Post-Partum Post

Just a quick update before Tobe and Daddy wake up.

The Man, The Myth, The Legend, Tobin Samuel Sincoff, has arrived! He was born at 4:47 pm on Thursday, December 4, 2008 weighing in at 6 lb 5 oz and measuring 18 1/2 inches. He is fantastically beautiful and healthy.

Ethan and I are exhausted, but overjoyed. My boys are napping on the couch as I type this (Tobe's in the Baby Hawk carrier strapped to Ethan's chest). I'm taking advantage of this break in the action for some "me time"--checking email and posting to the ol' blog.

The surgery went off w/o a hitch. I'm still a little sore, so utilizing my Percoset Rx, but feel great in general.

BFF Kayly is here to help (bless her heart). She made us a wonderful dinner tonight and saw me through my first sleep dep/hormonal imbalance shitfit. I felt soooooooooooooooo much better afterward.

I'm going to wake the little man up for pre-bed feeding in the hopes that he'll give Ethan and I at least 3 good hours of uninterrupted sleep. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

I'll leave you with a picture of Tobin emerging in all his purple, screaming glory and my favorite picture of our very first meeting. I'll post more pics when I'm well-rested enough that I remember to pull my underwear down before peeing. A crisis was narrowly averted, but it took me a sec to figure out why the seat wasn't cold.

Ooey gooey, fresh and jewy!!

So you're the little punk that's been pulverizing my innards for months...

OH! And congratulations to my friends Till and Sophie who both celebrated the births of beautiful baby girls on December 6th and 9th respectively. Discussions of arranged marriages and dowries are already in progress...

And Away We Go...

Not just yet. We've got about 90 mins until we head off.

Somehow I managed to get a good night's sleep, which was wonderful. Now I'm just hungry and dying for a cup of coffee. Ethan's running out to pick up some last minute things (like cat food, so we don't come home to 2 fur-covered skeletons), but I'm ready to go. Just a few more things to throw in the suitcase.

For my "going in" outfit, I've selected a black Maternity T and stretchy black crop pants. The pregnant ninja effect will be offset by my sock monkey slippers. Fuck shoes. Shoes are for bitches.

I was debating makeup since Ethan will be taking pictures in the OR, but I'll probably just save it for visitors from Friday on. I need to embrace the fact that it's perfectly acceptable for me to look exhausted and haggard today.

At this exact moment, I feel surprisingly calm. I've been through the procedure before, so I'm not in the least anxious about that. I'm trying to go into this thing with a confident, semi-cocky "of course everything's going to be fine!" attitude for a change. So far I've managed to muster a very zen, letting-go "nothing I can do from this point on..." attitude instead. It'll do in a pinch.

Turkey Day 2008

Tobin did his mommy a solid by staying put. I hope he's enjoying his first Thanksgiving dinner and turkey coma as much as I did just a few hours ago. Dinner was fantastic. Was it as good as mine? Of course not, but darn close--and far less work.

We had a great time talking about how our families celebrated Thanksgiving when we were kids and how we see ourselves celebrating once Tobe's old enough to join us at the table. This brought up another topic (and reminded me once again of how much I love my husband). Ethan made it very clear that family dinners at the actual dinner table were very important in his house (as they were in mine) and that it's a tradition he'd like to continue. I reassured him that as soon as Tobe starts solids, every dinner will be at the table because I really don't want him launching food all over the living room furniture and carpet.

I had promised Tobe he could make his way out anytime after I shoveled the last forkful of dessert into my mouth, but Dad wants him to chill out until Sunday so we can attend his TWENTIETH HIGH SCHOOL REUNION this Saturday night. I had to put that in all caps just to emphasize how old Ethan is. TWENTY YEARS!!!!! Luckily it's low key, so I don't have to get all gussied up. I really don't know how I'd go about gussying the bump at this point, anyway. Vinyl siding? Maybe I could get Christo to wrap it up like the Reichstag. My only request would be that he use the same pretty saffron color he did for the Gates project.

No signs of imminent labor to report. Saw the OB Wednesday and the ol' cervix is still closed, though very thin and soft. The countdown commences. In just under 7 days (or less), we shall be 3. Sur-fucking-real.

I hope everyone had a delicious, relaxing Thanksgiving. I'll try to post daily updates until D-day, but if I disappear for a few days without a trace, I'm sure you can figure out where I am and what I'm doing.

