Say it, don't spray it!

Weekend highlights

2008-07-06T09:53:00.000-07:00

This was a nice long weekend, although it went by too quickly, as always.

I kicked it off with the new John Mayer CD, which is from the show I saw late last year. I was going to also purchase the special edition DVD from Target, but they were all out. I'll settle for the standard edition, no problem.

The CD is fantastic, just like the show. I've listened to it half a dozen times already this weekend.

Saturday morning Brent and I swung by one of my favorite bakeries, The City Bakery. While trying to decide whether we both wanted to eat there or instead try one of the nearby food stands, I noticed a cute little girl giggling as she played with her dad at their table. "Awwww," I thought. "How sweet!" Then I realized that I recognized the little girl. Then the dad. Then the mom. It was Jennifer Garner, Ben Affleck and their adorable daughter, Violet! They all looked so happy!

My favorite treat from The City Bakery is the pretzel croissant. A close second is the Baker's Muffin. I took one to go and posed it for my camera later. (I'm trying to play with our camera more.)

Mmm...

Fueled with yummy food, we headed off to register at Right Start, the first of the two places we're registering for Em Dash. (Actually, I did register at the Restoration Hardware Baby & Child site but mainly to get the $100 coupon for a $300 purchase. I'm not counting that as an official registry.)

I already knew most of what I wanted to register at Right Start, but there were a few things I wanted to see in person before adding to the registry. Same thing with our other registry, which I started online Saturday afternoon. We'll save that in-store trip for another weekend. I have to get the registries ready for my two showers in August. I'm so excited for both of them!

Yesterday Brent showed me how to use my Bluetooth headset, which I've only had since, ohhhh, Christmas 2006. I know, I know -- talk about lazy. But with the new CA hands-free law, it was time to finally learn. I like to call my mom and other peeps on my way home from work, which I wasn't able to do last week.

And tonight Brent had a hankering for strawberry shortcake, his favorite dessert. So he whipped up some biscuits and homemade whipped cream while I cut up some strawberries. They turned out soooo delicious! I warned him that they may become a constant craving for this pregnant gal.

"I got half a smile and zero shame. I got a reflection with a different name. Got a brand new blues I can't explain. Who did you think I was?" - Who Did You Think I Was?, John Mayer

Deal or no deal

2008-07-02T22:32:00.000-07:00

What have I been doing since I last posted on Sunday? Oh, having bipolar moments with this whole car-buying thing. I swear, it's been as, if not more, stressful than buying our condo. Seriously.

Let me walk you through where we've been and where we are.

A friend of mine who works for the car brand I want suggested a car dealer in Simi Valley (about 40 miles from here) who could potentially give us a great deal on the car I want. We called him, found out what he had in stock and what it'd cost us. Didn't seem like an awful deal, but we still wanted to shop around.

Brent emailed the quote to a bunch of the internet sales managers at dealers around Los Angeles. One in Culver City responded and said he could beat it by about $900. Great! Then we found that forum I mentioned previously where owners across the country compared their out-the-door prices for the car I want. One in particular was $1K less, from an "LA dealer," than the Culver City dealer. (We didn't find out exactly which LA dealer the message board guy was referring to.) So we sent that link to the Culver City guy. He said he'd see what his management team would do.

Then he came back to us and said that the one he had in stock was actually going to cost $350 more because of accessories already on the car (mud flaps, wheel lock, etc.) Um, we wanted to pay less, not more. So he went back to the drawing board to see if he locate one we wanted that didn't already have accessories. He called around and said everything he could find already had those accessories. Arrgggg....

Then he agreed to give us a reduced price on the one they had with the accessories if we financed through them instead of the credit union where I was pre-approved. I didn't have an issue with that because he was offering a better rate. Great! We're all set, right?

I was going to pick up the car last night, but Brent was out of town for work and has the bulk of our down payment in his account and my father-in-law wasn't available to go with me to cover the down payment while Brent was gone. So I had to wait until tonight after work.

My darling husband called about an hour before I left for the Culver City dealership. "I don't know if I should tell you this or not, but I just got a last-minute response to one of my emails. They're offering the car without all the accessories and for $500 less. Oh, yeah. And it's in Cerritos." A quick search on Google Maps showed Cerritos is 30 miles from here, which in rush hour could take about, oh, two hours. What the???

