctor today for the usual check up. I'm getting good at it now. Pee in the cup, get my blood pressure checked, stand on the scale (no weight gain again), check the baby's heartbeat (130bpm) and measure the belly (36cm). It looks like Dr. Pandeala will do an internal next week to see if there's any progress as the pain in my stomach, back and hips is getting pretty intense. I'm uncomfortable all the time these days and sleeping really sucks. I think what perhaps sucks most of all, is that Joel sleeps SO SOUNDLY. I toss and turn, get up to pee, throw the dogs on his face and nothing wakes this man. And, he steals my "leaning pillow" which these days, is punishable by death. And he complains that its cold. Joel has been calling me the ice princess since we met, as I'm perpetually freezing. It is quite common to find me wandering around the house wrapped in a blanket to beat the chilly 68 degrees that he likes to "heat" the house to. These days, if I could fit into it, I'd be wearing my bikini to sit on the couch. It is always too hot. Babies provide excellent insulation (in case you were planning on running the Iditarod or something).

Dr. Pandeala thinks that most likely, she will opt for inducing or doing a c-section somewhere between 39-40 weeks, so it looks like you should place your bets on the first week of December. I'd still be more than happy to have this baby on Thanksgiving.

My friends Christine and George welcomed their daughter, Mila Jolie Bivolarski into the world at 4:44am this morning. Mila weighed 7lbs, 7oz and I got to see her quickly at the hospital before I went to my doctor's appointment. She was so sweet, bundled and sleeping soundly. Christine looked fantastic for delivering just 4 hours earlier. I hope that I follow her lead and have a relatively easy and painless labor and delivery!

Here's a pretty crappy photo of the belly today:

And a much nicer photo from about a month ago at David and Catherine's wedding. Their photographer took this photo for us and I never thought I'd dig those "husband touching belly" pictures but this one is so nice (please note that despite the fact that my husband has monkey arms, he can still not get them around my huge stomach):

Biggest baby ever vs. ultrasounds are a load of hooey

We had our 36 week ultrasound and doctor's appointment this morning. Just 27 short days to go until December 7! Joel's dad was in town visiting, so he joined us for the ultrasound and he was the only parent that hadn't yet been to one. The ultrasound tech is super nice and she was chit-chatting as she was taking all of the measurements... head, belly, leg, etc. My placenta was in the way, so we weren't able to get too many pictures, and the ones we have are pretty blurry. I'll post them once Joel scans them. I can say that it appears that he has Joel's forehead and lanky limbs and my nose and lips (his lips were pursed like he was waiting to give someone a big smooch).

I've learned that rather than watch the baby moving around, it is way more interesting to watch the calculations at the bottom corner of the screen. The tech was calculating the circumference of baby Harvill's head and I watched the calculation pop up. 40 weeks, 2 days. I was sure she was mistaken, but she just kept chatting away. Next she measured the arm. The calculation popped up at the bottom. 40 weeks, 1 day. What the heck? I finally asked, "are those measurements correct? Why is it saying that I'm four weeks ahead?" She knows better than to explain and said that she would hand over the paperwork to Dr. Kelly who would come to talk with us.

George left and we went to meet with Dr. Kelly, who, in her sugary sweet way (she's from Minnesota and has that type of mid-western attitude that makes me believe she doesn't have a mean bone in her body) told me that because the baby was measuring so large, they would be doing another ultrasound in 3 weeks, once I hit 39 weeks to measure his growth. As of today, they estimated his size at 8lbs 5oz, give or take 10%. The office policy is to not induce before 39 weeks so that the lungs have a better chance to develop and to automatically schedule a c-section if the baby measures over 10lbs. Basically, I have a couple of options at this point:

1. Try every old wives tale in the book to get this kid moving early and on his own (sex, spicy food, drives down bumpy roads, long walks... feel free to add your own).
2. Wait until the 39 week ultrasound to find that he is under 10 lbs and schedule the induction.
3. Wait until the 39 week ultrasound to find that he is under 10 lbs and wait it out to see if he comes early on his own.
4. Wait until the 39 week ultrasound to find that he is 10 lbs or more and schedule the c-section.

Basically, my chances of a c-section just went up pretty dramatically because even if they induce, there's still a chance that he's pretty big. This news sucks. I was prepared to take the meds. I was prepared for a lengthy delivery. I was not prepared for the big "c."

Now, over the course of the day, I've talked to countless friends who have told me that ultrasounds are a load of hooey and that they always over-estimate the size of the baby. Part of me is praying that this is true, and that I really have a normal 7lb baby in there, who was maybe feeling a little bloated after our dinner of turkey chili and cake last night. For some reason though, I'm thinking that with this advanced technology, the ultrasounds are more accurate than we believe, and I'm about to give birth to Zeus or Andre the Giant or Yao Ming.

The one thing it does do for me, however, is make me feel a little less awful about the weight gain. I mean, at this point, I'm carrying around a full-term baby! Bring on another slice of cake!

Anyway, I think I'll give the kiddo another 6 days to marinate and then I'll start with the old wives tales. Anyone have a trampoline they care to offer up?

29 Days To Go

As promised, here are a couple of photos of the updated progress with the belly and baby's room.
First, the completed crib with mattress, sheets, mobile and several blankets for Baby Harvill to choose from. Also, the "Good night" picture behind the crib was a gift from my mother-in-law. It once hung in Joel's room and was given to her by her parents... a gift from Israel. You will see that the words good night are also written in Hebrew.

Here is the changing table, complete with changing pad, fun toys, diaper genie and new shelves that Joel built. My mom made the letters that hang over it and I love them. Yes, that's an autographed photo of Troy Aikman for the baby. We're not Cowboys fans, but I did a media day with him and thought it would be cool to collect some autographed items for our baby sports fan. He recommended that instead of Brice Samuel Harvill, we name the baby Troy Aikman Harvill. I still like Osi Umenyiora Harvill best, but the only one that agrees with me on that one is my father.