Finally Some Face Pics!

OK, so they're only partial, but still ADORABLE as far as Daddy and I are concerned.

Went to the perinatologist today for my weekly ultrasound. Tobe is A-OK. Good heart rate, doing his breathing exercises/hiccups, and weighing in at 6 lbs 6 oz. I figured he'd be up around 7 lbs already (big babies run in the family), but he's well within normal range. With gestational diabetes pregnancies, they worry about the baby being too big. Clearly not a problem here.

He's got his arm and/or hands mashed into his face in the pics below (I think you can make out fingers in the second). However, you can pick out his forehead, nose, left cheek, left eye and upper lip.

Have you ever seen such smushy-faced perfection??

We are so ridiculously ready for this kid. Ethan even practiced diapering and swaddling my teddy bear last night. He did a fantastic job. Tonight he even read a few chapters of one of my 1,000 parenting books, bless him.

I just might let him near the baby after all...

Speaking of babies, here's my furry son, Fred, with the "baby" I made him.
When he's not snuggling it, he's biting its throat and shaking it violently.
I've stopped calling it "Baby" for obvious reasons...

The Maids are coming again tomorrow. Will be fab to have a clean house for Turkey Day. The place is actually in pretty decent shape since the last time they were here 2 weeks ago. I hope they appreciate it.

The Oldsmobile is being cranky. The battery is clearly not dead and yet the engine won't turn over. Therefore Ethan has to take the Toyota to work tomorrow while I call the mechanic to tow it and have a look. Hopefully it's something simple and not too expensive. If it's expensive, we'll probably just junk it.

This means I'm without a car tomorrow, so I get to hang around while other women clean my house. That's kind of awkward. At least they won't be here nearly as long as last time.

Looking forward to a relaxing 4-day holiday weekend with my sweetie.

Full

As I mentioned, I'm 37 weeks today. I'm full term and full o' baby. Note the "Can you believe this shit?" expression I'm sporting. The bump cannot possibly get any larger than this without the skin on my stomach bursting down the center like the skin on a baked potato.

Just saying that made me want a baked potato right now. It's 2:19 am. That's ridiculous. I am never not hungry, but even I realize that that's a bit much--unlike my 1st trimester when I'd be passed out by 10:00 pm and waking up just about now to cook myself some eggs and toast. Now I want eggs and toast. No more food references.

Behold my awe-inspiring girth!!! I swear my arms weren't that fat yesterday. That had better be all milk-making fat, dammit.

I'm Officially Over Being Pregnant Now (Slightly Graphic)

I will be 37 weeks on Friday. For the last 2 days I've noticed a marked increase in Braxton Hicks contractions. Today my OB said that my cervix is still closed, but softening up. Every step I take, it feels like the baby is going to fall out. Every time I go to the bathroom, I check the toilet for my mucus plug.

Tobe spends his entire day napping between bouts of pummeling my cervix with both fists. I saw him on the ultrasound Monday. Not once did he move his hands from in front of his face. He looked every bit the boxer he is. "Keep those hands up!"

He really hates the Braxton Hicks contractions. As if it's not cramped enough in there already, now he's being squeezed several times a day. He follows each BH with a brutal round of punching, kicking and stretching. He loves to brace his feet against the back of my uterus and shove his bony butt out as far as he can. I smack it (gently of course) when he does that.

I'm soooo very ready for him to come out. I look forward to enjoying his presence in prescription painkiller-induced bliss.

The nursery is coming together. Got the carpets down, the curtains and some decorations up and most of the extraneous crap cleared out. Our friends Abi and Andy are coming over Friday night to help put the crib together. I believe Andy, in addition to being a theater prof, is also a master carpenter, if I'm not mistaken. When I took one look at the crib instructions, I knew immediately that Ethan and I would probably kill each other if we tried to do it ourselves.

I figure he and Andy will work together much better and with far less frustration than he and I would. Not that he and I aren't a great team. It's just that two people trying to do something neither is good at is a recipe for cursing and/or tears--especially when one is exhausted and cranky from being 9 mos preggo and cries at the drop of a hat.

Once the crib is up and I've put the mattress and bedding in, I'll snap some pics to post here. The bedding, decorations and carpet go fantastically with the pale yellow walls. It looks very cheery and sunny.