Brent took that Cerritos offer back to the Culver City dealer. Nope, wouldn't budge and match the price.

So if I wanted the car and wanted to make my husband happy, I'd have to make the trek to Cerritos. My father-in-law didn't initially want to take me to Cerritos in crazy traffic. But he agreed to take me if we waited until traffic died down at 7.

Sure, no problem.

Oh, and one additional point to make here - there's a certain color, inside and out, that I want. I was flexible early on, but now I have my heart set on this certain combo in a particular trim level. Brent quadruple checked with the Cerritos dealer that the car they had for me was EXACTLY what I wanted. He told them, "Look, my wife is pregnant. I'm not sending her all the way out there only to find that the car is not what she's hoping for." The dealer assured him that they had exactly what I wanted.

Fast-forward to 7 p.m. tonight, my father-in-law and I just hopped on the freeway. I call the dealer, as he had requested, to give him a heads-up that we were on our way.

"HI!" the dealer exclaims as he hears it's me. At that exact moment, my phone buzzes on the other line, but I don't switch over as I see it's Brent. I figure that the dealer is going to tell me whatever Brent, who has just stepped off a plane at LAX, has to say. The dealer gives me the lowdown. "Soooo today is actually my day off. But after talking to your husband I went in to double-check the car. And it turns out that our inventory manager had entered the wrong color code in the system, so the car we have in stock doesn't have the interior color you want."

::insert banging head on brick wall here::

"However, one just like you want is coming tomorrow or sometime this weekend."

Fine, I'll wait for it. In fairness to the dealer, he had called Brent as soon as he realized that there was a mix-up. (He didn't have my number.) He left three frantic messages. "Brent! There's a problem. Call me!" And apparently they have 1,700 cars (it's the Wal-Mart of car dealers), so it's not unreasonable to think that mix-ups happen every now and then. Of course, the mix-up had to happen to me.

Sigh.

Yes, I'm eventually getting my shiny new car and I'm super excited.

I'd just like to get it before Em Dash's high school graduation.

"Who are these people? These faces? Where did they come from? They look like caricatures of used car dealers from Dallas, and sweet Jesus, there are a hell of a lot of them at 4:30 on a Sunday morning. Still humping the American dream." - Raoul Duke, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

A baby-fied weekend recap

2008-06-29T20:47:00.000-07:00

My work currently has Summer Fridays, which means that if we put in an extra four hours of work between Monday and Thursday, then we can leave at 1 on Fridays. I always have grandiose plans for those four hours, but somehow only manage to get to a fraction of those plans.

I did, however, make it to Target as planned, where I made my first clothing purchase for Em Dash. Check it out.

Cupcakes! And cherries! Ahhhhh! Too cute! I also picked up some little pink hangers for these and other outfits.

This was a fun little find in the $1 Spot bins. I was particularly drawn to it because it reminded me of my mom, who has a thing for elephants, especially those with their trunks up (she says elephants like that equate luck or something).

Oh, and a quick aside, but on the topic of baby clothes, check this out:
It's a little Hello Kitty layette set! The hat alone is freakin' adorable, not to mention the rest of the set! It's from Sanrio's brand new baby line. I haven't purchased it, but I'm quite tempted.

Saturday night we joined Josh, Jami, Josh's sister Leah and her husband Juston for dinner at Bar Hayama. Leah, who is due with their first baby girl in two weeks, and I stuck to the safe-for-pregnant-gals fare while others enjoyed sushi. I'm excited to head back once I return to the sushi-able zone!

After a quick trip to Beard Papa's (mmmm.....strawberry cream puffs...), we headed over to a nearby theater to see Pixar's WALL-E. Brent and I have been super excited about this film since the first teaser trailer. Robots! In space! And in love! While we agreed that it was a tad on the long side, the movie was quite good. I want my own WALL-E robot! He was so cute! The movie also had a great message, especially given the increased importance of living greener these days.

Sunday Brent and I, along with my in-laws, met up with Leah and Juston at Leah's parents house for an infant CPR class. Along with infant CPR, we learned proper techniques for CPR on children and adults. I'm pleased to have a little more peace of mind, and I'm happy my in-laws now have the tools if God forbid anything happens to Em Dash under their care.

