Christmas is for...

Reflection.

Meditation.



Thoughtfulness.

Rest.




And making sure those darn neighborhood cats don't steal the Christmas lights!

P.S. Yes, we typically do keep bedding on our beds, but I was washing the sheets, hence the naked mattress pad.

P.P.S. Can you tell I'm enjoying my new camera? :)

"Oh, Mom...." or A Few Thoughts from Weber

I sure hope my mom doesn't smother this kid as much as she smothers me...

The schmoopy woopy voice and googly eyes are super embarassing.

She's gonna make that boy crazy.

And speaking of my little brother, here's the latest belly shot at 21 weeks. We're halfway there, folks!

Three More Days

I am armed...

And ready...

For a Christmas vacation.

The Happy Dance

One of my oldest Internet friends, Katie of Footy Pajamas, just sent me a super fun little Blogging Award! Katie and I have been "blog friends" since the olden days of Xanga. We have never met, but we will someday, and in the meantime I am taking notes as she journeys through the adventure of raising an adorable little boy. She is real, vulnerable, wise and hilarious...check her out!

But back to this award thingie. All I have to do is tell you ten things that make me do "the happy dance," which in my book is synonymous with the giddy squeal. They are interchangeable based on the appropriateness of the social situation. I'm sure you understand. But with no further ado...

1) Baby Boy Clothes. I'll never forget my first visit to the Target baby section soon after finding out that I was expecting. When I got my hands on a particular little striped sweater sleeper I just couldn't contain myself...out came the giddy squeal! I promptly whirled around to make sure that no one witnessed my outburst, and when I was reassured that I was alone I proceeded to squeal my way through the entire department. No shame in my game. (Oh, and I definitely squealed last night when I snagged a Carter's fleece bunting for next winter at Macy's for only $5...eeeeeee!!!!!)

2) Weber's greeting as soon as I walk in the door. If you need an increase in your self-esteem, get a dog. There's nothing like that tail wagging a mile a minute, that goofy puppy grin, and that happy little prance down the hall just because YOU'RE HOME!

3) Knowing that my husband is finished with finals! And beyond that, reflecting on the past three years of watching him get to this point. I am so stinkin' proud of his discipline and hard work and it is amazing to see it pay off with good grades and--more importantly--fulfillment. I am even more proud of the fact that he manages to do all of that while still enjoying life outside of optometry school. There will be a full-out happy dance party going on at our house today when he gets home from school!

4) Relaxing at the end of the day by the light of the Christmas tree.

5) Penzey's Hot Cocoa. If you are lucky enough to live near a Penzey's spices, you must get your hands on their hot cocoa mix! For me, it even beats out Williams Sonoma hot chocolate. When combined with #4 the happy dance is inevitable.

6) The end of the semester! I know I'll be ready for my students to return in January, but it sure is nice to enjoy a quiet office and uninterrupted time for all those "One of these days, we're going to..." tasks that never get finished during the semester.

7) Quality time with good friends. I'm about to see many of mine in a couple of weeks and can hardly stand the wait!

8) An adventure on the horizon. If you've been reading this blog for any time at all, you know that I am a travel junkie. Nice house? Meh. New car? Meh. Fancy things? Meh. Dining out? Meh. Just give me a plane ticket! If I don't get a good trip in at least every other year I get a major case of wanderlust. Luckily we've got a ski trip with three of our closest couples planned for January. Don't worry, yours truly will not be shredding the slopes, but warming the couch in the lodge with a stack of good books! The big adventure on the horizon? Thailand 2011!

9) Mariah Carey's All I Want for Christmas is You. When it came on the radio this morning, I happy danced all the way down Highland. If any of my fellow morning commuters had glanced over into my car, they might have been concerned for my sanity.

10) "When Satan tempts me to despair and tells me of the guilt within, upward I look and see Him there, who made an end to all my sin. Because the sinless Savior died, my sinful soul is counted free! For God the Just is satisfied to look on Him and pardon me!" That freedom, and the birth of the Savior who gifted it to me, make me do the happy dance every day, and will for the rest of my days!

What makes you do the happy dance?

A New Holiday Classic

Well, it is far from new, but it is new to me!