The walls were that color when we moved in, so we didn't even have to paint. However, the walls are plaster, so it makes hanging pictures and such difficult. Luckily, there were already 5 nails in the wall perfectly placed for 5 of the decorations that required hanging. The rest can go up with fun-tac.

I'm off to order groceries online now. I'm also over waddling up and down the aisles until this kid comes out.

Crap on a stick!

It is exactly 3 weeks (less 6 hours and 45 mins) until Tobin's scheduled appearance. Great googly moogly. I'm terrified. Not of the surgery, I've had that before. Not of him finally being here and the awesome responsibility that entails, I've been ready for that for years, and I will treasure every sleep-deprived, hair-tearing, sore-boob moment of it.

I'm terrified of the those first few minutes between them pulling him out and telling me he's absolutely fine once they've suctioned all the goop out of him and given him his APGARs. I really need him to be OK from the get go. I know c-section babies sometimes need a little breathing assistance at the start, but I want him to come out wailing and red-faced and furious and I want them to wrap him up like a little sausage and hand him to his daddy so I can dote on him for a few minutes before he gets whisked off to the nursery and I get wheeled to recovery. I'm not sure if I can handle things going any other way, and I hope and pray it's a non-issue.

Then, when they bring him to me to nurse for the first time, and I've accepted the fact that he really is here and really is OK, I'll quietly scold him for the 9 months of worry and panic he put me through, not to mention the daily beatings.

Tuesday Blather

Just a quick post tonight...

Saw my regular OB today. She says everything's still locked up, but the baby is "way down there." This was evidenced by the fact that she was feeling the top of his head through my cervix rather than just inside my pelvic bone like last time. TMI, I know. I just wanted to put that out there since it's the full moon tomorrow.

I think I'll not only make it through that, but perhaps through Thanksgiving as well. I picked up Whole Foods' holiday menu today. Fantastic pre-cooked full course turkey dinner for less money than it would take me to buy all the separate ingredients and I don't have to cook it--just heat it in the oven. AMAZING. If my folks decide to come up, I'll order the meal for 8 so we'll have plenty of leftovers. If they don't, and it's just Ethan and I, I might order the dinner for 2 or still order the dinner for 8 so we don't have to cook for a whole week.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Thanksgiving and cooking Thanksgiving dinner. I just can't manage it this year for obvious reasons. I fear that the Whole Foods version will be so delicious that I will be tempted never to cook my yearly feast again.

I'm excited about our first holiday season as a family. Trying to keep myself from going overboard for Hanukkah. I want to decorate like crazy and take lots of pictures, but Tobe'll only be 2-3 weeks old and will most likely sleep through the whole thing. Also, I'll still be recovering from surgery. :( Next year, maybe.

Speaking of Hanukkah, Isaac Mizrahi has made whole line of Hanukkah-related doggie accessories. I bought Lulu and Fred a squeaky menorah and dreidel. They were only $4.99 ea. They love them. $10 well spent!

Random Tidbits

The Maids came and cleaned the house from top to bottom today. AWESOME! There must have been 2 years worth of dust trapped in various pockets in the house. I didn't do a white glove test, but they passed the white sock test. I've been walking around in stocking feet all day and the soles are still pristine.

Now we just have a good amount of clutter to purge. You should see what we've thrown out and freecycled already with help from our friend, Susannah. BIG Thanks, Suzie Q!!!! I have 2 weeks to work at that little by little until the cleaning crew comes again. I'm not kidding myself that we're going to get through all 4 closets in that time. I see that as an ongoing project for the next year. I just want to get the nursery together and clear up the remaining clutter in the nursery, bedroom and living room.

I must be honest, I felt slightly guilty about paying people to clean my house while I sat at Starbucks and addressed holiday cards. It's a treat for now while I'm too preggo or busy with baby to do it myself, but it is an added expense when we're trying to eliminate expenses.

Hopefully once the baby's here and settled in I can maintain things myself and just hire someone once or twice a year to do a giant spring cleaning so I don't have to move furniture and scrub baseboards, etc. As I've always said of myself, "For a socialist, I sure have a shitty work ethic."

On the other hand, it did feel kinda cool to pretend I was a rich corporate wife who runs errands and shops while other people do her less savory tasks. Nice to get a glimpse of how the other half lives once in a blue moon. It was a big job today, so I made sure to tip the crew double the suggested amount.