Brent and I spent Sunday afternoon going back and forth with a nearby car dealer for the car I'm getting. We're supposed to find out tomorrow if the salesman's management team is willing to match the price we found online. I imagine he crapped his pants a little when we sent him a link to a forum where folks across the country compared their out-the-door prices for the exact car we want. "Crap! Educated consumers!" His managers wouldn't agree to our bottom line, but tomorrow is the last day of the month and I'm sure they have some sort of quota to meet, not to mention that they are likely selling a lot less cars given the high gas prices. We'll see what he comes back with.

"A stupid, idiotic numbskull named Andy Bernard sold his Xterra to a smart and capable man named Dwight. This is shaping up to be an awesome day for Dwight." - Dwight, The Office

Chameau, the killer dinner

2008-06-28T10:01:00.000-07:00

Last night Brent and I joined my in-laws for a delicious dinner at Chameau, a French Moroccan restaurant. We were celebrating the 37th wedding anniversary of my in-laws, Michael and Merridee. Happy anniversary!

I haven't done this in quite a while, but here's a photographic walk through our meal. This experience is definitely worth sharing!

The decor is kind of all over the place, including metal camel cutouts to divide the booths, brightly colored lamps and wood carvings, but it all comes together quite nicely.

We started with bread, olives and dipping oil. The bread was super soft and tasty, very reminiscent of focaccia. I won't tell you how many times we asked for more bread, but let's just say when you eat with my bro-in-law, you have to fight your way to the bread basket.

My appetizer was the duck bastilla with sweet almonds, cinnamon and cilantro.

The bastilla, served between a flaky dough crust and topped with powdered sugar, was one of the tastiest treats I've had in a long time! It was the perfect combination of sweet and savory. And the portion was huge! When I was done eating it, I considered canceling my entree because I was so stuffed.

For my entree I had the lemon baby chicken with couscous and olive sauce.

If you can't tell by the pic above, the portion was gigantic. I barely made a dent in it, but the little I ate was delicious.

Despite bursting at the seams, I still had a little room for dessert. Brent and I split the cinnamon creme caramel with mint cream.

This was very flan-like and the perfect way to end our meal.

Brent and I certainly enjoyed ourselves, and I'm excited to visit Chameau again.

"When I write of hunger, I am really writing about love and the hunger for it, and warmth and the love of it . . . and it is all one." - M.F.K. Fischer

I know you want what's on my mind

2008-06-25T23:14:00.000-07:00

I've been a busy little bee this week!

Monday evening I had the pleasure of dining with the always-lovely Kay, Jolene and Alyssa. Kay and I compared pregnant bellies, as well as our plans for delivery, strollers, nurseries, maternity leave, baby showers, etc. - ya know, all those fun mommy-to-be things. And don't worry - Jolene and Alyssa weren't left out of the fun. I think they made some mental notes for later on. Heh. And it wasn't ALL mommy talk, I promise!

If you don't read their blogs, I highly recommend it. It's nights like Monday when I'm especially thankful for the blogosphere, which is how I met them. They are a super sweet group of gals who just radiate warmth and kindness.

Tuesday evening Brent and I went to the Hollywood Bowl to catch the highly-anticipated Stone Temple Pilots reunion. On the way there we passed the outside stage of the Jimmy Kimmel, where we overheard (but couldn't see) Billy Idol performing "Rebel Yell." Not a bad way to start off a rockin' night!

I have to admit that I was a little worried before the STP show as I had read some not-so-great reviews from the beginning of their summer tour. Also, when I caught them on Jimmy Kimmel shortly after I bought tix to their show, they weren't so hot. Scott sounded strained and he appeared a bit rickety, not at all as fluid and engaging as he normally is.

But ya know what? Last night's show was un-freakin-believable! This was the third time Brent and I had seen them, and it was definitely our favorite performance yet. They sounded amazing! And I was entranced by Scott's lead vocal performance. You can't help but be enthralled by the way he moves. It's like you can see the music coursing through his skinny little veins.

How happy was I to be at this show?

Despite Scott's personal battles, he is such an amazing front man - definitely my favorite of all the bands I love. He's so engaging. Brent agreed. He said that even if someone doesn't like STP, they'd have to admit that Scott is a great performer.

