Finished the Room... Kind Of

I say "kind of" because it's not exactly done until the queen sized bed comes out and we can space the furniture out more, but here are the final-for-now pics:

As soon as he's able to reach the leaves and grab the 'stems' we'll move the furniture around. We also have to remove all of the stuffed animals but, for now, they are living comfortably in and around the crib. This is what Caleb will come home to:

The little touches really made the room come together. The valance and the crib skirt are made out of the same fabric; the little cutouts on the valance match another fabric that will be used in a quilt creation TBD by my mom, aka Nana:

I'm feeling pretty good about what we've accomplished so far and grateful for my mom's help in making it look so good! :)

A Shower to Remember

The best group of family/friends in the WORLD threw a baby shower I will never forget. And to be clear, this was not for me. It was for Caleb. He is the luckiest little guy in the whole world because there are so many people just waiting for his arrival and showering him with a bazillion gifts already, at negative ~4 weeks. He hasn't made his debut and already has somewhat of a fan club.

Much like the last post, I'm going to let the pictures do the majority of the 'talking' here. The shower was at My Other Mother's home. My Other Mother is my best friend Renee's mom and to keep the story short, she has been a second mom to me. Not because my own mom doesn't rock the socks off motherhood, but because I spent lots of time at their house - especially high school years - and because this family is truly my second family. So... I get to her house and see Connor arranging balloons, Renee (Chief Shower Officer) and Sacha and Other Mother arranging the food and Ginger making a fruit salad. It was like Santa's Workshop in January. After a couple minutes of BSing (my forte), I rounded the corner to the living room and this is what I saw:

It was so beautiful and festive... colorful without the pastel blues and yellows that I see in my head when someone mentions a baby shower. It was vibrant but not overdone. It was PERFECTLY DONE! Connor did the flowers and balloons, inside and out, and they were gorgeous!

I saw the frog in the middle of the table and didn't realize he cleverly used the Boon Frog Pod (toy scoop and storage for the bathtub) as the main centerpiece. It was so cute!!!!

The guests seemed to really enjoy the day. I got a few 'thank yous' for not having silly shower games. I have to say... I requested no games, but wasn't the host so I'll just say: "thank you!" to the powers-that-be for making it a low-key but wonderful event. I took pictures of the guests but didn't ask permission to post them here so I will keep them to myself as my personal memory :)  

The presents seemed never-ending and when I got home, I put it out so Paul could see everything. We looked through some gifts that night and other stuff in the morning:



I'm too lazy to go out and take a picture of the real thing in the garage, so here's the photo from BRU. I'm pretty sure the baby doesn't come with it, although we have yet to open the box.



We got two diaper cakes (I wasn't smart enough to take a solo pic of the other one, but it's in one of the pics above). These are so very cool... not only are they cute, but oh-so functional. We didn't have any diapers before the shower and now we have lots! :)



My mom gave this to me. It looked familiar but I was somewhat confused. It is the plate/bowl/cup I used as a kid. I still don't believe she let me eat out of it because it's very breakable yet there are no chips. I am a klutz. I don't see how this is possible.


And clothes? This kid will have plenty to wear since he got tons of super cute clothes on Saturday and, well, I might have done a little shopping before the shower (not posting pics because (a) they weren't shower gifts and that's what this post is about, and (b) I don't want to put them all in the same space because this way I can stay in denial about how much we/I bought):

And finally, blankets, etc. Right now we have 10 flannel blankets, 2 not flannel but warm and fuzzy blankets, a blanket knitted by Grandma Barbara, a colorful safari quilt from Nana, and a flannel quilt, quilted by Nana. I have a feeling I've forgotten some blankets that are tucked away in a closet somewhere so maybe that's not even the whole lot of them. Kid'll be roasty toasty for sure.