Lulu supervised them in my absence. She's an excellent foreman, hence her nickname "The Foreman." She spent the last few months watching construction crews and landscaping crews out the bay window all day long making sure they were working hard and not lallygagging.

Fred went around sniffing everything after the ladies left. He appeared confused as if to say, "This does not smell like my house." To his credit, I do not believe he's peed on anything to rectify that just yet.

So, things are coming together. My house is actually clean enough that people could drop in unannounced, which is usually my biggest fear. We cleared out a lot of junk in the nursery and put down the area rug. Just need to put the crib together, hang the curtains and decorations.

In politics, Keith Olbermann gave a fantastically touching special comment last night regarding the anti-gay marriage bills which passed in several states last week. You can check it out here. Perfect example of why this man is on my "list." That, and his impeccable grooming. Guys should always wear ties. No exceptions.

Speaking of my "list," can I just say that "Renegade" is the SEXIEST Secret Service nickname of ALL TIME???

35 Week Belly Pic

I can't believe the difference between this pic and the 32 week pic.

First of all, it not only features no makeup, but wet hair as well. HOT!!

Secondly, do you see the size of that thing??? How am I able to remain upright? How has he not dropped to the floor with a wet plop yet? I would think the laws of physics would demand that I remain on bed rest for the duration. Or hanging upside down from the ankles.

I'm astonished that the female body was meant to be this malleable. If this kid gets any bigger, I fully expect him to emerge clutching a graduate diploma in one hand and a briefcase in the other.

And let me hasten to add that that's all baby, uterus, fluid and other pregnancy-related gunk! I'm still weighing in at 5 lbs under the weight I was at my first OB visit.

Oh--I misspoke in an earlier post regarding the full moon on 11/13. I'll be 36 weeks, not 37. I might just eke through it OK!

Little Bit o' Nesting

I say "little bit," but I'm drenched in sweat and about to hop in the shower after a tall glass of ice water.

Hopefully Ethan won't check the blog before leaving work, since this is supposed to be a surprise for him. The biggest part of the surprise is that I actually felt up to doing something today! I really think the majority of my malaise and lethargy was election-related. Now I'm rarin' to go!

I want to get a certain amount done before our friend Susannah comes over Saturday to help in the nursery. Fear not, Susannah, I don't plan on working you to death. Just want some help going through all the detritus in there to see what can be thrown out or freecycled. I won't make you scrub the baseboards or single handedly assemble the crib or anything.

So I started by getting one of the many boxes containing brand new baby stuff out of the nursery--the adorable pack n' play/bassinet my parents sent us (thanks Mom & Dad!). I put it together complete with bassinet and toy bar, cleared out the corner of the bedroom where it will live and even swept and mopped that small section of the floor (Ethan can tidy the rest of the room :)).

We also bought a mesh tent to go over it to keep the cats out and I have that 2/3 assembled, but need Ethan's help to pop the last rod in place--the tension was too much for me. Need my strapping Russian Bear to finish the job.

I wheeled it into place and packed a basket full of nighttime essentials (diapers, wipes, burp cloths, receiving blankets, change of jammies, etc.). I think that's enough for today. The baby's agitated. Wants to know why it's so hot in there all of a sudden. Anyhoo, here are the pics. I even made the bed for the occasion and I NEVER do that!

FINALLY!!!

The day I've been waiting for for 4 (say THAT 3 times fast) very, very long years.

I thought I'd have something profound or monumental to say. Nope. Just glad it's here. The Democrats are on the verge of a sweeping victory, and I will be watching with baited breath tonight as this--fingers crossed--unfolds.

I've never felt so strongly about a presidential candidate in my entire life. Not even my beloved Bubba. I was so happy to waddle into the booth this morning with Tobin in my belly. I can't believe he'll be almost 4 years old the next time we do this!

He'll be old enough to go into the booth with me, rather than in me. Unless he goes in with Daddy, of course, which he's welcome to do. I'm totally OK with that being a father/son ritual. He can even push the "Cast Vote" button at the end, assuming we still live in New Jersey and still have the same booths.

There is nothing in this world I want more right this second than for Tobin to be born with Barack Obama as president. With any luck, he'll be in office for the first 8 years of Tobe's life. I want my son's first impression of government to be a positive one; to know that his government and, most importantly, his president cares about the American people and wants each and every one of them to enjoy the same rights and privileges once reserved for the rich, white few.

