feeling ready

It has taken me awhile to feel this way, but I am ready for this baby to come. Technically, I have 6 more days until my due date, but I think I am good to go. The house is basically cleaned and organized, loose ends for work are almost tied up, we have a car seat to take junior home in and I simply feel "ready". If you would have asked me 2-3 days ago, I would not have felt that way though.

It took a massive organization session (and maybe a month or two of tossing and turning at night) to get me to this point. Kent and I did some major decluttering on Saturday and I could not have done it without him. Truly, he is my voice of reason when it comes to getting rid of the old. His mantra: "When in doubt, throw it out." It worked wonders for our back room which is now the baby's room. Our space is still limited, but Kent is slowly helping me get over my pack rat tendencies. Who knew I didn't have to save every birthday card I received 5 years ago!

Anyway, back to baby. I am ready and he is ready, at least growth wise. The doctor said she thinks he is currently 8 1/2 lbs. and he has long limbs. I have heard ultrasounds can be off, but he has measured large the entire time so I am expecting something a little on the massive side. Maybe we should call him Maximus? The thought of a big baby is somewhat daunting, but like I said, I feel ready. It is just time.

While I feel prepared for birth, I am not sure where I am at when it comes to bringing baby home. It is difficult to imagine Kent and I as a family of 3 and it is amazing to think we will be responsible for a wee person. I guess the first while will be a lot of sleeping, eating and changing on the baby's part, but it is still child-rearing. Thank goodness I have a wonderful husband and an amazing support system. I am grateful my mom can come down for a few days to show me the ropes. She has done this ten times so she is full of knowledge and experience.

Enough of this rambling and onto walking to hopefully get this show on the road. I can't wait to see what the next couple of days will hold.

new arrival

It's shiny and new with a lot of spunk...

Welcome to our family little Mazda!

Kent has been searching for the perfect car for months and we finally found it--on craigslist none-the-less. I'm so proud of Kent and his perseverance. We don't have any buyer's remorse YET, and we hope that lasts. We (mainly Kent) looked at many cars, but this one won out and just in time because...

This thing is about to pop.

Seriously. Look at that belly?! Scary. Only 10 more days to go.

Excited about our new car and excited to fill it with a new little person.

Now, if we could just figure the car seat out...

no-joke noggin

How would you feel if your doctor told you that your baby's head measured 37 weeks, but you were only 33 weeks along?
Definitely something to ruminate on....

babymooning in chicago

Ever since we discovered we were going to have a baby, I have been planning on a "babymoon". In my mind's eye, I envisioned us in a tropical paradise lounging by the ocean's edge, sipping virgin daiquiris, basking in the warm sun (big belly and all). While I would have loved this scenario, we went somewhere completely unexpected and totally different from what my 3 month pregnant self imagined...CHICAGO.

Due to time constraints, busy schedules, etc., we didn't know if we were going to be able to pull off a pre-baby getaway, but we did it! Kent had two frees flights on Southwest so we chose a destination about 48 hours before we left. New York was on the list, but that trip gets pricey real quick. We threw a few other cities around, but Chicago won out and I'm so glad.

We spent three days in the famous Windy City and walked more than my out of shape body could handle, but we loved it. Here are some photos from our short-notice adventure.

Architectural boat cruise

This is a must I think. You get to see the city from an entirely different vantage point.

We were pretty cold, but it was worth it.

We heard the stuffed pizza was something else at this pizzeria so we checked it out. They weren't kidding about the "stuffed" part. I never knew I could get sick of cheese, but I think I reached my limit. There was so much of it!

I didn't think I could eat stuffed pizza again, but the night after going to Giordano's we decided to give it another go at Lou Malnati's. Both of us preferred the second place. Lots of cheese, but not as heavy.

We did a little shopping on Michigan Avenue and I of course had to stop in the American Girl doll store. It was amazing. My 12 year old self would have gone crazy. As it was, I was amazed at the things they had there: a doll hospital, a doll salon (pictured above: $20 for doll hair styling) and a cafe where you and your doll can eat together. Little girls were carrying their dolls around going from one spot to the next. It was great, but I think Kent is happy we're having a boy.

Nighttime on the Riverwalk.

We were there for the first weekend of holiday festivities. Big cities are magical during the holidays. Really, they are.

In the lounge at the top of the John Hancock building. It had a pretty fantastic view of the city.

And I really liked these photos of Kent.

He doesn't even try, he just strikes poses like a model.

If you couldn't tell, this is a bathroom. Yes, it is the view from the women's bathroom in the Hancock building. I couldn't resist taking a photo.

The actual building from below.

Our least expensive meal of the trip, but our favorite meal of the trip.

We loved Portillo's!

Unfortunately for Kent, we missed baseball season, but we lucked into a great second: a football game at Wrigley Field. Apparently, a college football game hadn't taken place there since 1938 so it was big deal. Plus, state rivals were playing.

We weren't cold or anything. Okay, that's not true. We were freezing!

The field.

Definitely a fun time, but we'll have to come back in the summer for a warm baseball game.

On our way to the Field Museum. I loved the fall colors.

The Bean.

Up close.

The Belly in the Bean.