Here is our glider, new rug and dirty dogs to ruin said glider and rug. Also, my mom made the quilt that is draped over the back of the glider. She's quite the Martha Stewart.

Finally, here's the belly at 36 weeks. Sigh. I can't wait to have my body back.I'll post an update and some pics from the ultrasound on Monday. The swelling in my feet and legs is getting pretty bad now and is, at times, painful, especially at night. I'm also experiencing RLP (Round Ligament Pain) which occurs when the hips spread out further to make room for the baby to pass through during delivery. I always thought that I was blessed (read: cursed) with wide hips but apparently there is more room for growth. It feels like growing pains all over again!

What the heck is a crenshaw mellon?

Babycenter.com says that at 36 weeks, the baby weighs about 6lbs and is about 18.5 inches long, about the size of a crenshaw melon. I have no idea what a crenshaw melon looks or tastes like (although all of a sudden I'm craving a melon martini) but I can tell you that I feel like I am carrying around a pot-belly pig instead. I feel HUGE. My stomach feels like its the size of an acorn so I'm perpetually either hungry or stuffed. I now pee in excess of 30 times a day (including 5 times during the night). Joel and I are separated in bed by a stack of pillows for me to lean on, even though I somehow manage to wake up every morning flat on my back with Lucy at my feet and Shamus around my head and all four of us are snoring. I wear Joel's pants around the house when I get home because they are the only pants that fit comfortably. I am a picture of beauty and glamour. For all of my girlfriends who said I'd be rocking my tight black pants until my 9th month of pregnancy, I'm sorry to disappoint. I do, however, still shave my legs EVERY DAY. Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

We have a doctor's appointment on Monday with our final ultrasound and I'm both excited and nervous. We haven't had an ultrasound in about 4 months , so I'm curious to see how the little guy has changed and grown since then. Heather says that I'll be shocked because the entire baby no longer can be seen on one screen. I'm nervous because I perpetually worry that something is wrong. What if he has an extra nose growing out of the top of his head? What if he's too big or too small? At our upcoming appointment, the doctor will also perform a Strep test. Apparently many women are carriers of the Strep virus and if the test comes back positive, they will administer antibiotics while I am in early labor to lower the chances of my passing this virus along to Baby Harvill. Amazing what technology/medicine can do these days. So, hopefully by Monday we'll have a feel for how big this kid is. I'm sure that they will tell me that the baby is riding high and tight, because he certainly hasn't dropped yet. I've already come to the conclusion that Baby Harvill will most likely come late, because that's just the way this pregnancy is.

I will post some updated photos of the nursery and my belly on Monday (the lovely IT people at Mastercharge have taken away our access to all photo websites) so that you can see all of the progress that we made. The baby's room looks great and I hope he enjoys it as much as I've come to.

Have a great weekend!

Get Your Vote On!

Happy Election Day! Note to readers and husbands: this is not a political post.

Joel and I got up at the crack of dawn to go and vote this morning. Baby Harvill was certainly not excited about the 6:00am wake up call as we have gotten pretty used to lounging in bed until Joel gets out of the shower around 7:30am. We rolled up to our polling location a few blocks from our house to find that the line was already around the block. It was a little annoying that our good intentions of getting there AHEAD of the crowds didn't work out in our favor, but it was wonderful to see the droves of people out exercising their right to vote.

An hour later, we made it into the school gymnasium where we were handed a SCAN-TRON looking ballot and a black pen. I guess this is the technology that we are blessed with in Connecticut. We were told to fill in the bubbles and put the paper in the box. Easy enough (although I did have one high school flashback where I filled in an entire SCAN-TRON test wrong)! Joel and I were outta there in under 5 minutes.

So now we wait. A couple friends are going to join us later to watch John King and his magic map on CNN (I want one of those!). I'm going to take my "I Voted Today" sticker over to Ben & Jerry's to score my free ice cream too. Ahhhh, sweet democracy!

More later...

Happy Halloween!

Ah, Halloween. One of my favorites holidays as it provides an excuse to dress up in the most provocative clothes imaginable while simultaneously stuffing one's face full of candy. In the past, I have used Halloween as an opportunity to show off my "assets." When I first moved to San Francisco, my girlfriends and I dressed as "Hos from different area codes" which basically means we put on the shortest skirts we could find and taped our home town area code across our bums. I dressed up as G.I. Jane one year... camo mini skirt and knee high black boots were all I needed. I dressed up as a dirty nun a couple of years ago and Joel dressed up as Moses. Joel enjoyed parting the sea of people at the bar.

This year, I can't fit into any of my provocative clothing and quite frankly, I can't even bend over to zip up my boots. Thalia suggested that I dress as Sarah Palin's pregnant daughter, Bristol. I'm thinking about picking up some "I Heart Alaska" iron on letters on my way home and making a tiny t-shirt for the occasion. The kids may not get it, but at least the parents may get a good chuckle. Instead of rocking out at the bar, Joel and I will be rocking the candy bowl tonight. Our new suburban lifestyle comes complete with a neighborhood full of kids so we're expecting to be busy!

Speaking of Halloween, Heather sent me over this photo of baby Alexander this morning. His monkey costume is so cute and I couldn't resist posting it:

Have a safe and happy Halloween and if you're in town, stop by for some candy!

No Win Situations

I pretty much feel like I'm in a no win situation these days. The doctor wants me to stay seated or lying down as much as possible with my feet elevated to deal with the swelling in my feet and legs. However, what the doctor's don't tell you is that every time you sit or recline, the baby kicks really HARD in my ribcage. It actually felt like he had managed to hook his foot into my ribs at one point last night. This no win situation brought me pretty close to tears last night and finally, I retreated off to bed where Joel gave me a nice back massage while we watched some really bizarre show about some dude and his girlfriend that live with a pack of wolves (Kelly, if you ever become one of these freak shows, I'm not sure we can still be friends).