This hit home the other night when I had my first Obama dream. Obama and I were walking along talking about the future. I don't remember much of the dialogue. I just remember looking him dead in the eye and telling him point blank that I did not want to live in an America where he wasn't president. I really don't want my son to live in such an America either.

Not that the family would pack up and move to another country if he doesn't win, I just think an Obama loss would be a terrible loss for America, and a crippling shame. Besides, the only 2 places I'd consider moving would be Canada or France. I find Canadians largely boring and the French kinda smarmy (no offense, eh, mes amis?). In the end, I'd still pick France, if only for the wine.

Lord willin' an' the creek don't rise, I'll be following this post with a victory post tomorrow or late this evening. Regardless the outcome, I'm thankful to Barack Obama for filling me to bursting with hope and optimism, and reigniting my flagging passion for the democratic process after the election debacles of 2000 and 2004.

Thank you, Barack, you long-legged mack daddy!!! I hope to be calling you President Mack Daddy before the day is through.

Day of Good News!!!

It has been an exceptional Hump Day!

First, I had my bi-weekly visit to the OB this morning. She confirmed that the baby has indeed dropped, but that my cervix is still locked up tighter than Fort Knox, so the little man might just make it to my tentatively scheduled delivery date:

DECEMBER 4, 2008! WHOOP! WHOOP!

I should receive confirmation of the date at my next visit. When I called Ethan to tell him the news, his initial response was "Oh, man." I think it became all to real to him once the date was (tentatively) fixed.

I celebrated by going to Target to buy slippers and travel-sized toiletries and all the other crap I need for my hospital bag.

And then, to top it off, the Phillies won the World Series in game 4. One of my earliest memories is of them winning the series in 1980. I never thought I'd have to wait 28 years to see them do it again.

With Mr. T's arrival and the Phillies winning the series, Obama winning the election next Tuesday would be the hat trick of all hat tricks, if I can mix my sports. Hopefully 2008 will be nothing but good things right through the end. I could use a few good months in a row!

My Latest Pregnancy Adventure

Nothing terribly gross or graphic to follow--just not anything interesting to anyone outside immediate friends, family and other preggos.

I woke up at 5:00 am on the dot this morning with painful contractions. I had had uncomfortable Braxton Hicks contractions periodically, but not quite this painful (Braxton Hicks sounds like the name of one of the pretty boys on Gossip Girl, btw). So I counted how long they were and how far apart. They were approx. 20 to 30 secs apart (EEK!), but then I noticed that they were decreasing in length--the first was about 30-45 secs long, the last only 5 secs. I had a total of 7 (I think--who knows how many I had before I woke up).

I paged my doctor who called me back quickly and reassured me that everything was probably fine and to just take it easy for the weekend unless it happens again. If it does happen again, I'll need to go to the ER for some tests to make sure it's not actually preterm labor. Not a HUGE issue if it were, since I'm already 33 weeks, but I'd like to keep the kiddo in until at least 36 or 37. I just hope bed rest isn't in the cards.

I've been fairly sore all day today. If I had to guess, I'd say that he's just going through another huge growth spurt and that triggered the BH. He hasn't let up rolling around and punching and kicking all day, either.

I did do a little low-impact work today. Ethan and I tackled our own bedroom. We're mostly done. It was the one room in the house (other than the nursery) that we totally trashed since we can just close the doors when people come over. Besides, it's wear the baby will be sleeping when he comes home anyway, so it takes priority over the nursery.

After about 3o mins I was exhausted again, so I rewarded myself by downloading some music off iTunes. I downloaded Pixies (never needed to own my own Pixies since I always seemed to know someone I could borrow from), and the Rockabye Baby! Cure album. I've been listening to Pixies all night now, but only listened to a sample of a few of the songs on the latter album.

For those unfamiliar with the Rockabye Baby! album line, they feature albums of lullaby versions of songs from all kinds of cool bands/artists: The Cure, Smashing Pumpkins, AC/DC, Metallica, and Nirvana to name a few. It's friggin' adorable. I listened to about 10 seconds worth of the Rockabye Baby! version of "Just Like Heaven" and burst into tears, it was so sweet. I'm a gigantic dork.

Crap, I just went to the official web site--there's a Ramones album!! I didn't see that on iTunes. And one of the tracks is "Beat on the Brat!" That's hysterical. Love the song, don't know if I want to lull my son to sleep with it, though. I will have to purchase it nonetheless. Now I just need them to do a Weezer album and I'll be all set.