One of my highlights from the night was at the very end of the show, as they were walking off the stage, when his two young kids came running up and jumped into Scott's arms. They'd been standing at the side of the stage during the show with giant headphones on. The soon-to-be-mama in me was excited to see that side of the otherwise bad-boy Scott.

While we had pretty damn good seats in the second tier of boxes, my point-and-shoot wasn't powerful enough to catch any great performance photos, so if you're interested you can see someone else's photos from the show here.

"I know you want what's on my mind. I know you like what's on my mind. I know it eats you up inside. I know, you know, you know, you know." - Sex Type Thing, Stone Temple Pilots

Bump Watch 2008, 23 weeks, 3 days

2008-06-25T23:08:00.000-07:00

It's time for the weekly belly pic!

Em Dash is doing great. She's kicking a lot, and Brent felt her kick for the first time this weekend. He SAW my belly move before he felt it! And when he felt it, he slowly backed away while exclaiming, "Whooooooaaaaa!" So very cool!

My mom called yesterday to tell me that she bought her first outfits for Em Dash. "The clothes for girls are so much cuter than what there are for boys!" she said. (No offense to moms of boys. That's just the opinion of one grandma who has a grandson and is now getting her first granddaughter.) She's certainly going to have fun spoiling our little one.

"Actually, I do own property. My grandfather left me a 60-acre working beet farm. I run it with my cousin Mose. We sell beets to local stores and restaurants. It’s a nice little farm. Sometimes teenagers use it for sex." - Dwight, The Office

They say it's your blogoversary. It's my blogoversary, too!

2008-06-22T08:47:00.000-07:00

I'm up way too early for a Sunday morning. Maybe it was my body's way of telling me to get up and celebrate my 4-year blogoversary! Yup, four years ago today I started this lil' blog. My, how time flies! A special shout out to all my readers - new and old! Thanks for reading!

I'll start my weekend recap a little early.

Shelby had her baby boy! I won't spoil the details of his name, weight, etc. (no blog thunder-stealing here) but I will tell you that when she sent a photo of her baby boy to my cell phone, part of the caption was, "Get the epidural - it's magic." Hilarious!

I received her message while I was in the waiting room of my doctor's for one of my monthly pregnancy check-ups Friday afternoon. The way our hospital works is that there's no guarantee of what doctor will be on call when I go into delivery, so they're having me rotate through the hospital's seven delivering doctors for each of my appointments. I've been fine with the three doctors I've seen thus far, although the Friday doctor was probably the most interesting of them all. He was liberal with his cussing (I think he said "shit" at least three times - not in an alarming way, but more like as a way for him to pause his conversation). He was a crack-up, though. And he'd definitely be interesting in the delivery room.

Anyhow, when he measured my fundal height, I asked how I was doing. He said I'm measuring big, but didn't say how much bigger I am than I should be. Then he said, "We'll schedule an ultrasound for your next visit." I wasn't expecting another ultrasound, so that's a welcome surprise (more face time with Em Dash!), but I hope I'm not *too* much bigger than I should be and that Em Dash isn't going to come out ready to try out for the NFL. She was measuring a week ahead during my NT scan, so maybe that's still the case. And I definitely feel like I popped this week, so maybe the doc just caught me after a bit of a growth spurt.

Speaking of big bellies, Friday morning was the first time someone noticed my pregnancy without having to tell them! I was leaving our condo and ran into our next door neighbor, whom I hadn't seen in months. She did a quick glance my way then exclaimed, "Is that what I think I see?" Yup, it's a pregnant belly. Bless her heart for noticing that it's not just fat. Woo hoo! (As an etiquette aside, I don't think it's proper to ever assume someone is pregnant, especially in early pregnancy because it very well could just be a pot belly. But to a pregnant woman who complains about not feeling like she looks pregnant, this comment can actually be quite welcome.)

Friday evening Brent and I took it easy with a nice, quiet dinner at Warszawa then just relaxed at home.

Saturday we went to the credit union where Brent has his car loan to see about one for me. We were happily surprised to learn I was eligible for the very best rate available. Score! And I'm pre-approved for the amount I wanted. So now I just have to finish up some research on exactly which model of the car I want.