This morning, I started feeling some pressure and cramping when I got out of the shower. All of my books tell me that this is the precursor to early labor and I'm figuring this is just another pain (in the crotch) that I may as well get used to.

Oh yeah, Joel informed me last night that I have a beauty mark in the middle of the inside of my belly button. Three cheers for body parts that we have never seen before!

My last major dilemma is the winter coat conundrum. Currently, due to the belly situation, I cannot button my winter coat. In the last three days, it went from a balmy 75 degrees down to a frigid 35 degrees last night. At one point today, someone actually said it was hailing outside. I only have about 15 more days of work, so I don't want to buy a new, larger winter coat for three weeks of wear. What to do? Is it a fashion faux pas to wear my husband's fleece jacket to work? Its comfy, warm and it fits, but I'm sorta pushing homeless person status in it. I may as well put on my slippers and my ripped pajama pants while I'm at it! Sigh. This fashionista is suffering in flat shoes and unbuttoned coats.

The two positives: Joel bought Halloween candy (yay Junior Mints) and the countdown calendar says 39 days to go!

I know this blog is meant to be a place to post updates on the pregnancy, our house, etc. I have been chastised by my lovely husband in the past for waxing poetic on politics and since then, I have tried to keep this blog focused on the family. Today, I just have to meander off the beaten path for a moment.

Joel and I have talked several times about our wishes after we die. Joel is a traditionalist with a firm belief in being buried in a Jewish cemetery with family members that have passed on before. I, as you probably can guess by now, tend to deviate from the norm wherever and whenever possible. Early on in our relationship, I told Joel that I didn't want to be buried in a cemetery. I want my ashes to be spread somewhere warm and sunny, with ocean breezes and the taste of salt air. See, despite my astrological fire sign, I'm a water person. I could never live in a landlocked state. I love the feel of the salt water on my feet. I want my friends and family to be able to "visit" me in the place where I truly feel at home. My only real cemetery experience has been where my grandparents are buried. A Jewish cemetery in New Jersey over looking the interstate. It doesn't speak to how my grandparents lived their lives, in my mind. My grandfather should have his ashes spread around his favorite places in New Jersey. The deli, the stationary store, the shore, Atlantic City.

I have mentioned my mentor, Leroy Sievers before on this blog. He passed away in August and since then, his wife Laurie has kept up with the cancer commentary on NPR.com. Her entry today discusses the spreading of ashes and I thought it was beautiful and poignant. Perhaps its just proof that I'm not as crazy as I think I am.

In Maui, Signs From Leroy
Leroy and I have talked many times about how special Maui is in our lives. This trip is no different.
Except this time, without him at my side, the signs of Leroy made it all the more special.
I know not everyone believes in those "signs", and I can understand that, but let me tell you, when you walk and talk with his Maui friends, who are so spiritual and mystical in their beliefs, it's hard not to believe.
There was the sunset Tuesday night. More brilliant and stunning than any other night. That afternoon, we had scattered Leroy's ashes. That night, it looked like the Maui sky welcomed him with a color-splashed banner of oranges and golds.
The next morning, the celebration continued with a vivid rainbow over the ocean. A rainbow with a beginning and an end.
Sea glass is plentiful here in Maui. The Pacific gives back her glass with softened edges and newly formed shapes. There on the sand, waiting for me, was an amber, heart-shaped piece of glass. Thank you, Leroy.
And the "Leroy" sign that really caught my breath? Driving back to the hotel, I glanced in the rear view mirror, and there it was.
You guessed it ... an orange Jeep.
That secret wave means so much more now

Baby Shower Weekend

Yesterday was my/our baby shower and I have to say, Baby Harvill made out like a total bandit! First and foremost, my sister, Allyson, did an amazing job as hostess and party planner. She put together the most beautiful floral arrangements (more beautiful hydrangeas, just like my bridal bouquet), the food and cake were so yummy, and the water bottles and bars of chocolate that she and my mother made were so cute!

I'm working from home today, so I spent a little time this afternoon going back through all of the goodies that we received. My co-workers, Joanne, Naya and Jennifer gave me these fabulous lavender scented slippers and I've been wearing them all day. These things are a total must-have as you can microwave them and they do such a great job of soothing tired tootsies. Baby Harvill got some very cute and trendy clothes and some of the softest blankies (Kelly and Heather, I think Joel has already claimed the large green blankie as his own) and stuffed animals that I have ever felt. He also will be blessed with the sharpest kicks in town... two pairs of Converse All-Stars so that he can follow in the footsteps of his Grandma Elaine. My sis-in-law AJ also made sure that our little bundle will be rooting for the right team (in her mind, at least) and got us the cutest Redskins outfit. I may have to get him some Pats gear too just so he is well rounded :). My mom took the cake with her alphabet quilt. I think its her best work to date and its going to be hard for me to use it as I'm so afraid of ruining it!

I have already decided on Baby Harvill's coming home outfit. Thalia gave us the sweetest fleece outfit, complete with a little hoodie with ears.

Needless to say, Joel and I are so amazed with all of the gifts and we really, really appreciate the generosity of all of our family and friends. THANK YOU! Once we complete the nursery, I will post some photos!

I had my 34 week doctor's appointment today. My legs and feet are totally swollen and the swelling is now starting to migrate to my hands. I'm up 5lbs (unbelievable) since my last appointment just two weeks ago. Dr. Kelly is getting close to giving me a doctor's note to work from home, as she really wants me to sit with my feet elevated to reduce the swelling and that just won't happen in my officle. Dr. Kelly wants to wait until my 36 week ultrasound in two weeks to come up with a plan of action, though. By that point, we should have an idea of how big Baby Harvill is and we can make a determination where to go next. If the baby is averaging normal or small in size, he'll continue to "bake" for another couple of weeks. If he's looking large, they may induce so that we don't run the risk of preeclampsia (although my blood pressure is still really low). Needless to say, I am now starting to feel the pressure to get everything wrapped up at work and at home in case they do induce at around 37 weeks. Two weeks and we'll see.

