38 Weeks

This is me at 38 weeks. Hoping to have this baby soon, although since we don't know the gender, and haven't agreed on a boy's name yet, I am also hoping desperately that it's a girl. I just know I will be stressing about it going into labor if we haven't picked a boy's name yet!

Our yearly snapshot of the craziness of motherhood

Each Mother's Day for , since I've become a mom, we've tried to capture that perfect picure of me and the kid(s). It was a lot easier when Jack was younger and there was only one of 'em. Now, it's a struggle in patience and creativity to somehow capture both of their angelic faces sitting still AND smiling toward the camera. This year, my ginormous tummy added to the difficulties... I just can't move well! Also, I'm wearing a prescription knee-high compression hose on my left leg to combat pain from varicose veins, so I'm just not feeling too picture-perfect these days. Ugh. Guess that's life with kids, huh?

29 Weeks

My sister Val, who lives 10 hours away, has been begging me to take belly pics for awhile now. But I haven't been able to snag much of Brian's free time these last few weeks, especially since soccer began (he's reffed 27 games in the past month!). My photographer of choice had to be four-year-old Jack. He's still learning the basics of using a camera, of course, and his two shots both cut off my head. Oh well... as Val said, "Who cares about your head? This is all I want to see!"

The latest in "Mater" pics

BTW...

Dear Kate

So, here you are, half a month old already, and your due date is still on my upcoming calendar. I actually started writing this letter a few weeks ago, when I thought I had plenty of time before you were born. I started writing it after feeling a twinge of guilt. I remembered how, during my pregnancy with Jack, I'd written a series of diary entries, detailing my daily routine, how I was feeling and all those wonderful body changes. I realized I'd already become what I said I wouldn't: one of THOSE moms. The ones who openly admit that they don't spend as much time fawning over their second child as their first. The moms who forget to take pictures, who let scrapbooks fall by the wayside...
But then I realized that I HAVE been chronicling much the same way this time around, via my blog. I've faithfully recorded, every few days to a week, what's been going on in my life, and I've not failed to mention how utterly excited we are to have you join our family. After that realization, I let go of the guilt.
You have, since your birth, been largely ignored in my writings. Mostly because you sleep all the time. You wake up to eat and poop, and then fall blissfully back into shuteye. I don't remember Jack ever sleeping this much!
You are soooo darn sweet. You hardly ever cry and are quite beautiful--everyone says so. You look so much like Jack that sometimes I think you are him. You are nursing well but have trouble keeping up with me when I'm full. Sometimes it seems like you just want to open your mouth and have the milk flow in. I keep telling you it doesn't work that way! You are not giving me nearly the same trouble during the middle of the night that Jack gave me. My mom says I am much more relaxed this time around, and that you can sense that. She says you're a lot like me as a baby, and that makes me happy.
I am quite excited to usher you through your childhood. Will you be a ballerina? An artist? A soccer player? Will you be feisty and stubborn like your brother, or will you be the more laidback second child? Will you be a big sister or the baby of the family? I can't WAIT to see what life holds for you, Kate!
Love,
Mommy

A general update

Things have settled down a little, after all our traveling. I'm now at 35 weeks and expecting an end-of-June delivery. Brian's students finish school on the 18th, and my mom will be here the 20th. I need to get busy with a playmat and cribskirt. We also need to stock up on diapers, but are trying to remember if Jack wore preemie size, or just went straight to newborns. We're assuming baby Kate will be just as skinny!
We spent the day yesterday in the Carson Valley of Nevada, where Brian had an eye doctor's appointment and we both toughed it out at the dentist. In between appointments, we caught a matinee of the new "Night at the Museum," the first time the three of us had been to a movie together since the last "Night at the Museum." Jack was three months old the first time. I remember it distinctly because I had to change his diaper halfway through the movie, and looking up at me from the changing table there in the movie theater bathroom, he laughed for the first time. What a moment!
Brian's applied for three open vice principal positions in Las Cruces, but hasn't heard back anything. We've tried not to get our hopes up, and every day without a phone call brings us more back down to earth. My poor sister Val's been laid off in Texas, which also looks like a door into the perfect opportunity for her to move to Cruces, thereby partially fulfilling our dream to live in the same town again someday. Someday! We know there's a plan for us.

Mothers' Day in Mammoth

(33 Weeks Along!)

Sooooo not me... but me all the same.

Wishful thinking steered me to the Internet a month or two ago, where I discovered a beautiful designer diaper bag. The brand is Oi Oi, made in Australia, and supposedly owned by a whole list of celebrities (about which I really don't care, but it does give it a nice pedigree). The diaper bag I used with Jack? Carefully chosen at my favorite store, Target, and simple as simple can be. I was content with it. But the Oi Oi bag? Yowsers! It was beautiful. I bookmarked the site and searched for a better deal... but everything I came up with was in the low three-figures. Fast forward a few weeks, a few dozen more looksies at the bag online, and put me in New Mexico at my in-laws' house. I jokingly mentioned the bag to them, as well as the price tag. Less than twenty-four hours later, it had been ordered! And it was waiting for me upon our return to Las Cruces today. Wasn't expecting such generosity... but I won't complain!

27 weeks

Et cetera

We just got back from a whirlwind trip down to the San Bernadino area. We'd originally decided to go because I needed to have an echocardiogram in Loma Linda. My doctor in Mammoth just wants to make sure that, with my heart murmur, I'll be O.K. giving birth at an elevation of 7900 feet. While we were in civilization, we also decided to take care of some necessities that we can't take care of here. And, of course, we did some major shopping. It rained buckets much of the time, and several inches of new snow greeted us upon our arrival home. We dragged poor Jack along with us everywhere, so a highlight of our trip was his reward: a night at Chuck E. Cheese!