Bitten by The Baking Bug

Something about the leaves and temperature dropping always sends me into a baking frenzy. I got the itch today, so I made a recipe I tore out of this month's Real Simple to kick off baking season.

I made the apple and pear galette. It was (duh) real(ly) simple. The only annoying part was peeling and slicing all the apples and pears. Normally this wouldn't bother me, but I tire easily and have an abysmal attention span right now. The recipe caught my eye for 2 reasons: 1) Ethan loves apple desserts, and b) it actually called for refrigerated, store-bought pie crust! I have no counter space in my tiny kitchen and therefore cannot and will not make pie crust from scratch. I make all my cakes, breads, cookies, brownies and muffins from scratch, but pie crust is where I draw the proverbial line in the flour.

IT IS ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!!!! Our friend, Andy, came over to watch the free UFC fights on Spike TV tonight and we had it warmed for dessert and served with 2 kinds of Haagen Dasz-- Vanilla Honey Bee and Caramelized Pear and Pecan. Total mouthgasm. The only problem is its enormous size. It's 14" round, so basically a medium pizza. I have no idea how we'll manage to eat the rest. I'll definitely make it again next time I need to bring a dessert somewhere.

I'm not sure how much more baking I'll manage before Tobin arrives, but it sure was fun today!
A few posts back on Ethan's blog, One Guy Talking, he totally blabbed Mr. T's first name. He claims it was an accident. Not that it matters now. We've blabbed it to enough folks that it's not really a secret anymore anyway. Ethan's the only person I know who's even worse at keeping secrets than I am.

In belly news, I had to take the Corolla to the grocery store today as Ethan had parked behind the Olds. I discovered that I have far more belly room in the Corolla. We swapped a while back to save gas (he drives more than I do and the Corolla gets about 1 1/2 times as many mpg as the Olds). We might just have to swap again for the next few weeks so I can enjoy my freedom as long as possible. Environment be damned! Mama's got cabin fever!!

In Feedjit news, someone arrived on my post re: liking weird smells by googling "is it weird that i like the smell of a wet band aid." I discuss liking the smell of BandAids in my post, so I don't think that's weird at all. I just don't know that a wet BandAid smells so much different from a dry one. Perhaps that individual's sense of smell is far more advanced than mine.

Note to Kayly: I swear to GOD that if you leave a comment on this post referencing your superhuman sense of smell again, or pontificate about the subtle nuances of wet versus dry BandAids, I will cut your frigging nose off!!!! :) XOXOXO

Updated Belly Pic for 32 Weeks

I've been slacking as far as having Ethan take belly pics, so I made him take one today. I'm officially 32 wks tomorrow. I'm HYOOOOOOOOGE! I swear my stomach got bigger overnight again. It just kisses the steering wheel now--and I've got my seat back as far as my stubby legs can reach. I also whacked it against the ATM today when I misjudged my newly increased girth. I AM proud to say that I still fit in the booth at our local diner.

Remind me next time to put some makeup on and maybe schedule the pic for when I'm not totally exhausted. At least the baby's photogenic. That makes one of us!

I had lunch with my friend Bilynda and her 5 mo. old son, Marcellus, today. It was great to see them both. He's GORGEOUS! The most content, happy little baby. He smiled at me almost immediately and didn't even fuss when I held him for a good 10 minutes. It was great to see her and grill her with my one million mom-to-be questions. I was encouraged to hear about her success with breastfeeding and attachment parenting/baby wearing, since I plan to do both. Hopefully we can do lunch again soon!

Highlights from This Weekend...

Friday

1. Watching Countdown with Keith Olbermann (he had the day off) and seeing:

a) The footage of McCain having to defend Obama's character and tell his supporters that they have nothing to fear from an Obama presidency

b) The results of the Troopergate investigation come in, proving that Palin abused her powers as Governor. Nice! No wonder she had that gleam in her eye during the debate when discussing the newly expanded powers of the office of VP. Aside to Dick Cheney: Go fuck yourself!!