Outside the Field Museum. We liked this museum, but I think we'll try the science and industry museum next time. It was just a lot of natural history. My favorite part: watching an old video about Eskimos while sitting down.

Our last night enjoying the decked out streets after eating some delightful beignets at Grand Lux Cafe.

We had a wonderful trip and I'm so glad we were able to make Chicago happen. We loved our hotel, the ambiance and the city. Next time we go, Kent can take his little buddy to a Cubs game and I'll submit to a day in the American Girl store if and when we have some girls.

sneak peak

I got an unexpected view of Baby Sommer yesterday at my doctor's appointment and he is already a cutie. Kent never really knows what is what in the ultrasounds so I thought I'd do a little labeling.

Baby Sommer (still nameless)
30 weeks old

We're not prepared for him to make an entrance quite yet, we need the 2 1/2 months remaining, but we are excited. I hope he looks like Kent. I'd love a little tow-headed baby with blue eyes running around, but I will be happy with anything as long as he is healthy and happy. Who knows what the mix will bring!

fall by phone

It has been awhile since this blog has been updated so it's time for a seasonal review. We haven't been using "real" cameras lately, but we have been documenting a few things via phone.

Here we go.

Let's start with the most exciting event: Kent's Birthday. My young husband turned 30 a few weeks ago and we celebrated at three different events.

#1-Arcade Fire Concert

This kind of doubled as a birthday/late anniversary gift, but Kent loves the band so we counted it more as a birthday celebration. We joined Zach and Mel (who are now engaged...woohoo!) last minute and amazingly ended up sitting right next to them. That really was a miraculous coincidence. We bought our tickets individually on different days from different people, but ended up in the two seats right next to them. Good friends, good seats, great show. Go here for more details.

(I thought this chandelier was amazing)

#2-Dinner at the Blue Bayou

Have you ever wondered what it's like to eat at that restaurant smack dab in the middle of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland? Well, I had, and Kent's parents fulfilled that dream for me through Kent. Kent's mom and dad took us out for Kent's birthday at the one and only Blue Bayou. The ambiance was fantastic and the food was pretty good. We all decided they can charge you more simply because you're eating where you're eating. Thanks for a fun night, Mom and Dad Sommer!


#3-Friends, Food (barely) and Ghostbusters

On Kent's actual birthday, Dave and Danielle and Zach and Mel came to Seal Beach where we ate a rushed dinner at Taco Surf then headed over to the local theater on Main Street to catch Ghostbusters on the big screen. It had been years since I had seen that movie and it was much more funny than I remembered. I was probably 8 or something when I saw it last so I'm sure I didn't get any of the jokes. I don't have any photos from the phone, but here's a little reminder of the night.

(I don't know how, but I completely forgot about the State Puft Marshmallow Man. That was the best part!)

I hope Kent enjoyed the birthday events. He's such a wonderful man and I'm so grateful he's my husband.

We've also been doing a lot of Ragnaring. I know that's not really a verb, but it feels like one. My job with Ragnar has taken us to all sorts of races in Southern California this fall. What do we do on most Saturdays? We grab our Ragnar gear and head out the door early in the morning to different events. We basically work a 6 day work week which is amazingly fine because we get to spend more time with each other.

First race we attended. Not a ton of success, but at least we got out there.

I couldn't do this job without this guy. He's the best.

In action at the Rock'n'Roll LA Marathon Expo. That belly is just getting bigger and bigger.

We're hoping we find some gold at the end of the Ragnar rainbow, but we'll see.

We also saw the Weepies at this little place in San Juan Capistrano called the Coach House. I LOVE that band. Mellow, upbeat, happy. Even their sad songs are happy. One of their songs used to be my cell phone ringback tone. Anyone remember "All This Beauty"? It was on there for a long time...

Not the greatest shot, but here's a great song that you might enjoy.

Also, the lead singers are married have two young children. We saw their baby with a friend/babysitter in a front sling with big headphones on to block out the loud sounds. It was adorable.

Last but not least, this fall has been full of egg consumption.

I read that you should have 2 eggs a day while pregnant so that you know your baby is getting enough protein. Therefore, we've been eating a lot of fried egg sandwiches and egg burritos (pictured above) lately. It's a good thing we like eggs in this household.

More has happened since I started this blog a couple of weeks ago, but this is going to have to due for now. Life is going well. It's busy, busy, but great. Grateful to be where we're at at this point in time.

respite

Things have been busy around here lately, and when I say busy, I mean the kind of busy where I feel like I don't have enough time to get myself dressed and ready for the day (that happens when you work from home) until noon. I just go straight to the computer after Kent leaves and start working. Not a good habit, but one I've picked up. Things should settle down soon. We'll see.

I do have some fall updates coming, but in the meantime, I want to share a song that helps me feel calm in the craziness. I discovered it on a music blog by our good friend Dave. (He has great taste in music. I just put the playlist on and I'm set for a couple of hours.) The song is called Grow Till Tall by Jonsi. Who's Jonsi you might ask? He's the lead singer of the Icelandic band Sigur Ros. They're great. Worth looking into.

Without further ado, here is my respite song (it's not really a video, it's just the song, but that's all you need to take you to wherever it takes you. A video might be distracting actually.)