Otherwise, I'm feeling pretty large and in charge. Sleep is now a luxury. I think the more annoyed and exhausted I get, the faster Joel manages to fall asleep at night. My back is really starting to hurt and I pretty much no longer feel comfortable. Seeing the calendar say 41 days to go gives me joy, as I'm ready for the pregnancy portion of this journey to be over and the mothering part to get started. More later...

Belly Pic Updated

For all of you waiting patiently for this week's belly pic, here you go:

Someone at work told me today that it looks like I've already dropped. Then, another person told me that I haven't. I think I look the same, just LARGER.

Off to dinner... more this weekend.

Baby Harvill Plays a Cruel Joke

With 47 days left to go until our due date, Baby Harvill decided to play a mean joke on us. He stopped moving. Usually he's very active late at night and early in the morning, so much so that I typically complain (a lot). Well, after all our travels, I was pretty exhausted last night. Joel and I were on the couch watching football (go Pats!) and I noticed that there wasn't much movement going on. I ate a couple of spoonfuls of ice cream and chugged some water. Nothing. I determined that perhaps he too was exhausted and was just sleeping more than normal.

I woke up this morning for my usual 5am pee and still nothing. I poked and prodded around until about 7am when we finally decided to call the doctor. Dr. Kelly told me to drink something cold and sugary and then to stay still for 2 hours while counting kicks. She said that if I could count 10 good kicks in the 2 hour period, we were good to go. Joel got me a nice, hefty glass of Coke (nothing like a little Coke for breakfast to really make you want to throw up) and we sat and waited... and waited... and waited. Finally, after about an hour, Baby Harvill started practicing his soccer kicks again. Slowly at first and then more regularly after about 2.5 hours. We were able to count the 10 kicks in just under 2 hours. Yay! We called the doctor back and the nurse instructed me to do the same exercise following every meal for the remainder of the day.

So, here I am counting. I feel like a poster child for Sesame Street. He's been pretty active this afternoon and my assumption is that we'll be back to normal by this evening. I've given Baby Harvill a little talking too as well. He now knows that even though Halloween is a few days away, he does not have the right to scare mom and dad like that.

Carolina On My Mind

We're home from our whirlwind weekend in Pinehurst, North Carolina. Constantine and Allison's wedding was something right out of a movie. The wedding was held in a beautiful chapel in the center of town and the reception was on the 18th hole of a picturesque golf course. The night was crisp and cool, they both looked fantastic, and everyone partied the night away. Joel did a great job as Best Man (he didn't even drop the rings) and he looked fab in his new blue suit.

Here's a really crappy photo of the happy couple and the groomsmen (Nick, Matt, Eric, Allison, Constantine, Joel, Andrew and John). I think this group wins the award for tallest bridal party.

The big hit of the evening (aside from the boat races at our table) was the 80s cover band that they hired. Best. Decision. Ever. What could have potentially been a stuffy setting quickly turned into the party scene from Animal House (I was actually waiting for someone to sing "I Gave My Love a Cherry"). Unfortunately, my camera battery died off at the chapel so I wasn't able to snap any photos of the chaos (I'll post some as they are e-mailed to me), but here are a couple of highlights:

1. Bride, groom and the majority of the under 40 men removed their ties and wore them around their foreheads instead.
2. Three Brown alum sang 99 Red Balloons while wearing red scarves that they stole from... somewhere... for the entire crowd.
3. Nick seemed to shed an article of clothing for every hour that passed during the night.
4. The Red Sox won and we met a cool bunch of locals (read: they were all wearing loafers and no socks) at the bar who decided to join us for part of the party.
5. The "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" moment when Constantine's entire family danced to traditional Greek music while the bridal party shouted "Opa!"
6. Slam dancing. Lots of it.
7. Polish (Matt) thought I was 22 years old. I lurve him for this comment (yes, it came after he had imbibed 47 drinks) and will happily set him up with any of my single girlfriends.

I have to admit, being pregnant at a wedding does not entirely suck when there is so much entertainment. I will also admit that by 11pm I was ready for a nap, so Joel removed his tie from his forehead and took me back to our super cool hotel, the Magolina Inn. The innkeepers here are a funky couple from Boston/Connecticut and the food there was fantastic.

So, we survived our wedding tour and are now happily settled in back at home. I'll take a belly picture once I get the camera charged. This week, I'm pretty much looking forward seeing my mom, who arrives Friday and my shower on Sunday. I can't believe I only have 7 weeks left...

Doctor's Visit Update

Here's a quickie update following my 32-week doctor's appointment from yesterday.

1. I have managed to gain 3 lbs in 19 days. I swear this baby weighs 30 lbs and I've really only gained 5 lbs of fat.
2. My blood pressure is still coma-style. The swelling is not a sign of preeclampsia (yay) and at this point, I'm good to go for our flight to North Carolina on Thursday. Dr. Kelly did tell me that the majority of weight I'm gaining now is water weight and Joel and I are determined to cut back on our sodium intake (excuse me while I shove some more salty peanuts in my mouth... just kidding). She hooked me up with a cool doctor's note in case the flight attendants think I'm further along than I really am.
3. Dr. Kelly told me that I should be prepared as early as November 16th for this baby to make his grand appearance. Yeah, that's in like, four weeks. I'm totally not ready for that at all as we don't have a couple of necessary items and well, I still have five weeks left of work.
4. Our last "external" appointment is scheduled for October 27th. After that, the fun internals begin and we've scheduled our last growth ultrasound for November 10th. I guess at that point we'll be able to tell how big Brice really is. Feel free to place your bets now. Perhaps I should get another poll going.

That's all for now. I'll update when we get back from North Carolina on Sunday!