As people left the shower, they were treated to yummy sugar cookies in the shapes of a baby carriage, rattle or bear - decorated in blue. These were gourmet all the way. I may have had more than one. May have. My cousin Alex not only got the cookies, she also did the shower invitations and I am so happy she helped to make my day so perfect. I didn't get a picture of the cookies (allllll gone!) but here is the edited-for-privacy version of the invitation (loved it!):

We are so blessed to be given such a hearty start at parenthood. All of the gifts are so appreciated and will be used for sure. I am genuinely touched that so many people came to share the day with me - for Caleb - and it was, 100%, my family and my friends who made it such a happy day to remember.

A special, sincere thank you to Vera, Renee, Sacha, Ginger, Connor and Alex. You did such an amazing job - I can't say it enough - thank you so very much!

A Little Trip Inside My Head

My head is spinning. We're getting closer. 32 days 'til due date to be exact. I have tons to do at work (hence the 15 minute timer I've set for getting this written and posted). I have more to do at home. I feel very much like Doug ("Squirrel!") right now and sometimes find myself sitting idly while my brain races like crazy. Fasten your seatbelts, here we go:

#1: Happy New Year! This is going to be the best one yet!

#2: Picture time! T posted this picture on facebook last week so I asked for permission to post it here:

 And then I altered it:

in case you needed a diagram as to who is who and who is where :)

#3: More pictures! (Well, picture.) T made this for us as a gift and I can't wait to see it in person next month:

We already know where it will hang and don't even have our grubby little hands on it yet!

#4: We met with a pediatrician last week and agree that she fit the criteria we were looking for. She seemed very nice and low key, and also took as much time with us as needed, which we both appreciated. She was open to both Eastern practices and remedies and was ok finding the balance between "let it heal" and "throw antibiotics at it." Her philosophies and ours meshed well. The office itself left lots to be desired, but eh. Not the most important of things on our list. We still have a couple we can check out, but honestly it's not happening before we leave for Nor Cal so I'm glad we liked the first one! We can always change down the road if need be.

#5: I am not hungry but am chowing down on popcorn. As in second bag today. Stress much?

#6: I'm not loving California - or maybe it's my employer  - quite as much as a couple of posts ago. After talking to our Leave of Absence area and the state's EDD department (the people who administer the CA Paid Family Leave program) it seems that I have to take ALL of my PTO before receiving benefits. So, I will get to partake in the program, but since I'm taking my leave in two chunks I won't get that until the last 6 weeks of my leave. I have LOTS of PTO I saved up for the occasion being the responsible person I am. Whatever!!

#7: Mom started sewing baby blankets and the valance already. By next week it'll be the bumper and/or crib skirt. Exciting to see that stuff come together!

Time's up. Must get back to work so I'm not up all night.

A Light Note to End 2010

I have the mouth of a sailor - or trucker - take your pick. Apparently that needs to change or I'll have a foul-mouthed little boy running around here in no time flat. To "encourage" a change in vocabulary, there is talk of a Swear Jar entering our home. What the $%^&?!?!? Rumor has it that the f-bomb will cost me $5 per use. I think that's a bit steep. On the up side, we'll be able to send Caleb to college with that money, no problem. By age 3.

I've been pretty good around the nieces and nephews over the years. Only lately have I let it relax - and only around the older ones. A few years ago, I had two of them with me and apparently let a word slip that I didn't even realize had passed my lips. My nephew said "Auntie! You said the "c" word!" I was shocked, mortified, embarrassed - but confused. I don't even use the "c" word! So after running the past few statements through my memory, I said "I don't think so!" to which he replied "Uh huh... you said c-r-a-p."

Oh, that "c" word.

My Heart Aches

I found out last night that the absolutely funniest blogger I've ever read experienced a loss and it hit me profoundly. Personally. Indulge me in the CliffsNotes version, if you will:

Jen writes a blog about her own infertility experiences and parenting. It's not a funny subject, but her sense of humor overwhelms and takes you on the journey with her. Her language is R-rated (probably why I love her so much); her twist on the English language is hilarious.

