Stereotypical

Have you ever noticed that when the state of Iowa is featured in a national news story the TV crew interviews a toothless, overall wearing individual who uses phrases like "ain't" and "can't never"?

Well, last night I was sitting on the front step barefoot, pregnant, and shucking corn and realized I would have been the perfect subject of a national interview. Did I ever fit the stereotype! Scott couldn't pass up the opportunity to snap a photo.

Niece or Nephew?

My brother and sister-in-law had their ultrasound this morning. Is it a boy or a girl? I'm not telling yet because I don't want to steal their thunder. But I know the answer!!! So exciting. I will post the answer next week after they have had a chance to tell everyone.

Progress

I don't have a finished product to show you yet, but we are making progress. On Saturday my dad and Scott installed the ceiling fan. On Monday, Scott's dad painted and last night Scott hung the blinds. The pink is quite bright at this point so I am excited for the furniture to arrive so we can hopefully tone down the pink with some other items.

Baby Shower

On Saturday, Lesly and Cindy hosted a baby shower for me and Baby C. It was beautiful! They had a great cake, flower arrangements, and everything, right down to the lemonade, was pink! Thank you both for all of your hard work. Everything was perfect and everyone had a great time. Here are a few photos....from Cindy because I haven't taken the time to download mine yet. Baby C. got lots of great things and when we were bringing everything into the house Scott said, "Where are we going to put all of this?" This is just the beginning honey!

Funny Little Girls....

Paige, 6 and Sam, 4 live next door to us. If they happen to be outside we'll say hi, but we rarely seem them. On several occasions Paige has shocked me with her good memory and mature questions. Here's what happened last night as I was getting ready to leave for childhood education class.

Paige: "It's almost October."
Emily: (Shocked that she has remembered my due date). "What happens in October?"
Paige: "The baby comes."
Emily: "That's right."
Paige: "Will she come out of your privates?"
Emily: (trying not to die laughing) "Well, yes. That's how babies come out."
Sam: "Why will she be here in October?"
Emily: "It takes babies 9 months to grow and in October she will have been growing for 9 months"

Then, I quickly got in the car before they had a chance to ask the next question of how the baby got in there in the first place. I really didn't want to answer that one. As I was sprinting to the car I heard Sam say to her sister, "They don't come out of your privates?!?!?" Apparently she was not ready to accept that one.

And The Winner Is....

Panache Pink! For those of you following along at home, you will recall that I first posted about the ordeal over pink on July 27. With 6 selections I was overwhelmed and avoiding a decision. Well, Grandpa C. is coming to paint the nursery on Monday so I needed to make a decision. We've decided on (and purchased) Panache Pink....it was the 5th color from the left in the original post.

Grandpa S. is coming on Saturday to help Scott install a ceiling fan in the nursery so by the middle of next week things will be shaping up nicely.

Baaaarney

This is part 2 of the gift from my co-worker Tina who knitted the blanket shown in a previous post. She knitted this sheep and his hands and face match the blanket. His name is Baaarney. So cute!

Nesting

I've entered the nesting phase. For the past 7 months I have been avoiding the closet in the future nursery because I know it's jam packed with junk. On Sunday, I was hit with the sudden desire to clean it out! Out with the wrapping paper, tissue paper, boxes, and luggage. In with the few items of baby apparel that we have. Watch out...I'm on a roll.

Things That Make you Go Hmmmm...

The olympics have been very interesting to me this year, especially because I knew very little about China. The coverage has left me pondering several issues such as the impact of China's growing industry on the environment, the corruption of a government that is willing to lie about the ages of its women's gymnastics team and perhaps the thing that has left me most bewildered....why do the women's beach volleyball players wear tiny little bikini's to play a sport that requires them to dive, jump and lunge???

The Football Hold

At class last night we learned about several different holding options for the baby. Shockingly, Scott's favorite was the football hold.

Great Gift

The photos don't do it justice, but I wanted to show you the gorgeous blanket that my co-worker Tina knitted for Baby C. It's Hawkeye yellow, but that's not the only thing that makes it great. It's very soft and just the right size. Can't wait to use it this fall!

I don't have any talents related to creating anything so talented people always amaze me. Maybe that's why I like Project Runway so much!

Here We Go...

For the first 7 months of this pregnancy I have been living on easy street. No morning sickness, reasonable weight gain, no gestational diabetes, etc. I feel very lucky to have had 7 months of bliss. But, I think that bliss has come to an end. In just the last 5 days I have started to fully understand why women who are at 9 months want nothing more than to get the baby out of them! I left work early yesterday as I think Baby C. was dancing into my upper rib cage and made it nearly impossible to breathe or walk, she has started using my bladder as a trampoline which leaves me panicked that I'm going to have an accident in public. She must not like certain foods as I've taken to getting acid reflux each afternoon/evening. My calves are so tight they feel like I've just run a marathon and I assure you I haven't been runnning anywhere. That's all for now...I need to go walk around because my back hurts.