Back in CT... for three days

We just made it back to our house after a wonderful weekend in Bethesda. I have to say, David and Catherine's wedding was absolutely beautiful and we had a fantastic time. The Ladd family really knows how to throw a party. Their wedding, which took place yesterday, also marked my parents' 35th wedding anniversary. I'm hoping that its a symbol of good luck for the Ladds (although my dad joked that their divorce papers must have gotten lost in the mail many years ago).

On Saturday, we headed about an hour out into Virgina with the wedding crew to visit a couple of vineyards and do a little wine tasting. I took in the sunny day, the fabulous scenery and, well, I treated myself to a sip or two of the chardonnay. Here are some photos from the wine tour:

Here's the beautiful vineyard and the mountains in the distance.

Grapes still on the vine.Here's David and the rest of the wedding crew after enjoying some wine.

I know most of you read this to get an update on Baby Harvill and to hear my funny take on pregnancy so here's my story of the week. We got back to Joel's parents house in Bethesda after the wine tour and had about 30 seconds to change and get out the door before the rehersal dinner. I kick off my shoes and my jeans and look down at my feet and realize that they are swollen... not just a little swollen. To me, they look like pig's feet (Kelly, you can probably relate here) and they were SCARY looking. Perhaps the quickie stop at McDonalds wasn't such a good idea? I was clearly retaining a ton of water but at this point, there was nothing I could do. I tried to shove my feet into my lovely new high heels. It totally wasn't going to happen. I asked Joel if he could help me with my knee-high boots. We couldn't even zip em up. I had to resort to wearing my silly flats again.

Once at the rehersal dinner, I cornered David's mother who happens to be an OBGYN. Here's how our conversation went:

Me: Jill, I think something's wrong. My feet look like pigs feet.

Jill: Ah, you're experiencing the glories of pregnancy.

Me: No, you don't seem to understand. I don't want my feet to look like this.

Jill: The swelling is pretty normal. You'll just have to deal with it for the next two months.

Me: I'm sorry to say this, but I'm not going to accept that as your final answer. There's gotta be something I can do.

Jill: Well, you could try putting you feet in a bath of cold water and then sleeping with them elevated.

Me: Now you're talking.

Joel and I ran home after the dinner and rehersal and I proceeded to cool my feet off in a nice cold shower. I then sat my butt down on the couch with my feet elevated on a stack of about 18 pillows and proclaimed that I would not move until the swelling subsided. I'm being serious when I say that I even slept in this position.

The next morning, no more swelling! Wahoo! I was able to dress for the wedding like a normal person and even rocked out in my 3-inch heels all night (one wedding guest thought that I was going to go into labor while dancing the Hora). Here's a quick shot of me and Joel all fancied up (and the belly at 32 weeks):

So, we're back in Norwalk until Thursday when we head to North Carolina for Constantine and Allison's wedding! Busy month!

Single Digit Weeks

We have reached the 31 week mark. I looked at the calendar today and saw just 63 days to go. That's two months, people. Crazy how the time is really starting to fly. It is now taking me longer than ever to get ready in the morning, in part because I can no longer reach my feet. Yesterday, I got completely dressed, coughed, peed in my pants and had to start from scratch with a fresh outfit. At least I was still at home... I'm thinking I may have to carry spare bottoms with me in the car in case of emergency.

I've started getting the rude comments from people in public places. At Home Depot, Joel and my conversation with a man in the kitchen cabinet department went something like this:

Random Old Man in Dirty Orange Home Depot Apron: Wow, you're not going to give birth in the store, are you?

Me: No, I've got two months to go. I think there's a pretty good chance this baby won't be born while we wait for you to price cabinets for us.

Random: Wow, you're pretty big though. I wouldn't be surprised if this baby came early.

Me: Are you trying to tell me something about my weight? This kiddo has two more months to bake and I'm really not trying to rush him out.

Random: Seriously? There's no way you're making it to December.

Me: Thanks again for your vote of confidence. It really makes me feel great. Since you are apparently psychic, can you use your infinite wisdom to tell us how much the cabinets will cost?

At this point, a look of utter panic washes over Joel's face (and not because the cabinets will cost us a fortune). For the first time we both realize this baby could come at some point next month. We sit down at the table with another "sales associate" so he can measure out what our cabinet needs would be. The lady sitting next to us starts up the same line of questioning. I tell Joel this is what I'm faced with EVERY DAY. Every person I see has a perspective on whether I'm huge or tiny, how great I look or how I look like crap. Its as if all normal social boundaries are broken and strangers have the right to comment on my body all they want.

I invested in my first pair of flat shoes today. I'm conducting a scientific experiment to see if flat shoes make my nighttime back aches go away. I'll report results later. For now, I'm getting used to being 8 inches shorter than Joel and realizing that my pants are really, really long.

Tomorrow I'm heading into New York to conduct our media day with Troy Aikman. He's got 23 interviews slated between 6:30am and 1:30pm so it is shaping up to be a busy morning. This is my last celebrity-driven media event before maternity leave, so I'll be doing a little dance tomorrow night as I check this off my "to do" list. Maybe I can get Troy to autograph my big fat belly? Maybe not.

Here's a picture of the week for you (yep, those are the flats):

We're headed to Bethesda Thursday morning for David and Catherine's wedding (we can't wait) so I'll try to update with some photos of us all fancied up when we get back on Monday.

Thirty down, ten to go!

I promised I'd update this weekend, so here I am. We're officially at the 30 week mark today! Ten weeks to go (and eight weeks left of work... woo hoo!). We went to the doctor on Thursday and she let me know that everything is looking good. My stomach is measuring at 28cm, my blood pressure was nice and low (coma-style) and other than my ridiculous weight gain, I'm doing good. My sister informed me that I now weigh more than my 6 foot tall brother-in-law, Eric, which isn't really helping my self esteem out, but everyone keeps telling me that the weight will fall off come December and I should stop worrying (or I should stop eating the mint M&M's... so good... damn you Joel).