Last May I met a coworker from another department who is an absolute movie buff. By movie buff I mean that she has Word documents with alphabetized lists of her entire collection, complete with descriptions, critiques, and cross-references. The girl knows her flicks, and I am reaping the benefits by allowing her to introduce me to all the great movies that I have missed out on in life thus far (I feel like Kate Winslet as Iris in The Holiday with her recommendations from Arthur Abbott...gumption!). She is currently introducing me to some Christmas classics, and this weekend I watched what just might become my new favorite Christmas movie...


This film was just adorable from start to finish, if you're into the simple, predictable plot and comedy that are so typical of the good ole' days of film. And I just so happen to be into that sort of thing.

When a sailor returns from WWII after weeks of starvation, he lays in his hospital bed reading magazine articles featuring the delicious menus and remarkable homekeeping of Elizabeth Lane, the Martha Stewart of her day. His nurse writes to the head of the magazine and gets the sailor an invitation to Elizabeth Lane's Connecticut farm for Christmas.

The only problem is that Elizabeth Lane is actually a single, childless, New York apartment-dweller who can't cook! Her attempts to pull off the act lead to a hilarious and sweet Christmas in Connecticut that will leave you all warm and fuzzy inside. Add some hot cocoa, a sleepy puppy, and a Snuggie, and you've got the perfect winter evening!

And, yes...I just said Snuggie. More to come on that later, but in the mean time, go rent this movie and add it to your list of holiday favorites!

Good Read, Good Dog

I couldn't find a picture of the full cover, but this month's Garden and Gun magazine cover features the most gorgeous shot of a German Shorthaired Pointer. I spotted it in the check out lane at Whole Foods and snagged it for Jonathan as a "something brainless to read when you're finished with your studying" present. Turns out he really enjoyed the magazine! So if you're looking for a holiday gift for your man and he enjoys hunting, the outdoors, and Southern food and culture, get him a subscription! It might just be in Jonathan's stocking this year too...



Or you could just get him a German Shorthaired Pointer. They are, after all, the prettiest, sweetest, most enteraining dogs on the planet. But I'm a bit biased (see adorable pointer in upper right hand corner).

Note to self: Figure out how to get Weber into modeling. She is a canine hottie...we could make a killing!

Note to self, Part II: Figure out how to get Weber to sit still for longer than 2 minutes in order to have a decent picture taken...

Note to self, Part III: Oh, yes...problem solved. Just bring bacon.

Water, Baby!

Another doctor's appointment under my belt, and all is well!

Baby Boy was awfully sleepy this morning, so she really had to poke and prod to get him to wiggle around enough that she could see all his little organs! (He takes after his mother already; waking up is a process, people!) Ultrasound technology never fails to amaze me. While I see the obvious--a head, limbs, etc.--the tech is pointing out organs, the placenta, and all kinds of crazy stuff! At one point, she told us that she was going to check the four ventricles of the heart, and I thought to myself, "Ummm, yeah...and how are you going to do that on something so tinsy???" But then she zoomed in and Voila! four tiny little boxes, beating in sync, clear as day. And rest assured that he is definitely still a boy. I've got a nice full frontal shot to prove it, but I'm trying to get off on the right foot and avoid embarassing my son before he even enters the world!

It was so fun to have my parents there for this ultrasound! When they had children 30 and 27 years ago, ultrasounds were only for at-risk cases. I guess I had forgotten that while Mom and Dad had seen ultrasound pictures, they'd never seen one live on a screen! Mom was in tears from the second they turned the volume up on the heartbeat, and Dad was just mesmerized the whole time. It definitely made it even more exciting to have them there! (Mom and Dad, hope the show was worth the drive! ;)

I did, however, get a little scolding. You see, throughout my entire adult life my biggest health shortcoming has been my minimal fluid intake. I can go an entire day without taking in liquids, and I never feel thirsty. It is a problem! So I forget to drink fluids in general, and I'm afraid that I have been only slightly better since I've been pregnant.

