Boy or Girl?

 Me playing in the mud with my sisters, 1992


Me: Some girl told me today that she thinks Baby Love is a boy. 

 
Timmy: Really?

Me: Yes, and my immediate response in my head was “Well, what do you know?”

 
Timmy: … HAHAHAHA!

Me: But I didn't say it out loud...

 Me allowing a baby alligator to come within inches of my face, 1996

I don’t think it is a surprise to anyone that I think Baby Love is a girl. I’m not sure if this is truly mother’s intuition, or if I’m simply veering toward what is familiar to me. But just in case some of you were worried, I would be more than happy with a mini-Timmy. 

Here's a list of reasons why I would make a good mom to a boy:

I loved catching bugs when I was little.
(I don’t love it as much now, but this passion could be rekindled.)

I know how to climb trees and scale barbed wire fences. 

I can make really good animal sounds.

I’m pretty handy when it comes to hammering, nailing, building, etc.
(Thanks Dad!)

Teal blue is one of my favorite colors. 

I like frogs.

I used to be pretty good at basketball.
(Specifically, the basketball game “Lightning”.)

I can throw a “spiral” with a football. (Or rather, I used to be able to.
It’s been a few years since I tried it last.) 

I’m not afraid to get dirty, if need be. (I used to slather myself
in mud on a regular basis when I was a child.)

I’m fun to go on adventures with. 

I like trying new things. (Having a boy could definitely
be considered a “new thing” for me.)

Me riding a dirtbike, 1988
 
So, who thinks this baby is a little girl? How about a boy?
I started a poll, found on the sidebar of my blog.
Cast your vote. We’ll see who’s right…

Babymoon Part 1: Sweden

Sweden is bright and clean and green and crisp. The sunlight is strong and radiant and the air tastes fresh and cool. Morning comes early as the sun makes its appearance around 3AM. The Swedish people are friendly and beautiful and their language sounds like a series of smiles.

 
We spent about 24 hours in Sweden, staying at a sweet little hotel near Stockholm. On Saturday morning we woke up early and explored the downtown area, marveling at the beautiful architecture.  

We also visited a Renaissance Fair type village called Skansen, recreating what life was like in Sweden in the 1800’s. We suddenly found ourselves immersed in Swedish culture, and I feel like Skansen gave us a good glimpse of true Sweden. There was even a small zoo, stocked with Swedish wildlife – fuzzy moose, seal, elk, and bears. 

 
Timmy always keeps me entertained, and he had a blast climbing up buildings, posing for silly pictures, and attempting to use old fashioned stilts. He was, of course, a natural. (I, on the other hand, was not.)

 
Lunch was found at a Thai kitchen downtown and we did a little shopping to find a Swedish board book to bring home for Baby Love. 

 
Sweden uses krona for their currency, and one US dollar is equal to about 6 krona. This means that something like a $30 meal will cost 180 krona, which tends to take you by surprise upon first glance. Their money is so colorful and whimsical. (See the little boy riding the goose?) 

 
I was surprised to see that there are dandelions in Sweden. I love dandelions and seeing this cheery yellow fellow in the grass made me feel right at home. 

 
We were in Sweden again a week later, but only to spend the night and then catch our flight home early the next morning. At 10PM it was still bright as daytime outside and I was once again awakened by an early sunrise. I left Sweden with an impression of nonstop sunshine, which isn’t too realistic as this phenomenon is completely reversed in the winter months. 

But still, Sweden gets a five star rating from the O’Briens. 

Twenty Six.

Baby Love is 14 inches long this week,
about the size of a leek.

 
In reality, the leek was longer than 14 inches, but we got out a tape measure and chopped it off at the correct length. It is getting harder and harder to find fruits and veggies the right size, and I think Baby Center is a little off with some of its weekly visuals. This week’s was cauliflower, but I have yet to see a 14 inch cauliflower…

My overall feeling for this week has been tired and - when I realized that this is the final week of my second trimester – melancholy. I am excited for September to draw nearer, but I’m also a little anxious as I contemplate everything this last trimester brings. 

 
I have been reflecting on all the best moments of Trimester Two - no more morning sickness, feeling Baby Love’s first flutters – and this week I've been soaking up these last days of being in the middle of my pregnancy. Everything seemed to even out in this trimester, and somewhere between weeks 14 and 26 I became totally used to and comfortable with carrying this life inside me. It was smooth sailing and I had almost forgotten that eventually I will no longer be pregnant and this baby WILL make an appearance at the end of these nine (ten) months. Really? I was beginning to feel (quite contentedly) as if I would be pregnant forever. 

 
I love being pregnant. It’s such a beautiful, miraculous journey, and I honestly feel as if these months have been some of the happiest of my life. It’s bittersweet to see an end in sight.

 
But at the end of these last three months
is the promise of meeting Baby Love – finally - face to face.

Twenty Five.

Baby Love was 13.5 inches long last week,
about the size of a Greek cucumber.  

My 25th week of pregnancy was spent walking up hundreds of Greek stairs, exploring the ancient ruins, and sightseeing in Athens. We happened to find this incredibly long cucumber at one of the many fruit and veggie stands in the Grecian seaside village we spent several days at and decided it was the perfect length to use for a 25 week belly shot. Let me just say that, looking at these pictures, I have a hard time believing that 13.5 inches of anything could fit inside my belly.

But, I must look legitimately pregnant now because nearly everyone commented on my belly and asked me "how many months" I was. I would hold up six fingers to show six months and receive loud exclamations of "I hope he comes out strong!" and "Oompa!". One of our waiters told me that "Children are like angels from heaven" and showed us many pictures of his son that he had stored on his phone. Greeks love children and I was told repeatedly that “Children are life! They are everything and bring the whole family joy.”