Since we have reached this milestone, I thought I'd take you on a walk down memory lane. Really, this is just an excuse for me to post some of the WORST photos from my pregnancy because for many of you who have just had kids or are in the land of the pregnant, any excuse to laugh is a good one. Kelly, these should make you feel about a MILLION times better.

Let's rewind back to April 1. Yes, April Fools Day. A great opportunity to thrust upon my husband the biggest life-changing news imaginable and let him decide whether or not I was playing a cruel joke. This was the day I found out I was pregnant and when he finally came home from work, I snapped this picture of my then pretty buff belly. Ah, if I only knew then what I know now...

Fast forward two short weeks. I'm about six weeks pregnant in this picture and for the next 13 weeks or so, this would be the most common position that Joel would find me in. He decided it would be funny to document this. He's pretty lucky I was sick... I would have kicked his butt otherwise.
At Heather and Chris' Lake George house, I decided it would be fun to don the most form fitting item of clothing possible. A wet suit. The water was about 60 degrees so it was an attempt to not shock the baby. I'm about 15 weeks here:

At 20 weeks, I had finally stopped getting sick and was ready to venture back out into society. Joel was heading to a bachelor party in the city and I was going out to dinner with Thalia. Since Joel hadn't seen me out of PJs in three months, we thought it was a good time to capture a photo .

In just 10 short weeks, I've really filled out. I promised photos of the baby's room with the new glider, so here's me at almost 30 weeks, enjoying my new favorite seat in the house.

And finally, for your viewing pleasure, here is a photo of the tummy, taken just moments ago (please note, I haven't showered and am recovering from baby-sitting my niece/Lila's first sleepover). Word to the wise, kids, if you are thinking about getting a tattoo, consider the ramifications that severe stretching will have. Sixteen years ago, I would have never thought that my cute butterfly would so closely resemble a scary bat wing. Eeek.

So, 70 short days to go. I'll try to post weekly belly updates because at this point, I figure the growth will be at ludicrous speed. Enjoy and please send photos so I can post!

Update: Glider is Built!

We got the glider that I ordered off Target.com. Joel and I put it together last night. So far, it has been the easiest piece of furniture to assemble! It only took about 15 minutes. We put it in baby boy Harvill's room and I immediately got comfy. It is SO WORTH IT and it looks great. Then Joel sat in it with Shamus. Joel was back on his feet in about a minute but Shamus was right at home. Lucy joined him. I snapped a couple of photos of them gliding away and I'll post them tonight when I get home. I think they believe that we are furnishing the room for them. They've been spending an awful lot of time in there these days and I have to believe that once the baby is born, they will no longer sleep with us.

Weekend plans: pretty much nothing. Joel needs to buy a blue suit for Constantine and Allison's wedding, so I guess we should check that off the list since their wedding is in 4 weeks. Christine's baby shower is Sunday, so I'll be headed to that while Joel catches up on his Formula One action. Our association is throwing its annual "Oktoberfest" party on Sunday as well, so I figure we can stop by for a bit to sample the food and beverages. Oh yeah, the Pats play the Dolphins which means warfare between the Harvills and the Greifenberger/Juviler clan. We'll have to watch that.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Pooped... literally and figuratively

Warning: Poop will be mentioned (frequently) in this post. If you know me, you know that I love to talk about poop and pee regularly anyway, so this is probably no big shocker.

Joel and I are sick. He's got some crazy congestion and I've got a stomach bug. We've been sick since Sunday night. This isn't the first time we've been sick together, but somehow this illness is different that previous instances.

The poop-issues started for me Monday night. At first, Joel and I laughed pretty hysterically about it. At one point, during Monday Night Football, I passed gas (loudly) for an entire play. For the people who don't follow football, that's about 45 seconds. We laughed so hard that it actually made me pass gas again, but this time little bits came out as I was laughing... sort of a toot, toot, toot, toot kind of thing. I know this is too much information for a lot of people, but you have to understand that when I was about 5 weeks pregnant, Joel was at the airport waiting to fly to London. He called me from the bookstore to tell me he was reading a passage in Jenny McCarthy's book on her pregnancy and wanted to know it I truly would have what she coined "swamp gas." At the time, I didn't know what he was talking about. Now we're both aware of how true Jenny's book really was.

What actually happens is, as the baby grows, your growing uterus smooshes (yes, smooshing is a technical term) all of your lovely internal organs up into your chest cavity. Lungs, small and large intestine, etc. are all now hanging out in your upper rib cage. This slows down the digestive process and is why so many women complain of cramps and breathing issues. Similarly, the bladder is shoved downward. Hence the frequent peeing issues.

So anyway, by Tuesday morning, I could tell that something was really wrong. There was no way that I was going to make it to work when I was having problems making it out of the bathroom. I stayed home from work and by noon, Joel was on the couch next to me, box of tissues in hand. I called the doctor to inform her of this "situation." I guess I was expecting some magical cure from her so that I could go back to work. She responded by telling me that in these situations, they would rather let the stomach bug run its course than treat it. Basically, she told me to get comfy, because I was going to be spending a lot more time in the bathroom that week.

By Tuesday night, I was exhausted. Joel could no longer breathe through his nose. By 10pm we were in bed. By 10:02 Joel was sound asleep, thanks to a cocktail of NyQuil and Chloroseptic spray. The dogs were snoring. I was wide awake. And pooping. I tossed and turned until 2am when I finally retreated to our guest bedroom downstairs, figuring that perhaps a bit more space might help the situation. It didn't. Between the baby moving, back pain and frequent trips to the bathroom, I was awake when the sun came up.

Finally today, I'm starting to feel better. Joel is still feeling pretty bad. In a way, I'm thankful to have had the stomach bug portion of the illness because at least it came and went pretty quickly. On the other hand, I've now realized how badly we need to re-do both bathrooms in our house, as I've spent countless hours this week staring at the walls there, analyzing all of the things about them that I don't like. Man, I'm pooped!

2 down, 1 to go

Today marks the first day of our third trimester. I cannot explain in words how ecstatic I am. Partially because I know that we're almost in the clear... if something should happen and baby boy should come early, chances are he'll be just fine.