Well, apparently the ultrasound technician could tell just from the ultrasound that I am dehydrated. Little did I know, dehydration causes Braxton Hicks contractions, and even though they are too slight for me to feel, I am already having them as evidenced by the ultrasound. Oops. Jonathan, who has nagged me about my lack of hydration since I've known him, gave me a lovely glare from across the room as soon as she mentioned it. So I've received a good kick in the pants and fresh motivation to stay hydrated, and I'm pretty sure I'll have my own personal Water Nazi to make sure it happens! Momma's sorry, Baby!

Last, but not least...the weigh in. I really am fine with the amount of weight I've gained so far, especially when I remember that I'm halfway through this pregnancy. But honestly, even when you know it is all for good cause and within a reasonable amount, I'm not sure I will ever get used to the sight of seeing that little marker on the scale move to the right! It was another good piece of motivation to keep eating healthfully, watching portions, and exercising throughout this pregnancy. (And I had been wondering why the balls of my feet were hurting more when wearing the same pairs of heels that I always wear to work; add an extra several pounds and they are bound to hurt! Good incentive to never be overweight...I love my heels!)

I will leave you with a brilliant piece of clarification from my doctor, for all my prego friends out there. The whole "don't sleep on your back or you will cut off blood supply to your baby" thing? Meh. No worries. True in theory that the weight of your uterus might put a bit of pressure on the anterior vena cava (I should so go to medical school...unless, of course, I got that name wrong. In that case, disregard.) But my doctor said that it is really more of a theoretical thing; as she pointed out, women in labor lying flat on their backs with their uterus contracting like crazy still have babies with healthy, steady heartbeats throughout. So no reason to wake up in a tizzy because you rolled onto your back in the night. Sleep in whatever position is comfortable for you. Unless, of course, your doctor tells you differently. Then do what s/he says. Despite my anterior vena cava antics, I really have no clue what I'm talking about.

Now off to the water fountain I go...

Tomorrow

I will visit my doctor again.

I will get to see my little boy on an ultrasound again. Let's hope he's still a little boy...

I will hear his heartbeat again; the best sound in the world to me right now.

My parents will get to see their grandson and hear his heartbeat too...they are tagging along!

I will step on the scale to see what kind of damage the return of my appetite has done over the past 5 weeks.

I will ask my doctor a new little list of questions (How late can I still travel? How bad is it really to sleep on my back? I keep waking up on my back and worrying that I have suffocated my kid! What is this cord blood banking business all about and should I do it? Have you ever met another woman whose pregnancy gave her dandruff? No? It's just me? But Google said it was normal! Awesome.)

I will do a little baby shopping, you know, since Grandma and Grandpa are in town (cheesy grandparent names or lack thereof are TBD).

I will eat a yummy lunch out before returning to work.

I will be completely unproductive for the rest of the day, lost in a haze of baby bliss. It happens every time I have an appointment. I might as well take a whole day off instead of just a half.

I will spend the evening baking and wrapping for my first ever Cookie Exchange. I hear the competition is pretty stiff and am hoping my inner Martha Stewart can hang... (Even if she can't, I still get to come home with a whole loot of cookies. It's a win-win.)

I will enjoy another evening of getting to do what I want to do instead of what the Greek calendar tells me I must do. FREEDOM!!!!!!

I will enjoy some cocoa by the light of the Christmas tree and periodically yell random encouraging words (You're a genius!!!.....You will dominate Pediatric Optometry!!!.....Optics? I spit in the face of Optics!!!) to my finals-ridden hubby.

And the sun will come out. No, really. It is raining cats and dogs right now and tomorrow it is supposed to be sunny. So the sun really should come out tomorrow. But even if it doesn't, I think I've got some sunshine of my own on schedule.

(All together now...AWWWWW....or just gag yourself. It was cheesy, I know. But Christmas is for cheesiness, right?)

A Christmas Responsive Reading

Please join me in this responsive reading in celebration of this joyous time of year:

Blogger: Behold! The end of the semester has come!

Bloggee: Rejoice! For dead days are here!

Blogger: Dry your eyes, oh ye students!

Bloggee: Cease your wailing, oh ye faculty and staff!

Blogger: For the nights of hard labor are over!

Bloggee: The weekends of obligation are through!

Blogger: For a time has come when all deadlines have passed, all syllabi have reached their end.