She and her husband have an almost-2-year old little girl and her latest pregnancy? Twins! Girls! ... with a condition that made one baby larger than the other - something to do with blood supply although not thought to be Twin to Twin Transfusion syndrome. Jen affectionately called the larger baby "Hog Baby" and the other "Itty Bitty Baby."

Anyway... they delivered the girls last night at 32 weeks via c-section. Their names: Ainsley (Itty Bitty) and Evelyn (Hog Baby). It seems while the worries were mostly about Ainsley being big enough to survive, Evelyn, Hog Baby, had issues and became an angel last night. She didn't make it. And I'm just heartbroken for them at what should be the most joyous of occasions.

This, as with any loss I hear about lately, escalates my existing-yet-suppressed doubts and fears. No, it's not all about me, but I can't help but feel this "what if" kind of sharp pain. It stabs me in the chest then stomps on my brain for days. My heart aches for Jen and her family.

Jen's blog is at www.jennepper.com and is called "Maybe If You Just Relax."

Why I love California

Southern California has always been home and I am grateful for that. Here is why I love California:

• Great weather
• Beaches, mountains, views and scenery
• Big cities like Los Angeles and San Diego
• Small-town feeling cities like Santa Barbara and Ojai
• Cities that feel somewhere in the middle... like Ventura
• Amusement parks
• Shopping galore
• Bike trails, hiking trails, dog parks and parks, parks, parks
• Crazy people (think Venice Beach)
• Year-round growing, family farms, and fruit stands
• Pacific Coast Highway
• Palm Springs and San Diego weekends
• California Paid Family Leave << where are the blinking lights for this one??

Yes! That is my newest reason for loving our beautiful (and broke, but I don't care right now because I am going to take full advantage of a benefit that I'm entitled to, dammit) state!!

I had no idea I was entitled to any sort of paid leave since I won't be out on a pregnancy/medical leave and was anticipating using my PTO for 6ish weeks once Caleb makes his debut. Of course I wanted to take a longer leave, but unpaid leave is not an option for us. But now that I can have some paid time and use my PTO to supplement my wages, I will be able to take more time. Even better, in CA I don't have to take it in one chunk. So I could have one 12 week leave, or two 6-week leaves, or perhaps even break the latter 6 week leave down to 2 week chunks. So much to consider; not exactly sure what works best for us as of now. But yahooooo, I have options and I am loving CA even more today!

We also need to see about Paul's ability to take some sort of leave in the future. He'll need some bonding time, too!

For anyone else wondering about CA leave laws for parents and/or pregnancy, I found this summary very helpful:

http://www.paidfamilyleave.org/pdf/FiveKeyLawsPoster.pdf

Merry Christmas!

If I could pick the perfect Christmas day, this was it. First, we slept in until almost 10. Then, we pretty much stayed in sweats all day and worked on the baby's room (tick tock - only 50 days until we hit the due date!). We didn't have to go anywhere and didn't have to do anything. No expectations. Perfection!

Our original plan was to put the crib together today, but my awesome and anxious husband conquered that one during the week. Today turned into wall decal day. It boggles my mind how much giant stickers can change the whole feel of the room. Anyway, I'll "tell" the rest of the decal story with lots-o-pictures. I think the transformation is pretty cool:

The big elephant in the room (not the rust colored one above, a different kind) is the queen bed that I tried to avoid in pics. We're going to keep it in there for a while since we don't have a guest room right now, but need to somehow incorporate it. We have a good start and I'll post pics when it's done. In the next few days we're going to get a new fan and a couple of floating shelves to put above the elephant for extra storage/display space. Also on the to-do list is getting the bedding made to include the crib skirt, bumper and valance. My mom is coming over for a few nights in January and will set up shop in the room to sew it all.

I'm so excited we're this far along - it happened so fast! Paul was definitely on Santa's "good" list today :) Merry Christmas!!