The other part of me can't lie and thinks that in 12ish short weeks, this science experiment will be over with. Yes, our lives will be changed forever with the birth of this kiddo as we begin the cycle of feedings, changings, nighttime checks, hysteria, dating, football, college graduation and the infinite beyond. The one thing I will have is my body back (and trust me, I plan on waving hello to all those places that I can no longer see). For those of you who have never been pregnant or are early on in your first pregnancies, let me give you a little taste of what's going on these days.

The nausea has subsided and I am thankful for that. Now begins the random pain portion of the pregnancy. Starting at approximately 9pm nightly, all of the food consumed over the course of the day somehow migrates its way back up into my chest. I wouldn't call it heartburn. I'd call it, if someone poked me with a stick, I'd probably explode. Honestly, it feels as if I can't catch my breath and there is simply no more room for my skin to stretch. I complain and usually Joel asks me if I want some Pepto or some water and while I realize that he is trying desperately to be helpful, I want to tear his face off with my bear hands. I love my husband, but the other day I seriously thought about duct-taping the dogs to his chest so he could feel for a moment what I'm going through. I think he gets it but is afraid of admitting it so he just sits quietly on the couch hoping that I'll just go away or shut up.

At about 10pm I migrate up to bed. I'll get up every hour on the hour to pee from this point until about 6:30am even though I've only had like one glass of water all day. I have no idea where all the liquid comes from since I also have about 35 hotflashes during the day and pretty much sweat perpetually. Yum.

When I'm actually sitting still in bed, I have pain in my lower back and legs, probably due to the 30 lbs of baby weight crushing my vital organs. I've learned that the best method for dealing with this pain is to roll onto my side (imagine those videos of marine biologists attempting to free a beached whale), prop a pillow under my belly to hold it up, and finally position the dogs behind me so that I can lean on them. Its my own Westie body-pillow. The dogs love it. I swear.

Here's what I've realized. Instead of teaching about the birds and the bees, schools should bus in 30 women in their 3rd trimester and let them talk (complain) to kids truthfully about how NOT FUN it is. Topics of discussion could include hemorrhoids, snissing (the sneeze/pee conundrum) and what to do when you can no longer see you private region (fog-resistant mirrors are the way to go for any lady-scaping activities).

In all seriousness, I know that the second this baby is on the outside, I will forget all about the aches and pains associated with the last almost year of my life and just love baby boy Harvill with all of my heart. But for right now, can anyone tell me what color shoes I'm wearing?

Your Weekend Update

First and foremost, a big congratulations to Don and Claire on the birth of their son, Winston. I'm waiting for Claire to share her labor and delivery experience but from the sound of things it happened quickly and all are doing well. I'm just glad that Baby Harvill will have a proper British "cousin" because everyone knows that Joel and I have no class.

During last night's "tropical storm" (read: overkill) Joel and I built the crib. It took us longer to locate the instructions than it did to put the thing together and once again, my husband showed his natural abilities with power tools. Thank you sweet baby Jesus for giving me a husband willing to assemble baby products. Today we put up the second shelf in the baby's closet and dealt with some rogue wires in our bedroom. The house is looking better and better. Oh, and we had no storm related damage... our lights only flickered once the entire night.

This week I have far too much going on at work. Honestly, I'm really starting to look forward to maternity leave because somewhere in the naive part of my mind, I believe it will feel like an extended vacation. I'm sure all of the moms are laughing at me right now. Humor me, mkay?

A friend sent this to me. I'd love to see how others would respond.

i am: avoiding watching Formula One with my husband
i think: I should live somewhere warm year-round
i know: very little about babies
i want: my husband to ask about having some bookshelves built
i have: two dogs following me around the house… constantly
i wish: that I could truly tell the difference between baby kicks and gas
i hate: selfish people. You know who you are.
i miss: my waistline and sleeping on my stomach
i fear: the pain of labor
i feel: a baby sitting on my bladder
i hear: the fan
i smell: like hummus
i crave: an ice cream sundae with a cherry on top
i search: for stories of pain-free child delivery… wishful thinking?
i wonder: what my parents are doing right now
i regret: leaving DC too early…maybe another year?
i ache: when I sleep
i care: about my dogs so much. I’m going to be a dangerous parent
i always: look both ways before crossing the street. Thanks mom.
i am not: good at math
i believe: that war is always wrong
i dance: in front of mirrors when nobody is watching
i sing: in my car like a rockstar
i cry: rarely but purposefully
i don't always: brush my teeth for as long as I should
i fight: like Mohammad Ali… but I get over it quickly
i write: on my blog for my own amusement
i never: send food back in a restaurant
i stole: a banana from A&P on a dare
i listen: to the advice of my family and friends. Who knew they were so smart?
i need: to be hugged daily although sometimes I’m bad about hugging back
i am happy about: the obvious

Deleted Post

You may notice that a post is missing. My wonderfully conservative (sorry bubba, I'm throwing out the c-word) husband has asked that I remove the political post from our blog. Yes, he has a point. This blog was meant to be about us, our growing family, etc. It is perhaps not the appropriate place for my political banter (even though most of you know that I love republicans and democrats alike) and the reason for its presence here was simply to spark conversation. Thought. Interest in the political system. Perhaps to prove too that I don't just think about my pregnancy every minute of the day and that I actually have a brain that sometimes begs to be used for things other than picking nursery furniture or writing press releases.

I think a lot of us are quick to bucketize. I'm Jewish, you aren't. I'm an east-coaster, you aren't. And so on. Ultimately, what I'm trying to do with this blog is kick start conversation... try to get us to think outside of our collective buckets. Sometimes it will be on child (or dog) rearing techniques and I'm sure I'll get feedback from people with far differing ideas. At one point I will probably complain about sitting at home with a finicky baby and I'll hear from both sides of the aisle on this as well.