Bloggee: A time has come for freedom, for rest, for joy!

Blogger: Tis true, beloved! The end of the semester has come! Rejoice, oh ye people of the Academy!

Bloggee: Shout for joy! Raise your Pandora volume on high in celebration!

Blogger: For dead days are here!

Bloggee: They are here, indeed!

All: Amen.

Obsessions

For my memory's sake, a sampling of my pregnancy cravings...

First, the Arnold Palmer. Sweet tea plus lemonade. The best specimens are found at McAlister's Deli and Chick fil A, but a reasonable subsitute can be made in the Tiger Den soda fountain.

Speaking of Chick fil A...bring on the waffle fries! Correction: bring on any form of potato, preferably fried and doused in salt. They are really good for the baby, I promise.

Pei Wei, you have always been my favorite Asian Diner, but these days my love has grown to an entirely new intensity. And the day the dude gave me Mongolian chicken instead of Mongolian beef I just about shoved my chopsticks up his nose. Don't mess with this girl's Pei Wei order. Or else.

Early in my pregnancy, my primary source of sustanance was Three Seed bread from Big Sky Bakery in Oklahoma City. It took me awhile to warm up to food in the morning, but if I didn't eat early enough I would feel even worse. Three seed bread, toasted with a thin smear of peanut butter, was my therapy food. It was one of the very few things that didn't turn my stomach and make me gag. Lucky for me, my wonderful in-laws were kind enough to send me a big box that kept me stocked until my apetite began to return. Guess they wanted to make sure their firstborn grandchild was well nourished; that, and they're just really fabulous in general. Thanks, Tom and Anne!

This next option is not quite as simple, because unlike three seed bread, the Camarones Bohemios from Rolando's in Fort Smith can not be mailed in a box and kept in the freezer for an entire trimester. In the weeks leading up to our visit to Arkansas to share the Big News with my parents, I yearned for Rolandos. I longed for Rolandos. I needed Rolandos. I had to hold back my best Herbal Essences impersonation when I finally got a bite of that goodness. Now, the craving is back, and I am counting the days until I get to taste it again when I'm home for Christmas.

There have been others, but those have been random, one-time urges. These are the foods and beverages that consistently haunt my dreams and tastebuds. Needless to say, my appetite is back and better than ever. Unless, of course, you are offering me barbecue, in which case I might just puke on your shoes. Not the best food aversion to have when living in Memphis, eh?

My next doctor's appointment is next Wednesday, so I'll be anxious to see what the combination of these cravings is doing to that scale! Worth every pound, right? :)

Thanksgiving in Pictures

Blogger refuses to allow me to rearrange my pictures, so bear with the random order...but I promise that if you hang in there you'll see something for which many of you have waited very patiently! Here's a little glimpse of Thanksgiving 2009 at our house...

The handsome gentlemen of the family, hiking at Shelby Forest...

Jonathan, Todd, and Weber heading off for a walk. (I promise Weber isn't some hard core attack dog with a muzzle; that's her Gentle Leader. Since GSPs are hunting dogs, they tend to run in a zig-zag--the better to catch those birdies with--the Gentle Leader helps her walk straight without pulling and tripping Jonathan on a long run! It makes her bashful...see those lil ears tucked back?)

A plate of Thanksgiving goodness...

All the kids, both flesh and fur, at Shelby Forest (looks like Weber is onto something in this one! Once a pointer, always a pointer, eh?)

Weber did lots of begging. Lucky for us her begging mostly consists of looking really pretty, cute, and pitiful all at once. And I have to say that it paid off for her a time or two. The girl loves smoked turkey and dinner rolls; can you blame her?

The customary family photo before digging in...

Hostess at work! Carving that pretty lil' turkey, the only contact I had to make with that bird all day! (P.S. Someone in this picture needs a tan, and it isn't my gorgeous golden Tom)

And the moment you've all been waiting for... It isn't the best picture ever, but it will do for now. Ladies and Gentlemen, I now present to you... The Bump:

Thanks to my father-in-law for taking all of these photos and for bringing my brand new camera all the way from Oklahoma (and even turning around to get it after being on the road for 30 minutes!) Now we can keep the pictures coming!