2. Delicious shredded beef szechuan style from my fav chinese restaurant

Saturday

1. Sleeping ungodly late with my warm, snuggly husband, 2 dogs and 2 cats. I don't know what the furry ones will do when the baby comes and they have to make room for him

2. Lounging in the comfy chairs at Starbucks reading the NY Times

3. Going to the library to find out that my copy of Angler: The Dick Cheney Vice Presidency was in! I'll do a mini book report once I finish it

4. Watching Halloween (the original) for the buhbillionth time while eating leftover shredded beef szechuan style from my fav chinese restaurant. Yes, it's dated, but it still scares the bejesus out of me. I chalk this up to its having been the first horror movie I ever saw (at the tender age of 6--it was edited for TV). I saw the Rob Zombie remake and really enjoyed it, but I have to say that the notion of Michael Myers coming from a perfectly normal, suburban family is far more terrifying than his coming from the white trash, abusive upbringing he had in the remake.

Sunday

1. Sleeping in again, though not as late

2. Sweet talking Ethan into going to the grocery store for me. He did a great job. I'll have to do that again

3. Ethan and I giving Mr. T yet another stern talking to for battering my internal organs all day long. Most of the day it felt like he was working the heavy bag, but he would occasionally switch things up and work on the speed bag for a while. Work that jab, Kid. Work that jab.

4. Cooking a home cooked meal for the first time in ages. I made this chili recipe from Tyler Florence and the accompanying corn pudding with poblanos. It was frickin' awesome if I do say so myself. I made the corn pudding to the exact recipe, but took some liberties with the chili. They didn't have beef shoulder, so I used stew meat. The recipe called for ancho chili powder and chilis in adobo sauce. I had some awesome chipotle chili powder, so I just used that instead of the 2 separate ingredients. It also said to puree the veggies, tomato paste and sugar before adding to the pot. I skipped that step since it was all going to simmer for 2 hours and wound up dissolving into the broth anyway. Also, I added a little more of each spice called for and omitted the coriander. I was totally sure I had coriander before I sent Ethan off to the store, but I was mistaken. Didn't miss it. Unfortunately, Ethan had to buy a 5 lb. bag of masa harina when I only needed 1/2 c. Gives me an excuse to buy a tortilla press so I can make my own corn tortillas.

4. Eating abovementioned chili while watching this week's episode of True Blood. It just gets better and better--and Sookie and Bill finally got down to business, bless their sexy beating and unbeating hearts

"The View From Here" or "My longest friggin' post EVER"

Yesterday I met up with my BFF, Kayly, her mom, and grandma outside the ABC studio for a live taping of The View. Kayly had applied for free tickets aaaaaaaaages ago and was surprised to find some in the mail a few weeks ago.

I don't normally watch the show because I loathe Elisabeth Hasselbeck and think Sherri Shepherd is a giant waste of space. Sweet, but utterly useless. Still, I thought it would be fun to go to a live studio taping as I hadn't been to one before. We lucked out as far as guests. Both Bill Maher and Dr. Drew Pinski were on the show. So was Kevin Farley, hawking his new right-wing Michael Moore parody An American Carol, but we won't discuss him.

Bill was ruthless in his assessment of Sara Palin (I laughed so hard I almost thought I was going into labor). When the conversation turned to religion, things got even more interesting and not a little heated between Bill, Elisabeth and Sherri. See for yourself.




Mr. T beat me relentlessly the entire episode. I'd like to think he was trying to bust out of my gut so he could choke the living shit out of Sherri and Elisabeth.

Dr. Drew was dreamy. Kayly and I both remarked on how tall he is. Not that he appears short on TV, but he's really, really tall! He's a tall drink of Jewish water. Mm mm mm. He was on with a woman who's a recovering sex addict.

There was a wonderful moment where Joy jokingly asked how she, too, could become a sex addict. She stopped laughing when Dr. Drew answered that she'd first need to be sexually abused in childhood. Honestly--do these people not do any research? Even the warm-up guy who keeps the crowd going between segments was cracking jokes about it. Kayly and I just cringed.

Ethan taped the episode for me, but we're barely visible in the audience, small as it is. There's one frame where you can kind of make out the back of my head and part of Kayly's and another frame where I can pick out fuzzy lumps that I know are the 4 of us, only because I know where we were sitting and what colors we were wearing.

There was an awkward moment during Bill's appearance (the first segment on Palin--below) where an audience member with a medical condition (not sure what it might have been, perhaps Tourette's or something similar?) emitted a loud squeal. She had been making similar sounds periodically while waiting in line to be seated. She was escorted out during the following commercial break. It was handled very respectfully by The View staff and her chaperone seemed to be very understanding. I felt badly for her that she wasn't able to see the remainder of the show after waiting in line so long.