Here's what I'm trying to say. I'm in the communications business. It is my job to gain perspective. To understand what's going on outside of my own world. To understand that while your thought process and mine may differ greatly, we can still be right and have a good strong point. 'Nuff said. So, shall we discuss Hurricane Hanna?

Saying it in the living time

Some of you knew my mentor, Leroy Sievers. Some of you saw his appearances on Nightline, NPR, The Discovery Channel. Some of you read his blog on NPR. For those of you who don't know, Leroy was a producer at Nightline when I was an intern there, back in 1998. I'm not sure why he took me under his wing. Maybe it was because he and his wife had no children. Maybe it was because my parents lived far away and I was an orphan in DC. Maybe it was because he saw my potential. I'm really not sure what his reason was, but I do know that at the end of my internship, when I had decided that I wanted to stay in DC and was looking for jobs as a waitress or bartender, Leroy walked me into the office of the News Director and asked if he would give me a full-time job. Pat Cullen, a former Bucknellian himself, gave me a job as a Desk Assistant and so began my career at ABC.

Three years later, after we had watched the twin towers come crashing down, I decided that it was time to leave ABC to try something different. I wanted to move to California and work in San Francisco. I was a lost soul and I wanted to find myself. I talked to Leroy and he called Tony Bonilla at KTVU. Leroy had been the News Director there years earlier and knew the scene. When I arrived in San Francisco a couple of weeks later, an assignment editor position was waiting for me.

Leroy and I would get together from time to time when I returned to Connecticut. I took Jill into New York to meet him when he was covering the DNC back in 2004. He was just recovering from Colon cancer and was rockin' and rollin' as Executive Producer of Nightline. He used to invite me and Joel to his Halloween parties at their house in Potomic. The idea was to dress as the best news story of the year. One year, Joel went as Dan Rather and I went as a steroid raging baseball player. Leroy, at 6'5" was dressed as a dodgeball.

Then, one night around Christmas about three years ago, I was engaged in a political debate with my boss from Thomson. Neither one of us could remember who spoke at what convention in what year. I called Leroy because I knew he would have the answer. When he picked up the phone, he sounded funny. I asked him if he was drunk. He laughed his big, booming belly laugh. Then he replied, "I'm at Johns Hopkins. They found a tumor in my brain. They're going to try to remove it."

From that moment, Leroy began a long, arduous battle with cancer. It attacked his spine, his lungs, his life in general. They gave him weeks. He took years. Leroy passed away in August - in his sleep. The loud booming laugh was silenced. The advice that he had always given would come no more. The stories of mai tais on the beach in Hawaii, flying kites on the mall and rollerskating on the boardwalk in Santa Barbara would live on in my memory.

His wife has been keeping up with the blog on NPR. Her post today, titled "Saying it in the living time" really moved me. I've posted it below and would welcome your comments and more importantly, your time to talk to the ones you love.

Saying it in the living time

It was a good old '60s love song. The kind that took you back to those last perfect days of summer.
When it was over, the DJ on the radio said, "It's so important to say it in the living-time. So there are no regrets."
The "it" is "I love you."
Say it in the "living time."
How many of us get so wrapped up in the chemo sessions and doctors' appointments and care-giving, that the "I love you's" get lost in the demands of the day?
What I wouldn't do to say that once more to Leroy -- in the "living time."

100 days to go!

When I first found out I was pregnant, Heather gave me this little pregnancy countdown book. Instead of giving weekly or monthly updates, it gives a fun quirky fact or tidbit every day. I keep this book in the bathroom and every morning before I shower I turn the page. This morning my page said 100 days to go. Wow. 180 days down already. I started thinking about when this baby is born and what the world will be like for him. Here's a couple of interesting ideas:

1. He will never know George Bush as President. Bush will still be the sitting President when Baby Harvill is born, but he will be known as a lame duck at that point and we'll just be waiting for January 20 when the new President is sworn in.

2. The first President he will know will either be an black man with a white running mate or a white man with a female running mate. Historic. I remember when Geraldine Ferraro was selected as Walter Mondale's running mate. My mom and I met her in the airport in Florida and I remember her talking to my mom briefly about being a teacher. She gave me a pin. That was 1984 and I was seven. Remarkable what you remember.

3. When he is born, Michael Jackson and Madonna will both be 50 years old (Happy Birthday MJ, you crazy fool).

4. Our child will start kindergarten in 2014, drive a car in 2024, finish high school in 2027 and graduate from college with the class of 2031, give or take a year. I can't even fathom this.

5. He'll probably know how to work a computer before he can read or write and he'll do school presentations by using PowerPoint. I still remember slide shows and overhead projectors.

Feel free to add yours. I'll send a recap after our childbirthing class tomorrow (if we make it through without fainting).

Have a great holiday weekend.

Baby's room: Under Construction

We didn't want to start work on Rockstar's room until we knew what we were having. Now that we know there's a boy in there, we decided it was time to get to work. A couple of people asked me about painting and wainscotting so here's a little step-by-step tutorial on what we did.

Step one: empty room of all crap and lay out paper and tarps on the floor. Even if you think you are neat, you're messy.

Step two: have dogs (read: cheap labor) help you bring in necessary tools. Just kidding. I thought this picture was cute though. Shamus and Lucy wanted to be involved (Lucy succeeded by achieving a painted nose).

Step three: Paint. Repeat. Kelly, this is what Asparagus (the color, not the pee) looks like.

Step four: Cut and install wainscotting. Order several pizzas. This process is time consuming and requires a lot of patience. Install base molding and chair rail. Oh yeah, having a husband who is super handy and knows his way around a circular saw and nail gun helps too (three cheers for Joel!).

Step five: Caulk. Joel left me to handle caulking and while I did a good job, I also managed to caulk my hair, my leg, my face and every inanimate object in the room.We still have to paint the wainscotting and the doors white and hang the curtains (that's our Wednesday task). But here's what the semi-finished product looks like: