Patiently waiting… January 2, 2009

Happy New Year from the two Christensens… yes, that’s TWO of us at 40 weeks and 2 days. We are patiently waiting for the big day, but Baby C will arrive on his/her own time.

 

Quick Facts: Pregnancies are not defined as “overdue” until they reach 42 weeks… The due date is an educated guess, and most babies are born 1-2 weeks before OR after the due date… Moms-to-be who go past their due dates are known to become quite uncomfortable, irritable and crabby… Dads-to-be give good neck and shoulder massages and are essential for help with getting snow boots on and off.

No Pasa Nada December 29, 2008

Hola, friends! Nothing’s happening… I am STILL with child, baby is healthy and I’m feeling well. I’m feeling quite SUPER-SIZED, but doing as well as can be expected.

 

Here’s a quick belly shot, as of 39 weeks and 5 days:

 

We had a wonderful Christmas and hope you all did as well. It was mostly quiet and restful. We celebrated with all three families (Dec. 21 and 25) and were able to get quality time with everyone, including my parents who are home from Arizona, Joe’s aunt who is home from Charlottesville and my oldest nephew who is home from Houston.

 

Two things I cannot do without these days are 1) my yoga ball and 2) a really good book:

 

My doula, Megan, turned me on to the yoga ball a few weeks ago and it’s been a Godsend. It’s great for stretching my legs and watching TV/reading during those times when you just can’t stand to be sitting down (in the traditional sense) anymore, or you’ve already been up moving/walking around for awhile.

 

Joe’s grandma gave me “Outliers” (the third from Malcolm Gladwell) for Christmas and I just finished it yesterday. I’m highly recommending it to anyone looking for a good, quick read over the holidays. It was a nice break from my recent streak of Elizabethan Era novels.

 

Well, that’s it from our house for this week… Until we have more news to share, Happy New Year to everyone and stay warm!

Active but contained December 22, 2008

Many of you have been checking in with us, knowing the infamous due date is about nine days out. Well, nothing’s shakin’. Baby C is active but well contained, and I can’t say I blame him or her. Do you realize we awoke today to -10-degree temps here in the frozen tundra? I’d stay where it’s guaranteed to be nice and warm, too.

 

There’s really not much to report this week. Joe has kept me distracted through the game of HOCKEY. Yes, at one point recently we attended three hockey games during a six-day stretch: a high school game, a college game and an NHL game. Are we completely Minnesota, or what?

 

My former SID (sports information director/geek) self will also share that we watched ”our teams” — the ones we came to cheer for — rack up SEVEN consecutive scoreless periods before the Wild finally got one past the Flames last Wed. night. But Minnesota lost that game 3-2 in OT as part of Marian Gaborik’s big return.  Surely, you’re dying to know about the other games… OK: My sister-in-law’s son plays for Stillwater High School and they fell 2-0 to Roseville, followed by the Golden Gophers losing 1-0 to Colorado College (which, KJ, meant no jubilant “spelling song”, a.k.a. Minnesota Rouser, all night long).

 

Baby seems to like all of these hockey games. Lots of kicking and moving and such. But just to be fair, I countered by parking myself on the couch and watching plenty of NCAA women’s sports over the long weekend: two Stanford women’s hoops losses (at Duke and at Tennessee) and two Stanford women’s volleyball games (a national semifinal win over Texas followed by a loss in the championship game to “We Are Penn State”). Baby does NOT like it when Pac-10 teams lose, but I guess it’s an early life lesson: Things can’t always go our way.

 

 

So, things are good here. We’re watching lots of TV, staying inside where it’s warm, getting rest and doing tons of reading. I can’t believe one has to be pregnant to finally make room in life for this kind of first-class R&R.

It’s not about the stuff December 17, 2008

But looking at “Baby C stuff” these days sure makes me smile… It’s like I told Aunt LaVae in Charlottesville recently, when I peek into the nursery and see that crib just waiting, I can almost feel the spirit of our little one about to join us.

 

But, there’s more waiting to be done… We’re at exactly 38 weeks today. I feel like air traffic control this week. We’ve prepared the runway and prepped for about as much as one possibly can. Now it’s time to relax and wait for the landing. I’m very much at peace, however (I’m the type of person who likes to plan ahead as much as possible — almost to a fault — but then I truly do RELAX at the end, knowing I’ve done what I can do, so to speak).

 

I’m glad I’m a crazy planner like that, since I have zero energy lately. I’m uncomfortable + can’t sleep well through the night = extremely crabby. Nothing that millions of moms-to-be haven’t dealt with before, but new to me.  And I’m one that likes my 6-7 hours of sleep each night.

 

So, in the spirit of being really tired during my lunch hour and not having much to say… I bring you snapshots of BABY C STUFF. Remember, it’s sooooo NOT about the stuff. It’s looking at it and thinking about him or her that brings a smile to my face and sends a warm rush through me. I ‘m super anxious for the big debut!

 Infant carrier/car seat

 

A cozy crib

 

Red race car slippers – a gift from friends  

 

The essentials: Little side-snap T’s and booties 

 

Bath-time needs

 

A fluffy winter snowsuit and other soft-n-fuzzies

 

Lil’ G diapers!

 

Stroller and pack-n-play assembly in the basement/man room

Baby Love and Pizza December 9, 2008

Here’s a sneak peek of Joe playing the role of dad… Does he look like a natural, or what?!

 

 

 

 He’s actually playing the real-life part of “Uncle Joe” to little Ruby, three-month-old daughter of Joe’s best friend Mike and his wife, Stacy. Missing from our pics is Ruby’s big sister Tess, age 2 1/2.

 

The family moved back home to Minnesota (from Chicago) just over a year ago, and we are sooooo lucky to have such wonderful friends close by, here in the Twin Cities. We can’t wait for Baby C to meet Tess, Ruby, Mike and Stace! Thanks for the fun time Sunday, guys.

 

Speaking of Chicago… Last night for dinner, we feasted on a lovely Chicago-style pepperoni pizza from TasteofChicago.com, shipped to our door as a surprise, compliments of BFF KJ. Thank you, KJ! We could only wait a few days before thawing it out and baking it. KJ visited us in early November and recalled me complaining: “We can’t get good Chicago-style pizza here … ” (insert more whining, etc.). She decided a crabby, pregnant woman had better have her way.

 

WOW, did we hit the jackpot or what? This delightful pie cooked up like a charm, full of flavor and all… Here are the pics to prove it. If Baby C has any of his/her dad’s tastebuds, the kid is floating in amniotic fluid heaven right now. Yum.

 

 

Hi, EOB: Lastly, this is a shout out to my good friend Erin in Boston. “EOB” gave me an earful the other week about always posting belly shots but never a full-length photo of myself. Well, EOB, that’s because I always look like HELL at the end of the day, my face is puffed out, I sweat uncontrollably (even in winter!), and you’ll get to see plenty shots of me looking hagged out while holding Baby C — soon enough.

 

So, here’s a Full Monty shot from the pregnancy portraits I had taken a few weeks ago. The lighting carefully hides the bags under my eyes and MOST of my double chins… EOB, think of me this way. I bet you’ve never seen my belly button before.  ;-)

 

Always, the little things December 1, 2008

This past week marked our fifth Thanksgiving together, and it got me to thinking about how tough things used to be when we were dating and living on opposite coasts…

 

Baltimore and San Francisco. Dealing with phone calls and a three-hour time change. Weeks apart, missing each other. Taking red eyes all the time. And later on, when Joe moved to Minneapolis, HATING that Sunday night return flight to SFO.

 

It also helped me realize how appreciative I am for some of the little (and very big) things in our lives:

• Time spent together, without having to hop planes
• Close access to loving famillies, times 3
• Great friendships: Those we’re building here in Minnesota added to those from our former cities
• Our small, progressive neighborhood (with close access to Tim & Tom’s Speedy Market for days when you just need a few bananas) 
• Short commutes!!
• Going to matinee movies during the offseason (esp. those starring Hugh Jackman)
• And, despite the ARCTIC weather here this time of year, yes, I am thankful for MSP: A place to make our very own together

And, a few other things I’m thankful for this week…

 

A healthy belly at 35 1/2 weeks (with one very active tenant)

 

A husband willing to tackle home improvement on the weekends (he’s adding carpet strips to the wooden stairway to “slip-proof” it before Baby arrives)

 

So, what are the little things that make you smile these days?

Babymoon wins in OT November 21, 2008

Leave it to the two of us to wrap our “babymoon” into the Minnesota-Wisconsin football weekend in Madison. Good times!

 

What the HECK is a babymoon, you ask? According to Wikipedia, it’s “a vacation taken by a couple that is expecting a baby in order to allow the couple to enjoy a final trip together before the many sleepless nights that usually accompany a newborn baby.” I lie not. Check it out for yourself. And yes, I am a complete sucker for most marketing ploys like this…

 

Our babymoon was great. We spent two nights with Joe’s cousin Brian and his fiance, Rory, in Madison (Final: Badgers 35, Gophers 32), and two nights at the lovely Marriott, West Madison. I can hardly complain about Joe’s long road trips during the summer. Racking up Marriott points definitely helps offset that hardship.