Our first day back in town, we had an ultrasound in Mammoth. Sole purpose: to find out whether this thing kicking my tummy incessantly is a boy or a girl! Of course, the hospital is afraid of being sued, so all the technician could say was, "There are no signs to indicate that it would be a boy." Translation: GIRL! Big sigh of relief, especially on Brian's part. I would have been fine with having a brother for Jack, but my poor hubby was itching for a girl! We celebrated with lunch at Carl's, Jr.
On our way home, we spotted a dog sled expedition just off the side of the road. Two teams were readying to depart. It was an amazing sight! Two dozen tails were wagging like crazy, two dozen voices contributing to a cacophony of barking. As soon as a team would take off, their barking would stop, silenced briefly by the strain of pulling the weighty sled. I felt sorry for the half dozen dogs who had to stay behind.

(Please pardon the darkness and graininess of the photos; the only thing we had to take them was Brian's cell phone, and I had to zoom it a bunch to get the shot of the dogs.)

On the finger again...

I haven't worn my beloved wedding ring since November of '07. I'd lost so much weight after having Jack that it kept falling off (see a Myspace blog entry, below). I never had it re-sized because I wasn't sure how much weight I'd lose. Then, when I became pregnant again, I realized the ring would have to wait a little bit longer. Poor thing has been sitting, neglected, in my jewelry box! But, after playing with my engagement ring this morning--which I've been wearing in place of my wedding ring--and noticing that it was getting a little tight, I went right to my jewelry box and switched the two out. No more sliding up and down my finger, no more falling off accidentally, no more fear of losing the most precious piece of jewelry I have. My wedding ring is mine again! Well, for a few months more, at least.

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Two Blogs in One Current mood: indescribable Category: Life I was thinking the other day about writing a blog about my weight loss. Since having Jack, I've lost all my baby weight... and then about 25 more pounds after that. (The last five was due, in part, to the flu I got on Thanksgiving, but hey, it still counts!) Everyone keeps telling me how great I look, and I do feel wonderful, but I also feel guilty because I haven't really done anything to lose the weight. I eat whatever and whenever I want, and I don't work out. I am, however, still nursing, and I do have to run around all day after a toddler. My jeans are all too big now, and when we can afford it, I'll have to buy some more (but am kind of waiting to see if I'll lose some more weight before I do!). So, I was planning on writing that blog yesterday, but then realized, hey, my sister's moving to Texas! If anything, that's what my blog needs to be about. She left today, actually, and will spend the next couple days driving to Dallas, where she'll stay with our mom's cousin for awhile, until she finds a job and a place to live. I am so excited for her, to be young and single and without anything holding her back. But I am also extremely sad to see my sister, my best friend, Jack's "T.T.," leaving California. No more Sister Nights, no more walking the dogs around the neighborhood, no more shopping or just coming over to hang out. It hasn't quite hit me yet, but when it does, I'm sure there will be plenty of tears. Anyway, Val stopped by this afternoon on her way TO TEXAS. She needed to drop off a few things that just didn't fit in her car. And as I was waving good-bye to her from my doorway for the last time, my wedding ring flew off my finger and landed in the bush! Yes, because of my weight loss I need my ring re-sized, but just haven't had the chance to do it yet. After Val drove off, I had to get down on my hands and knees to find the ring, buried among all the crunchy fall leaves and dirt and empty snail shells and seeds from the tree overhead. And all I could do was laugh, because somehow, I'd found a way to bring my two blog topics together.

2009 so far

I haven't written much for long, so I thought I'd make a list of what's been going on in the Marshall household in general.

1. We were in Reno last weekend, in hopes of seeing Idaho play at Nevada. Unfortunately, ticket prices were atrocious (and we would've had to buy a full-price ticket for Jack--anyone over the age of two!), so we decided to spend our money elsewhere. Idaho ended up pulling off an upset, winning 78-73 over the five-time Western Athletic Conference champion Nevada. Go Vandals!
2. Our trip, in spite of the basketball disappointment, was successful. Brian got a nail gun (insert caveman grunt here). I finally found four more yards of my beautiful Blue Damask fabric so I can start on some curtains for our bedroom. (The damask is pictured at right; all my other recent coordinating fabric purchases are to the left.)

And we picked up our Christmas present to each other as well: the Dyson Absolute Animal. Behold this thing of beauty, which will fulfill all my dreams of a pet hair-free household. (I'm sick of doing crunches amongst mounds of animal hair.)

3. Jack is taking naps of about three-and-a-half hours every day. Hallelujah! My love of his naps makes me question myself: is it wrong of me to enjoy that time away from my son, time to do scrapbook, bead, cook, clean, or do whatever else I want? I don't care... I'm only going to have this extra time for a few more months, so I'll enjoy it while I can!
4. Baby's doing fine, although there may be some problems with my heart murmur and giving birth at an elevation of 7900 feet. A cardiogram is scheduled for next month so they can check things out.
5. I've been inspired by Peter Walsh's book It's All Too Much. I'm now totally into cleaning, organizing, and purging. It's a wonderful feeling, and I would recommend the book to anyone.
6. Brian's still loving his job. His basketball team has yet to win a game, but on Tuesday, they scored ten points... which made him proud. (He doesn't even know what the other team scored.)

We're pregnant!