Baby Watch: Day 3 (Merry Christmas!)

Merry Christmas! I hope you've a wonderful day of friends, family, and food (or family, gifts, and dogs; or even gifts, cats, and family).   Still no baby--although every passing hour is one hour closer.  Jath continues to think that "something" might be going on but says it's difficult to explain exactly what.  Regardless, we're not timing anything--yet.

Our Christmas began at a respectable 8:30.  We got the coffee on, the monkey bread in the oven, and sat down for a Christmas morning prayer Dad had written for the occasion.  After "amen", we gave the dogs their gifts (yes, I realize this makes us hopelessly middle-class North Americans).  Toby was thrilled to receive several chew toys and Cody, I can only assume, hates his new puffy jacket.

Once the dogs were taken care of, we began our gift exchanging.  Many very thoughtful and wonderful presents changed hands, including some that I had barely been able to keep myself from purchasing only weeks before (somehow, they knew).  Best gift opening moments of Christmas 2010?  In no particular order:

(1) Charissa opening our old camera containing a picture of the hiding place of her new camera
(2) Jath opening a gift "To Jathniel. Love, Mom & Dad," exclaiming "I think this is for Aaron", passing it to me, my continuing to  pull back the tissue paper, beginning to say "ooh, very nice, thank you," Mom exclaiming "That's for Dad!", my passing the gift to Dad, and Dad proudly holding aloft the eggplant colored shirt and tie combo that had now been opened three times.  
(3) A few gifts later, Dad half opening a package and informing us that this must be for Jath.  He was of course, correct, as Jath finished unwrapping a knit sweater top.
(4) More games! (Things, Mystery of the Abbey, Trivial Pursuit Cards)

We spent the afternoon picking at more fantastic foods (pigs-in-a-blanket) and eventually sitting down to play MotA.  For those used to the more straightforward, win-or-lose style of clue, MotA takes some getting used to. Needless to say, we all decided we'd probably do better the second time around.

Now, we're sitting down to an expertly carved turkey (ahem), stuffing, brussel sprouts, and pumpkin pie.

Merry Christmas!

Baby Watch: Day 2

Still just watching and waiting.  Jath says she feels "something" but isn't quite ready to commit to it being anything yet.  However, she is currently making monkey bread for tomorrow morning while commenting that she might not get to eat it.

What was on tap for today?   Sweet sleep (until about 9:30) and lots of lounging.  We enjoyed some coffee and donuts, courtesy of Dad, and watched some exciting local news to start the day.

At 1 p.m., we headed out to our favorite brunch place:

We've had multiple discussions with multiple friends and family members about whether this restaurant's name is a help or a hindrance.  According to my brother, FirstWatch sounds like the name of a Sunday school class for the elderly.  Others have commented that it would be a better moniker for a security company.  I for one associate it with slammin' good hash browns and "meh" coffee, but I'll let you be the judge.  My choice this time around? "Cheese to the 5th degree"--a grilled cheese sandwich featuring Swiss, Havarti, Cheddar, Monterrey Jack, and some other cheese on Parmesan crusted bread. Yes, it's as good as its name.

After lunch, we braved the local grocery store to pick up some last-minute supplies.  Because everyone else in town apparently had the same plan, our "20 minute" stop lasted nearly an hour.  The upside? A platter of shrimp, even more coffee, ingredients for pumpkin pie, and ready-to-eat desserts.  

We made it home just in time to watch The Gruffalo on DVR.  Apparently this short film is for children.  Apparently, some children enjoy sleeping in CGI-induced terror.  I, for one, am keeping this series on the shelf in favor of "One Fish, Two Fish" for awhile.

At 5:30, we were off to our church's Christmas Eve service--an abbreviated version of Lessons and Carols.  Despite the heat coming on only about 5 minutes before service started, we much enjoyed the time spent breathing and pondering the miracle of Christmas.  As we lit candles and sang Silent Night, I couldn't help but wonder whether ours would be. 

Back at home, we're picking through food, drinking decaf coffee, and doing what all the world does this night: waiting. 

Baby Watch: Day 1

It's the final countdown! (cue Will Arnett dancing around on stage flashing magic accessories and poor self-awareness).  Yes, we've been waiting for Baby for quite some time, but we really haven't been expecting baby until recently.  Now that Jath's family is in town, we can actually expect him without panicking about whether our loved ones will make it in time to wait in the hospital lobby in HIPAA-induced ignorance.  Seriously, according to our lamaze instructor, not even Julian Assange could find out whether we had checked into the labor & delivery unit.

So what's happened so far?