However, the girls and Bill had no idea what the source of the noise was, so their reactions are actually quite funny taken in context. It happens around 4:21 seconds into the clip, so feel free to fast forward to that point.

Joy sits bolt upright. Sherri's eyes bug out of her head and Bill just tosses a casual glance in the direction of the noise (he's used to disruptions from the audience).





All in all, it was loads of fun. Thanks again to Kayly for the ticket and experience!

Ethan met me at the train station and we had a lovely lunch al fresco at From Scratch where I regaled him with my tales of the day. Then we went home and took a gigantic nap and snuggled in front of the TV to catch up on episodes of Fringe and watch the beginning of The House on Garibaldi Street about the capture of Adolf Eichmann in Argentina by Mossad Agents. Mossad is hebrew for "badass." OK, not really, but it should be...We started dozing off in the middle so we taped the rest of it for tonight.

I had a fantastic day. Between being too tired to go anywhere or do anything and the crappy weather we'd been having for days, it was so good to get out of the house and soak up some sunshine. I didn't realize until yesterday what a horrendous case of cabin fever I had been nursing.

I have a coffee date with my friend Abi tomorrow, so that will get me out of the house once again. Looking forward to it.

And onto my 2 favorite subjects--Casey Anthony and Sara Palin.

• If you go to the Orlando Sentinel Web site for the case, you can read a great article on the contents of the recent court documents that were released as well as see photos taken from Casey's Photobucket site. What will you learn from these 2 things? 1) Her parents were extremely suspicious for quite some time before the police were even involved, and 2) Casey is a shameless party girl and, apparently, a proud patriot as evidenced by several shots of her wrapped in nothin' but Ol' Glory!!
  


• I giddily anticipate tomorrow night's Veep debate. I hope it turns out to be just as much of a train wreck for Ms. Palin as I've fantasized it will be. If I weren't preggers, I'd make a game out of drinking every time she drops a G or stops mid-sentence when she realizes that what she's saying makes absolutely no sense and she just sounds idiotic.

New pics of Mr. T!!

We had our 29 week ultrasound at the perinatologist today. I can't believe how quickly this pregnancy has gone. The doctor assured us that everything is absolutely wonderful and commanded us to relax and enjoy ourselves for the duration. I can only promise that I'll do my best. It's difficult to process words you never thought you'd ever hear and to let go of 5 years worth of anxiety.

But enough heavy stuff--Look at my fetus, everybody!!!!!! Oops. I mean our fetus. Sorry, babe. Credit where credit is due and all...

This is a 3D/4D pic of his itty bitty face. The consensus so far is that he has:

• Ethan's brow line & chin


• My nose, lips and possibly cheeks
  
  

And this is a full-body profile. Look at the noggin on this kid! He's a whopping 3 lbs. 1 oz. already--which is appropriate for his gestational age, but I was expecting them to say closer to 2.5 lbs. His thigh bones constantly measure up to 2 weeks ahead. I don't who he gets the long legs from, but it ain't me or Dad!

Rub a dub dub, no more tub

After another exhausting trip to the grocery store earlier this evening, I decided to soak all my aching bits in a nice warm tub. My devoted, loving husband brought me an icy cold drink. All was bliss.

Until I decided to get out.

Apparently I am now so large that it is virtually impossible for me to get out of the tub. I had no trouble getting in, but when I attempted to twist my torso around so I could get on my knees and ease my way onto my feet, I was temporarily baffled. It seemed that no matter which way I tried to turn, there just wasn't enough room to maneuver. It was a bit like trying to get an oversized, naked, sudsy couch through a too-small doorway. I was afraid we'd have to call the paramedics or, God forbid, professional movers.

I sorted it out without having to call Ethan in to assist. Even when I did finally manage to get to my knees, I found that my stomach is now so large and heavy that I could barely hoist myself up to my feet. I think I grew a ridiculous amount overnight. My navel is really, really shallow now. It might just pop after all.

Giving up my tub soaks makes me sad. I really enjoyed them. I'll just have to stick with my trusty heating pad and buy a basin to soak my feet and ankles in, I guess. I wish you could see my pout right now. It's very pouty.