Mountain or a Mole Hill

I heard through the grapevine that some readers were a little uncomfortable with seeing me in my undies. So in the belly update picture below, I drew on a shirt so nobody has to see my bra. But you will get to see my photoshop skillz.

Week 19


The belly is even bigger now. I'm at 21 weeks - just over halfway. I had an appointment yesterday, and my doctor while looking at my belly said that my skin looked really nice. I was flattered by this statement. I might have even blushed. I figure she sees a lot of bellies and probably knows what nice belly skin looks like. Also, since I've had all of the other terrible side effects of pregnancy - raging morning sickness, incapacitating exhaustion, now some pretty powerful heartburn - I've been scared of getting hideous and everlasting stretchmarks. So her unexpected compliment made my day.

Last Saturday, Husband and I and longtime blog friend Shower Feelings went to a Birth and Baby Fair. What's a Baby Fair? you ask. Well it is not a convention center filled with babies from around the world in glass cases on display like one might think by the name. Instead it's a convention center filled with tables of organic baby food sellers, prenatal yoga teachers, diaper services, cord blood banks, baby clothes, financial planners, and more. We got a bunch of information, a bunch of free stuff, and this baby bib.



The fair was pretty fun - a bit over the top - but a nice way to spend the afternoon and see a new part of San Francisco.

In other news, I think I have a job. I went to an interview yesterday and on Monday I have to go and observe for a few hours. The lady said it was a formality in my case because I'm "a slam dunk." I'll be working part time with an environmental nonprofit helping in their development department. It's really flexible and I think it will be kind of fun. I'll be working with a bunch of young idealistic environmentalists trying to change the world. Not a bad way to spend four or five months.

Thanks for all the inquiries about the job status. The other interview went well, but ended with an email that said, "We hate you and we think you're stupid." C'est la vie.

But on a happier note, as of Tuesday, our guest room is fully furnished. Nice comfortable queen bed, desk, and leather chair. Now everyone can plan your trips out to see us. I know you've been putting them off until we were ready for you. So, we're ready now and you will have your own room which is nice and bright during the day but the picture below was taken at night. As you can see, Mo likes the carpet, but is not allowed on the bed. Book your dates now. Come and see us!



Coming Soon: As soon as I find the cord for our scanner, I'll scan the ultrasound pictures we got last Friday and post them for you. Just to let you know in advance - our baby is cute. Also Gabe, I'll get a patio picture up for you soon. It is looking good out there with a little herb garden, hanging flowers, and a lemon tree. But there is still room for two chairs and a grill. A perfect place for you to smoke your pipe when you come to see us.

Life Across the Country

Our furniture and boxes were loaded onto a moving truck outside our Brooklyn apartment on March 25th. They didn’t arrive at our new apartment in San Francisco until Saturday, April 12th. One month later, only 12 boxes are not unpacked and the place is shaping up nicely. (And you're right sooprgrrl, we have great natural light.)

Here are some pictures of our apartment....

This (following two pics) is our living room, and although you can't tell from the first picture, all those books are in categories and almost all are in alphabetical order by author name.





This is our cute dining room. This is where we eat our dinner and where I put my computer during the day to look for jobs and read your blogs.




Here are a few notes about our neighborhood. It’s very nice and very clean. The houses are all well maintained, lots of people seem to have dogs and kids. There is a huge Catholic church (and school and convent) two blocks away. They have bells that play every day at 7:20 (a.m.!), 8:50, noon, and 6:00 p.m. as far as I can tell. On Sundays though, all bets are off. I can’t figure out when they play. My guess is they play at the end of mass and therefore do not have a set time. So that’s the nice part of having the church right behind our house. The bad part – huge glowing church steeple and cross at night blazing through all the bedroom windows. The bells are beautiful; the steeple – a little tacky.

The weather is weird. All of you who are picturing me sunning myself in my tank top and sandals have the wrong picture indeed. It is very windy and mostly cold. And I don't mean breezy. It is not breezy here. It's windy — like can't wear your hair down 'cause it blows around your neck and chokes you and flies into your mouth and eyes. It's windy. And it's cold — not winter-coat cold, but sweater or jacket and always pants and almost always long sleeves. I have the heater set at about 62 degrees and it comes on every night.

There have been about three days that have been beautiful. I wore my flip-flops once and short sleeves maybe twice. This morning, I walked Brian to the train in jeans, a long sleeve shirt and a sweater. I pulled my hands into the sleeves of my shirt to keep them warm. It's sunny though — almost every day. It's only rained once and that was really only a sprinkle. Some days start or end foggy or cloudy, but for most of the day I need sun glasses.

This week I definitely need to find a job of some kind. Housewifing is fun for a few days as you plan and cook meals and arrange your house, but then it gets kind of lonely and isolating. So this week, I have big plans for human interaction.

Baby Bump Picture Series #1

WARNING: Below there are pictures of me in my underwear.

This first picture is of me when I am 4 weeks pregnant a few days after we found out back in February.



This second picture is of me this morning now at 17 weeks. We heard the baby's heart beat again last Friday. In two weeks we will be able to find out the sex of the baby if we want to. Husband is all for knowing. I'm not sure. All I know is that I'm feeling fat as I sit here typing with my pants unbuttoned.