A to Z and other news

Today R and I got this A-to-Z alphabet bedding. It is too cute. Each block is done with such detail and the back and binding are done in green gingham, which is just adorable. I especially like the "Q (is for) Quilt", "X (is for) X-ray", and "V (is for) Violin" blocks. I had originally hoped to do a music room and while it's now out of the question, would it be silly to play the "V is for Violin" card? I think it might be a good way to combine the A-to-Z stuff with music, especially since we own a small child's violin. (R gave it to me for Christmas, in anticipation of one day teaching our baby to play.)

More photos:




The last photo shows the child's violin that R gave to me compared to my size-7 sandal. It's so tiny, but plays well. It's hard to imagine the tiny little hands that will one day hold it.

In other news, R is now 1/4 of the way through her pregnancy!

JUST A QUICKIE

Never fear -- we haven't abandoned the blog. My mom has been in the hospital and has not been doing so well, so I've been tending to her. Needless to say, I am worn slap out. I guess all of the attention I've been focusing on her is good practice for when Button arrives. Just trying to look at the bright side, as with mom there hasn't really been a bright side.

R just finished up the school year. Her last day with kids was this past Thursday and she's had teacher in-service days ever since. Her official last day was yesterday. She's so excited.

On the Button front, things are moving right along. R hasn't had as much true morning sickness, but complains of being consistently nauseous. She seems to manage it well by eating small meals often. R hasn't gained any weight yet, but she is definitely showing, even this early. I think it's mostly because her boobs have gotten bigger/heavier and her posture has changed. Therefore, that belly juts right out. It's really cute, actually and I think she looks wonderful.

2nd ULTRASOUND

Today we had a second ultrasound, two weeks after the last one. The difference is astounding and we were totally amazed. Button now has little arms and legs and his/her heartbeat was really strong. Totally thrilling!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

What great taste Button has! S/he got both of us Mother's Day presents that we love!

For Ju: a delicate silver and pearl “pea in a pod” pendant on a delicate silver chain. Ju loves it!

For R: a beautiful blue topaz pendant and necklace. This is special because Button’s birthstone is blue topaz!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all of you out there!!! We're all mothers in some way or another, whether we have children or not. Time to celebrate it!

I BROKE THE NEWS

I've been out of town on business, again. In fact, I'm still here, but will be returning home later this afternoon. I can't wait to see my wife!

We've been staying at Henderson Village in Perry, GA (http://www.hendersonvillage.com). The last time I was here, R had miscarried two hours before I had to leave and there was no way to get out of going. It was horrible. So, of course, the whole time I was miserable, worried, sad, nervous, etc. And I couldn't really talk to anyone because my Fundamentalist boss and her sidekick didn't even know I was gay, married, or working on starting a family. It was a very uncomfortable situation and not something I wanted to revisit.

But, here I am, again. And they put me in the same damn room (Tenant Cottage #10), so I've been thinking a lot about the last time I was here. It's been sad.

Being here hasn't been all bad, though. I talked to my Fundamentalist-Southern-Georgia boss to tell her about our baby. It wasn't bad at all. In fact, she was really happy and seemed excited and had a lot of nice things to say. She also was more than happy to agree to let me take a week off for vacation in June, since we won't have any opportunities to do so for a very long time. (my July is already spoken for b/c of work obligations and R starts back to school in August, so June it is!)

MEAN GIRL

It is unfortunate, but being pregnant makes me very, very mean. I really hate this about me, but it is just true. I don't know if it is being pregnant that does it, or if it is just the constant worry that something is wrong with the baby. I am tired, grouchy and a bad, bad wife.

A STEAL

We hadn't planned on buying any baby furniture right now, as we are still early in the pregnancy. However, we found a deal today too good to pass up on -- one of those situations where we knew if we didn't take advantage, we'd be kicking ourselves later on.

R's parents live in a neighborhood that hosts a neighborhood-wide yard sale once or twice a year. We, along with R's parents, rode around and went house to house to check out all of the good deals. We got a new chandelier (sp?), a coffe table, an end table... but best of all, a crib! And it's not just any crib -- it's a $1600 'Million Dollar Baby' baby crib. But we didn't pay anything close to that. We got it for, get this, $100 and it is in *perfect* condition. What a steal!

1st TOY

In celebration of our ultrasound on Monday, I bought this lovely teddy bear for Button (our in-utero nickname). It's so sweet and is made of all natural materials and dyes. I can't wait to see it put to use one day!