Merry Christmas!

Christmas morning 2008 was the first either Jeff or I have spent in Seattle. There were three snow showers and a hail/sleet shower throughout that day, and with all the recent snowy weather, there was plenty of the white stuff on the ground -- a true white Christmas in Seattle, go figure. We opened gifts over coffee with a fire blazing. Santa even left a few things for babyj!




After the unwrapping was done, we arranged our gifts under the tree and set out to prepare our dishes for the potluck Christmas dinner we had with neighbors and friends. We made a prime rib roast and creme brulee; others brought appetizers, potato gratin, veggies, sweet potatoes, cookies, and pound cake to the table, and of course, there was plenty of wine and good cheer to go around.



We hope you and yours had a wonderful Christmas celebration! Stay tuned for more baby news.... We have a doctor's appointment and several classes to attend in the coming week.

Snow in Seattle, Part 2: babyj's second walk in the snow

Friday 12/19 was cold and icy, but the precipitation had ended, and we ventured out for a few hours for some holiday shopping. By dinnertime, it was in the low 20's. Brrr! Saturday we braced ourselves for another snow event. It started to snow about 3.00 in the afternoon, and by bedtime, we had another 5" of snow on the ground. Of course that means THIS morning, Sunday 12/21, we ventured our again for photos and a trek to our favorite coffee shop. Jeff even took some video with our digital movie camera (maybe he'll post some video clips later). The 5" of new snow was topped off with some freezing rain, so the snow was crunchy. With temperatures around 30˚, we found less slippery ice and more slushy patches, making it easier for pregnant women to get around. Thank goodness!

The first two pictures were taken on our street. You'll notice my new car is covered with the recent accumulation of snow -- we haven't yet gotten chains for it, so whenever we go out, we use Jeff's Passat, in case chains become a necessity. The third picture is of snow covered trees lining Fremont Avenue; we pass these on our walk to Lighthouse Coffee Roasters. We DID see plows on Fremont Avenue and on N 45th Street today, while we were out walking, so we know the city has at least a few snowplows. ;-)

The snow began again sometime around noon, and it has been going ever since. Weather forecasters are predicting another 3" to 6" for the city through this evening. All this snow is likely to keep us from Christmas shopping for each other. So much for creating our own gifting traditions for our first Christmas ever in Seattle!

Snow in Seattle, Part 1: babyj's first walk in the snow

On Wednesday, 12/17, between a trace and 3" of snow were forecast to hit Seattle in mid-afternoon. The city braced for a nasty evening commute, and many school districts cancelled classes for the day to avoid having students stranded at schools. But no snow fell in the city that day. (There was snow further north -- a lot of snow, in fact!) However, the second punch from this storm set in overnight into Thursday morning, and we woke to 3" on the ground and temps below freezing. Jeff decided not to drive into work, and we started the day with a walk to our favorite coffeeshop.














The weather was agreeable enough and we were enjoying the break from our usual routine, so we continued our walk along the shipyards on the north side of Lake Union to Gas Works Park to see people sledding on 'kite hill.' Our friend Ed and his dog Lula joined us at the park to soak up the scene. Then we had lunch with Ed and Marcela at their house. Thanks, Ed and Marcela, it was yummy!

















Babyj seemed to enjoy the day out and about, but all the walking wore out her parents. We needed to nap. Cosmo also enjoys naps. Here he is being cute (and challenging Jenny's ability to breathe).

31 and 2/7ths

I went to see the doctor today; the official word is that I'm at "31 and 2/7ths" weeks. I found out I have gained 20 pounds since I first went to the doctor in July, and my blood pressure is holding steady, between 100/60 and 110/70 each visit. This visit, my "measurement," from the top of the pubic bone to the uterine fundus, was right on target (between 30 and 31 cm -- I guess that's close enough to 31 and 2/7ths for them). BabyJ's heartbeat was strong and regular, in the 150 bpm ballpark.

So far, my appointments have been four weeks apart, but now they switch to two weeks apart, for two appointments, and then they'll be weekly for the rest of the way. Today's appointment was the third time in all these months that the doctor had to run out, coincidentally, just before she was to see me, to deliver a baby. Today's laboring mom was having her first baby, and I elected to see another person on staff rather than wait for Dr. F to return. Who knows how long she would have been, as they tell me the delivery speed of first babies are a little unpredictable. I wonder what BabyJ and my body have in store for me in February....

I have no earth-shattering news to share with respect to my own health or that of BabyJ (which is fine with us -- no news is good news in this situation), just minor updates. BabyJ moves around a lot, and her movements are more deliberate and forceful than even just two weeks ago when we were in Cleveland for Thanksgiving. I am no longer comfortable sleeping on my right side, so I am relegated to sleep on my back, inclined on several pillows, or on my left side. Truthfully, I am thankful that I am still sleeping at all! After a couple of fairly busy days this week as the fall quarter ended, I found myself truly exhausted, instead of just mildly tired. I am somewhat disappointed by this, but it is not unexpected -- plugging along at my usual pace won't last all nine months of this journey, and now is as good a time as any to slow down. Yoga class this morning included a way cool chant to accompany the idea of letting go of something old and making space for something new (which is perfectly appropriate for me to think about these days), but I found that chanting while holding poses is no longer "routine" but "work," as I panted my way through several of the verses.