Baby Love was especially wiggly last week, especially on the plane rides. Every time the plane hit any turbulence I could feel her kicking crazily near my ribs. Several times I could feel a tiny arm or leg push out and I could actually feel the hardness of a small hand or foot. Her usual schedule of sleeping during the day and becoming active at night was totally flip flopped due to the time change, and I enjoyed being awake for all her little flutterings. 

Home, home, home.

Last night, after 10 days of travels, our plane landed at the Madison airport. It was 8:00 PM here but our bodies, used to a totally different time zone, thought it was 6:00 AM. We hadn't slept a wink since we left Stockholm 21 hours earlier, and after making a quick stop at Chipotle to get dinner (or breakfast, depending on how you look at it), we went home, showered, and collapsed into bed.

I honestly think that one of the best parts about vacations is the coming home part. All of the little lovely things I normally forget to appreciate suddenly become a source of complete happiness. 

Here are a few:

warm showers
soft towels

cold glasses of filtered water

my own bed and pillow

a quiet house

a kitchen full of food

my slippers

clean pajamas

I think I have said, "It's good to be home. Isn't it good to be home sweetie?" a hundred times since we arrived back at our house.

Babymoon 2011 was the best vacation of our lives, for real. But truly

it's good to be home.

Summer Fun.

 

A couple weeks ago Timmy and I began to compile a list of summer fun activities we wanted to make a point to enjoy this summer. Here are some of the things we’re making a point to schedule into our dwindling weeks before the baby comes.

Visit Devil's Lake.

Explore the Bristol Renaissance Faire.

Have a peanut butter sandwich picnic.

Fly a kite.

Visit the Circus World Museum.

Spend an afternoon exploring the Madison Zoo.

Go for a long walk in the rain.

Spend a night in a hotel.

Get dessert at Cafe Manna.

Wander around the Arboretum.

Go strawberry picking.

Visit a pet store to see the baby kittens.

Buy fruits and veggies at the Farmer's Market downtown.

Try the hummus at Bunky's Cafe.

Plant tomato and basil plants on our deck.

It's exciting to be counting
down to something so sweet...

Traveling While Pregnant.

Problem #1: My super cute one piece swimsuit no longer fits my expanding stomach.
Solution: My slightly scandalous tankini I bought while still in high school DOES fit me, in the loosest (tightest) sense of the word. I feel a little bare. (But since we’ll be traveling to a country where topless swimming is considered acceptable… my uncovered back and exposed belly probably won’t even get a second glance.) If I thought I would actually have more reasons to wear a suit this summer (aside from our trip, it’s doubtful), I would invest in one of these super cute maternity suits:

http://www.apeainthepod.com/Product.asp?product_Id=199320082&MasterCategory_Id=MC9

http://www.apeainthepod.com/Product.asp?product_Id=690000082&MasterCategory_Id=MC9

http://www.apeainthepod.com/Product.asp?product_Id=199730082&MasterCategory_Id=MC9

Problem #2: Greek water is sketchy.
Solution: I’m worried about buying water bottles with the labels written entirely in another language. Some bottled water isn’t even actually filtered, and I’ll have no way of knowing which is which. I don’t want to take a chance on getting sick from something nasty - especially, especially while pregnant. And so, meet the Bobble. This water bottle actually has a built in carbon filter and filters the water as you drink it. Genius!

(I tried to come up with more problems, but really, these are the only two major ones I’ve faced when planning for traveling pregnant. Everything else feels the same!)

Baby Quilt.

My idea for the baby’s quilt was to combine an eclectic blend of fabrics, patterns, and colors. It would be a little girly in places, and a little boyish in others, with lots of neutral patterns in between. Colors like orange and pink bordering each other in a combination that only JUST works.

Mom and I spent hours debating different fabric choices and in what order they should be placed. In the end, we chose 17 different fabrics and got 1/8 of a yard of each of them. We took them home, cut them into 3 inch strips, and sewed them together. A "strip quilt" - named this because it is composed of many strips of fabric. This is the easiest quilt I have ever made, taking approximately three hours of my Easter Sunday afternoon, from start to finish. The end dimensions will be 40x46, and the only thing left to do is cut some backing, batting, and binding and then quilt the layers together.

A Conversation: About Birds

Timmy: Birds are devilish little creatures.

My (Pregnant) Plate: Dessert

As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve given up refined sugar. I do eat natural sugar from sources like honey, maple syrup, and agave nectar. (I definitely do not eat artificial sweeteners. Things like Splenda, Equal, and Sweet n’ Low are really just poison in disguise.) It is actually quite easy to make yummy sugar free treats since with most recipes you can substitute sugar for either honey or maple syrup. It is MUCH harder to find pre-made treats without any sugar. That is why I literally bounced for joy when I saw this:

Coconut milk ice cream! Not only is it diary free and soy free, but it is sweetened with agave nectar. No sugar! This is so rare and almost impossible to find. And the best part is that it tastes amazing - ask Timmy. He tried a spoonful at our parents' house and then immediately went out and bought four quarts of it. It comes in three flavors - vanilla bean, chocolate, and mint. My favorite is the vanilla. 

I have also found chocolate chips that are made with rice milk and sweetened with evaporated cane juice. Yummy. Our dessert of choice these days: Strawberry Chocolate Sundaes. (Even if you're not vegan, things like coconut ice cream are a healthier alternative to regular ice cream that is high in fat and sugar.) 

Vegan Strawberry Chocolate Sundae
3 scoops So Sweet vanilla ice cream
lots of fresh, organic strawberries
melted chocolate *name* chips

Combine ingredients in a pretty bowl. Enjoy!