 

During the first half of the trip, I put a heavy emphasis on the prenatal massage part, while Joe focused on the “enjoy” portion by tailgating and attending the game with Brian, Uncle Steve, Aunt Mary and the rest of the Rochester gang. They had a fab time. The last two nights, we shared some quality time at the Marriott, tore up their workout room each day and indulged in tons of reading, too.

 

Lucky for me, Oasis Day Spa in Madison has a cool setup for pregnant clients. It’s called the Prego Pillow. And it changed my life! This huge, hollowed out pillow allowed me to lay face down on the massage table, with my belly suspended comfortably off the table. I haven’t laid on my stomach since… early July? Thanks again to Rory for carting me all over town while our guys partied in the 30-degree weather. Like me, she can appreciate the friendly confines of shopping INSIDE when snow flurries begin to fall.

 

I have a great pic of Joe and Brian, all bundled up, headed to the game. Will have to post that one over the weekend. Fatigue and tiredness are taking their toll on me again during this final stretch. I am struggling to find the time to blog over lunch hour anymore, let alone REMEMBER to download photos when I get home from a trip. Sounds like the beginnings of parenthood, right???

UPDATE: Here are pics from the Minnesota-Wisconsin football game… Pre-game of Joe and Brian, and listening to the band at the student union.

 

 

Happy Friday! Joe and I will be celebrating TGIF by beginning our childbirth classes at the hospital tonight. It’ll be a weekend packed with nine hours of instruction spread over tonight and Saturday. Woot! Sounds like tons ‘o fun.

Ice, snow, sleet? Bring it on November 12, 2008

Ever since learning our due date was Dec. 31, one of my biggest fears has been surviving the Great Winter of these parts… while waddling around at eight-plus months pregnant.

 

It’s completely par for the course (for me, anyway) to slip on an icy sidewalk once or twice each winter. Sometimes you catch yourself. And sometimes you don’t (ouch). Well, my fears have been eased a bit today. Enter Yaktrax!

 

Check ’em out:

 

 

I picked up a pair of these slip-over-your-shoes-or-boots grippers at REI over the weekend. And my timing couldn’t have been better. Yesterday brought freezing rain. Today, we woke up to a fresh coating of snow. Luckily last night, I completely outfitted my Uggs. Take a look:

 

 

 

I still waddle. And I still lack for a normal center of balance. But I FEEL much safer sensing my boots are gripping onto something.

 

Nesting is still happening at our place, too. Here are some sneak peeks of the still unfinished nursery. What you’ll see is furniture, including the latest item assembled by Joe on Sunday — the glider (YAY!). There’s still lots o’ organizing and decorating to do, but you get the idea that a baby will soon be living here:

 

 

Our 33-week check up happened this morning, and everything is looking really good. We also had a “meet and greet” session with our pediatrician yesterday — and both LOVED her. We can already tell she’s going to be just great with Baby C. She’s very outgoing, enthusiastic, fun — and to the point.

 

Ciao for now… And if you also live in a cold-weather climate, be careful out there!

‘What a Country!’ November 7, 2008

If or when Baby C ever stumbles upon this blog some day, I’d be remiss without mentioning the historic week we’ve all witnessed! Not to get too political on the baby blog (I do that in lots of other places), but there were tears of joy in our household Tuesday night. And kicks of joy.

 

Seriously, he or she was kicking a lot during the speech at Grant Park. Pretty awesome. I wanted to at least get it in writing so I don’t forget to enter it into the baby book at some point. As baby kicked away, and Joe and I squeezed hands, I kept hearing the voice of Tim Russert in my head… The late (great) NBC political bureau chief and long-time host of Meet The Press always quoted his dad, “Big Russ,” as saying, “WHAT A COUNTRY!” … Amen.

 

To fully document the growth spurt that’s underway these days, I’m including more belly shots again… Here we are at 32 1/2 weeks. I am definitely not the quick and coordinated one in spin class anymore!

 

 

 

In other news, my good friend KJ visited from Chicago last weekend. It was so great to catch up. The three of us had a blast together, including a Gopher hockey game at the XCel Center in St. Paul and a trip to St. Paul’s own Chicago Bears bar, Alary’s. Of course LaVelle was part of the fun, too! Here are a few shots of us at the hockey game and the next day, watching Da Bears. (KJ said she’d never seen so many people in one bar wearing Bears jerseys!)

 

 

 

Oh, yeah, and it SNOWED this morning… Here’s proof (sorry for the screen in the one shot).

 

 

 

Oh, to be in Arizona among family members (like little sister Julia!), where it’s a nifty 70 degrees.

Belly shots: Halloween edition October 31, 2008

BOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Here we are at 31 1/2 weeks.

 

Sometimes I really DO feel like I’m carrying a pumpkin around in my belly…  A feisty, little pumpkin who practices his or her bicycle kicks between 3 and 6 a.m.

 

 

 

Happy Halloween!