Tuscan Moon

For the locals who read my blog...you should check out Tuscan Moon in Kalona. We went with some friends Saturday night and had an awesome meal. The restaurant is housed in a historic hotel and they have an amazing patio, perfect for summer dining. The beer and wine lists are impressive too (the Diet Coke was the only thing I got to taste). Reservations are recommended and you need to request patio seating.

There's even a piece of European artwork in the restroom that will entertain the guys!

Pimp My Ride

Here Scott attempts to put together the travel system. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa S!

Baby's First Shopping Spree!

Baby's first savings account? That's for wussies. Real babies go on shopping sprees! (lots of sarcasam here folks). Up until now I had only bought two items of clothing for baby. Then, my friend Tammy, who I fully blame for this, gave me a coupon for the Carter's outlet store. I have not spent much time in children's clothings stores so the low prices got the best of me. A full sack of clothing for $65?!?! What a steal. I'm going to have to watch myself because this could get out of hand.

I had not even thought about getting baby a Halloween outfit until I saw a rack of options at Carter's. My purchase is shown above. Hopefully she'll be 3 weeks old by the time Haloween rolls around (my fingers are crossed).

Week 30: Update

We're at week 30. Yikes! Here are my vital stats.

Weight Gain: 20 pounds

Glucose Test: No gestational diabetes. Pass the sugar!

Swollen Feet: Wearing sandals (flip flops) to work on most days because my feet won't fit in closed toe shoes.

We're on to You

Dear Hollywood and the American Media,

For years you have fooled us into believing that cosmetically enhanced, air-brushed bodies are the norm. With your entourage of personal chefs and personal trainers you have created an image that has left women struggling to achieve this standard of beauty. In your wake you have left teenage girls to battle self-esteem issues and created the expectation that all of us should be thin, 25 and look like the women we see in the pages of Vogue.

Now you have a new plan to make women feel inferior. Every day it's announced that another celebrity over the age of 40 is expecting twins. Just this morning it was announced that Lisa Marie is expecting twins. She joins Marcia Cross, Nancy Grace, and Geena Davis to name a few. Either there is something in the water in L.A. or many or you have undergone infertility treatment. But, you don't talk about that. Here you go again, the next facade to set up unrealistic expectations. Here's your chance to be honest and let women know about the struggles you've gone through. There are many that can relate. But, let's keep up the image of perfection and let everyone believe that by some statistical glitch that women over 40 conceive twins naturally in Hollywood.

*Disclaimer: I realize that it is possible to conceive twins naturally over the age of 40, but you cannot dispute the seemingly high rate that this is occuring in Hollywood.

The Money Pit

Remember the movie the Money Pit with Tom Hanks and Shelley Long? They buy a gorgeous old mansion from a sweet old lady and the house crumbles around them. Well, we didn't buy a gorgeous mansion but when we were house hunting 5 years ago we decided to build in a smaller town so that we could get more bang for our buck. Housing was definately more affordable but we're starting to understand why. CHEAP CONSTRUCTION! Our house turned 5 years old in July and has already had the following repairs: the roof has been re-shingled, plumbing redone due to leaking in a bathroom, water heater replaced and air conditioner part replaced. Items that need to be fixed: severely cracked driveway and two windows that leak when it rains hard. Our air conditioner went out on Sunday which led me to think about the long list of repairs we've had in this 5 year old house. Hopefully the stairway doesn't collapse next.

Wiggle It

After boating on Saturday night the group came back to our house and our friend hooked up his Wii (Nintendo game system). We all took turns doing the Hula Hoop and it was absolutely hilarious. Who knew that everyone wiggled so differenly.

It's a boat time...

We have a boat that sits in our garage about 85% of the time during the summer. In the winter it goes to storage. For the past 3 summers me being in school has limited our use. This summer it seems like everything else has consumed our free time: Scott traveling during the week, us being out of town on the weekends and just life in general get in the way of committing 3 or 4 hours of a weekend day to the beloved boat.

But this weekend was an exception! We actually used the boat! We took 3 other couples out for an evening cruise on Saturday night. Everyone (except the two pregnant ladies in the group) skied, people hung out in the water and it was an overall excellent use of the boat. This is exactly why we have the boat and will have to make an effort to give it the attention it deserves for the last remaining weeks of the summer.

After we had pulled the boat out of the lake and were cleaning up we noticed that three cop cars were pulled up along another group getting ready to leave the parking lot. It appeared that it was a drunken driving issue (and in reality I think it was) but we couldn't help but notice one of the women in the group was wearing a thong bikini. She was standing right in front of the cop cars and you could see the reflection of the flashing lights on her bare skin! I think it was the fashion police and this woman should have gotten a serious fine for improper use of swim wear.