Minor complaints about waning energy and decreasing lung capacity aside, it's hard to believe how "normal" I feel despite the fact there is another human growing inside of me. As cerebral as I tend to be about most things, there are moments when I am simply in awe of what is happening. I have to remind myself that my body was designed for this very task, even though I have not called upon it to do this ever before, and that I have to trust it enough to listen to it and to learn from it. What an amazing blessing, to be one small part of the big circle of life. Just under two months to go until the due date. Anyone interested in wagering when she will actually arrive?

We were showered!

On the Sunday after Thanksgiving, Mom and Julie hosted a baby shower for Jeff and me. It was so nice! It was great to spend the afternoon with family and friends who wish us well and share in our happiness about and anticipation of our growing family. Everyone was so very generous, and we left Ohio laden with gifts that have equipped us well for our first months with BabyJ. Below are some photos from the event. Enjoy!

New Ride

As promised, here are some photos of our new car. We've been waiting several months for this guy to show up, so we're very pleased that it came in before the heat of the holidays. I'm encouraging Jenny to let us drive her old Saturn to the airport shuttle parking and just leave it there for someone else to worry about. I know that's mean, but that car is DONE. We'll enjoy our new "baby" until the real one shows up.

Steady As She Goes

As the holidays quickly approach, Jenny and I are busy doing some more planning for the inevitable arrival of BabyJ. We've signed up for 26 hours of "baby classes" at Swedish Hospital, where we anticipate giving birth sometime in mid-February. Many of you probably know that Jenny's 40th birthday is February 12th, one day after Baby J is due. Between three birthdays (yes, mine is on the 22nd) and Valentine's Day, February will undoubtedly be a busy month for years to come.

Jenny's mother (Jeanne) and sister (Julie) (see the J theme?) have organized a Cleveland baby shower for us when we visit them for Thanksgiving next week. My family, including my 95-year old grandmother, will join us there for a huge turkey dinner at Jenny's grandmother's house. We'll stick around for a long weekend to enjoy everyone's company, as this is the last airplane ride for Jenny before she delivers. Our doctor isn't prohibiting travel, but as she kindly reminded us, "wherever you give birth is where you will be until you and your baby are healthy enough to return home." With the possibility of an early delivery, we'd prefer to be here with the doctors that we've gotten to know (and who know us, poor folks).

We've had many generous offers from friends who had held on to baby clothes and other goodies, hopeful that we (or someone else) would start a family. Our neighbors (Mark and Karyn) have loaned us a glider (rocker) with an ottoman that they used with their delightful daughter Cleo. There's a good chance that we'll return to Seattle with a crib and changing table, along with a bunch of little girl clothes known as The Shannon Collection from Jenny's friend Julie (they met at Bowling Green in 1987). Bra shopping has begun, but they won't let me in the changing room, so I usually browse the breast pumps and use my imagination. The clothes that Jenny bought a couple of months ago are getting daily use now. Her students have had mixed responses to Jenny's "condition". Some are so dumb they don't even notice.

In spite of being of "advanced maternal age", Jenny has proven to me and everyone around us that age is a number rather than a physical reality. She looks great, and she has continued most of her daily routine without too much complaining. At our last doctor's visit she passed her gestational diabetes test but was found to be slightly anemic, so she upped her iron intake, and everything is fine. She continues to gain weight on schedule (we were told that a pound per week is normal), and her uterus is growing accordingly. (Now, please understand--I'm not a big fan of the word uterus. It's one of those words that sounds like you would expect the thing to look like, but if you think you can go through a pregnancy without using the word uterus, you're mistaken. Uterus. Uterus.) Now that we're done with ultrasounds, the doctor measures the baby by measuring Jenny's-ahem-uterus. That is achieved on the outside of the body by measuring from the top of the pubic bone to the ridge (top of uterus) at the top of Jenny's belly. Here's a demonstration using one of those goofy IKEA measuring tapes.

As you can see in the close-up, Jenny's uterus measures 28-29cm, which directly correlates to the number of weeks that she is into the pregnancy (28 weeks).


Last weekend we attended a class on Car Seat Safety and Installation. I was skeptical when I found out that the class lasts 2 1/2 hours (!), but we actually walked away with some good information that helped us decide which infant seat to purchase. And what better way to color coordinate than to purchase a 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Sportwagen! I'd post a photo, but it's dark by 5:00pm these days. Jenny's never owned a new car, so this is pretty special. She got exactly what she wanted--a clean-burning diesel that gets great mileage and has heated seats! And we're both happy to know that BabyJ will be riding in a very safe car.

Well, that's it for now. If anyone is interested, visit our doctor's link to watch a brief movie about her. Dr. Faulkner has been great to us so far, but truth be told, we haven't had to spend too much time with her. We both see that as a good thing, and as long as she works her magic on (or around) February 11th, everyone will be very happy.