12 a.m. (Can you spot the proof in this picture?) - The family arrived from PA; they came bearing gifts, a dog, roast beef, and a carafe of milk (among other things).

1:30 a.m. - we actually got to sleep.

Morning- At this point, our schedules diverged quite a bit.  My father-in-law and I still had a day of work left, so we hit the coffee early and hunkered down in front of the laptops for some good-ol'-fashioned telecommuting.


Meanwhile, Jath opened our Christmas present from her sister: one-of-a-kind custom artwork for the baby's room, created by Charissa herself.


The pictures are amazing, albeit slightly hard to see in my hastily-snapped photo.  Needless to say, we think they'll be worth some serious $$$ someday.

While we worked, the ladies enjoyed some riveting entertainment on cable and DVD, including:

Turned off after 45 min because we could feel Al Gore smiling

Watched in its entirety--despite the fact that it featured voice work by Eddie Murphy.

On currently, probably because the alternatives are local news, Judge Judy, and  "Biggie and Tupac" (thanks for keeping it festive, VH1).

On tap for tonight? Jath's got some chili in the crockpot, we've got some pictures to hang, and I've got Christmas Vacation saved on the DVR.  Hide your cat!

Gifts to Remember

I ran across a picture today that made me want to share just how great my husband is.

He might not always think so but he is a very thoughtful and very good gift giver. Our very first married Christmas together he got me this:

Now admittedly, at first, I had no idea what this was. And I’d be lying if I said I wasn't also a little nervous about what else he was getting me that year. But then he explained. Often as I would stand at the stove cooking our newlywed meals I would let out little "ouch" shouts as tiny drops of grease would jump from the pan catching my exposed skin. It was annoying and sometimes quite painful and it’s not easy to stand 2 feet away from the stove while you’re cooking bacon. Hence Aaron’s very thoughtful gift, a splatter screen from Crate & Barrel. “It’s so you won’t get burned anymore,” a sweet and very practical gift from my even sweeter practical husband. I loved it.

This year we've decided not to exchange gifts as all of our efforts and most of our money has been put towards the upcoming birth of our baby. A gift that despite what my doctor says will be just the perfect size for us this year. Not too big and not too small, a gift as memorable as a splatter screen only sweeter.

38 weeks

snowy december

There's no denying it feels like Christmas time today. We awoke to another medium sized snow this morning our third since December started. So far I've been surprised by all the snow. Cincinnati didn't strike me as a place where we'd get a lot, but I'm glad because December and Christmas just aren't the same without it and a fresh dumping every few days keeps things fresh and beautiful. 

The downside? Apparently they don't plow or salt around here. Seeing as how it's now about one in the afternoon and our street is still covered and in some places barely passable. So if you're planning a visit to our home in the near future you'll probably need your 4 wheel drive if you'd like to make it to my driveway...

It Snows Here Too...

Yes, I had already shoveled a path only 1 1/2 hrs. prior.

Who would have thought moving south would have zero effect on our winter snowfall? All this snow is fresh today.

Peaceful for now.  I'll report back on the commute tomorrow...

Quick Hits from the Week Past

So it's approximately 11 p.m. and I realize I have been delinquent in posting pictures from the past few days. To what do I attribute the late hour?  Try: The Middle, Modern Family, Psych, Community, 30 Rock, and The Office. (Yes, our DVR was a bit full).  I promise we did leave the couch to let the dog out, do the dishes, and switch some laundry--it's not like we're that All-American.  Anyway, some quick hits from the past few days.

Friday - we invested in a new rug.  Toby's thankful for the traction.

Then it snowed...a lot.

On Saturday, we braved the snow and cold for our first Real Family Christmas Tree 

We're smiling through the freeze. 

The reindeer added a nice touch, and the place even provided a sled in which we could drag our freshly cut Christmas tree.  As you can see, it also got to come home inside the car.

Jath did most of the arranging. I helped by making coffee for myself and then offering words of encouragement. 

Smells like Christmas.

On Tuesday, Jath's small group came over for our monthly dinner.  Since it was December, the party was appropriately Christmas themed.  Activities included Christmas Pictionary, Christmas cookie decorating, and watching Toby try to process playing with a 14 month old and 2 1/2 year old.

Missing from the picture: 3 parents and one dog owner, perhaps watching over 3 children and one dog?

The Small Group (this is actually one of my "pre-pictures", which always turn out better than the real ones).

This coming weekend is our last before family and friends begin to come for Christmas.  I can't believe we're already this far into December.  On the agenda? Christmas shopping, getting a haircut, getting an oil change, and raking the last of the leaves.