Are the holidays actually over?!

I apologize for taking so long to get back to blogging, but the holidays have a way of dragging on for what seems to be more time every year. Although they may be over this round, I feel as though I'm just now ramping up for the next big events of my life.... I hope that all of you had a nice holiday season filled with good memories and joyful moments.

Last time I wrote, Mira had just arrived and we had just thrown another successful holiday party. From there we moved into the last minute chaos of Christmas cheer, madly wrapping our piles of presents, which we swore would be smaller this year.... hahaha. For weeks and weeks, and up until after Christmas, Erik fought valiantly with his "craft" project for my family, which was converting all, yes all, 25 years worth of VHS family videos to DVD. Because Erik is not one to do things "half-assed" he edited all the static out of them, organized them chronologically, labeled all the clips, set up DVD scene menus and set the menus to music, then he created gorgeous labels with a picture and all the scenes. Now, not only does he know more about my family than I do, but he is officially the only person alive who has ever watched all of our home movies. He really has proved that he is a perfectionist and that he does indeed love my family. Due to the torturous pain of said project, he is now questioning our need to ever get a video camera for our own family. I am hoping that with a little time, and a little tequila I will be able to squash his disgust for the video arts. Anyway, regardless of Erik's misery, the holidays were great, filled with family, food and laughter. Next year, there will be two toddlers running around, and it will be a fun and totally different experience.

Since the holidays, I have been preparing for my Baby Shower, which is this Saturday, the 10th. My original thought had been to have the shower later in the month, but my bestest friend and Godmom of our baby, Shembi, was going to be here this weekend, so I made plans to have the shower while she was here. A family friend and client of mine and my dad's, is hosting the event with her 3 daughters and I am looking forward to a lovely estrogen laden afternoon. I have to admit that getting enthusiastic for this event, so close to the holidays, was a bit of a struggle. I was exhaused, socially burnt out and fighting off a cold, and the drama I had with getting a *#@!ing invite designed and sent via email turned out to be a major fiasco that had me in tears, twice, and seriously questioning what the point of a baby shower was. However, after an obscene amount of time, I finally got one of the E-invite sites to accept my design, words, and email addresses, and it generously agreed to actually send the freakin' invite after a mere hour and a half of yelling, pleading, and cajolling. Let's just say it was the worst day I'd had in quite awhile, and I was relieved to have it done with. Because of my pathetic emotional attachment to this seemingly simple Evite, I am attaching a link to it, and all of you should view it and appreciate that you have no idea why exactly it took me so long to finish. Please make note of the lovely background, which I created to match my nursery rug. Yes, Erik is not the only sick perfectionist in this family.

I am now at 33 weeks, almost 34 of 40, and am large and waddling. Erik loves to just stare at the belly and giggle in amusement. I find it fascinating that it is actually part of my body. I am most definitely in 3rd trimester now, and by that I mean the bliss of 2nd trimester is behind me. My back aches, my heartburn is more than an annoyance, it's enough to persuade me to sleep sitting upright when it's bad, my mobility and energy levels are sporadic, and getting in and out of a chair or bed has become a series of grunts and gaining momentum. Besides the physical ailments, my mental experience has shifted as well. I swear that one day I woke up and thought, "OK, this is happening, and soon. The house needs to be ready, now!" Granted, my mind feels stronger than my body right now, so the house is not actually ready yet, but dammit, it looks perfect in my head! For months it seemed like I had ages to get ready, and now with maybe 6 1/2 weeks left, it feels like I'm at the last minute and have so much to do to prepare. I am hoping that after the shower, this hormonal nesting urge will whip our house into shape. I'll let you know how that pans out.

During Mira's visit, we had her come over to do a photoshoot of my belly, and due to her fabulous skills and incredible camera we ended up with some pretty nice pictures of Erik and I. For anyone whose ever tried to take pictures of the two of us, they can appreciate what a challenge that actually is, because Erik and I are notorious for slews of pictures with sarcastic and goofy faces. Keep in mind, that since then, I have actually grown a bit more. Here is a selection of the best ones from that day....

The Evite image

Two other contenders


A spiderweb tangle of hands

Doesn't show the belly, but I love the shot

He loves listening to the belly


This was our "Aren't we hot models?" shot

Mira, Erik and Shembi all love this shot and tell me that this is what tall people see when they look at me....

This probably isn't the most "kosher" shot to post, but I love it anyway, and you can't actually see anything your not supposed to, so stop your snickering.


As of Monday, when I hit 34 weeks, this is what my body and baby will be doing:
http://www.babycenter.com/6_your-pregnancy-34-weeks_1123.bc

P.S. I would like to do a little shout-out to G.W. and his woman Jami for getting engaged! Erik and I love being married and I can't imagine my life without him. I wish both of you the same happiness and fulfillment. Congrats!