After loan shopping we went to my in-laws'. My father-in-law called us earlier in the day to say, "The AC is on. The pool is heated. Come on over!" Music to my sweaty ears. I read some trashy magazines while relaxing in the cool water. Although it's not supposed to be as sweltering hot today, we may go back this afternoon. I also may keep cool with a screening of The Incredible Hulk. Maybe we'll wear our Hulk Hands. You think I'm kidding, but I promise you, they're real. And they're kept right next to our King Kong Fists.

I hope everyone is staying nice and cool this weekend!

"There’s no way it’s fine, I’m sorry. If I was you, I would just like freak out, and get really drunk, and then tell someone I was pregnant." - Kelly
"Okay, that’s a lot of good ideas. Thanks." Pam, The Office

Yo mama

2008-06-19T21:51:00.000-07:00

First things first - my best friend Shelby is checking into the hospital tomorrow (Friday) morning to "evict" her little boy! So very exciting! I'm sending her and her little one healthy delivery vibes!

Tonight I attended my first prenatal yoga class, which I probably should have started weeks (ok - maybe months) ago. I was so exhausted during my first trimester that I rarely had energy to workout. Then, come second trimester, I was out of the habit of exercising. But tonight was my night to break that streak!

The class was in a small studio nearby. There were five of us in the class, ranging from 20 weeks to 35 weeks. The instructor was great and very soothing. I liked that she walked around and adjusted our positions yet wasn't annoyingly hands-on. I think the other four woman were regulars, so at one point the instructor said, "Nanette, have you done a lot of yoga?" My guess is that she could tell because I'm obviously not a fluid and graceful yoga expert. I am not the least bit flexible, and I had awful balance before I got pregnant. It's just gone downhill from there.

She was kind enough to give me some modifications and tips through certain poses that she said were more advanced. And in talking to some other students after class, this instructor tends to go through much more active poses than the Tuesday evening teacher. I don't think that's a bad thing, but I'm interested to see the Tuesday teacher's approach. She's apparently a doula, so she gives lots of prenatal advice throughout class.

I feel relaxed and stretchy. I'm looking forward to a nice night's sleep.

Amalah, who is about a week behind me in pregnancy, mentioned that she can see her little guy squirming around. So last night after putting cocoa butter on my belly, I sat there and watched intently. In about 15 minutes I saw my skin twitch/jump slightly about four times! It was sooo cool! Brent was out of town last night, but I made him watch my belly a bit just now and he *thinks* he saw it move. I definitely saw it a few times. We'll try again before bed.

Ok, I'll wrap up this baby-filled post with this funny little gem.

"I'll buy running shoes. We'll take up yoga or jogging. You know, we'll be organized. Pay our bills, floss our teeth. We won't set fire to the apartment anymore." - Jasper, 28 Days

Bump Watch 2008, 22 weeks, 3 days

2008-06-17T20:50:00.000-07:00

This morning at work I meant to walk to the elevator but instead walked right past it and toward the bathroom. I stopped myself and realized it might have been a case of "pregnancy brain."

And for some reason I thought of this old cartoon from Sesame Street because it was as if I had to remind myself that I wanted to take the elevator a la "A loaf of bread, a container of milk, a stick of butter."

Other than that little brain fart, I've been feeling pretty good. Em Dash is kicking a lot, although still not quite hard enough for Brent to feel her yet. The other night he whispered into my belly, "Please kick hard so Mommy will stop harassing me to feel her belly." Because I do it all the time. Heh.

Today was the first day I had a bit of a time pulling myself in and out of my tiny two-door sports car. This Friday I'm going to start loan rate shopping for my new car. I'm hoping to have a shiny new car by my birthday next month.

Tonight I registered Brent and I for some classes at our hospital, so we'll feel a little more prepared for child birth, breastfeeding and infant care. My approach to my pregnancy -- and probably motherhood in general -- is to educate myself as much as possible without driving myself crazy-go-nuts from information overload. There's a lot to learn and so much of it is exciting (and a tad scary, depending on how you look at it).

I'll conclude with this week's belly pic, with a color combo inspired by dapotato's aqua and red wedding!

"God forbid you should use 'icky drugs' when you could experience the excruciating agony of childbirth in the raw." - Dr. Martin Ellingham, Doc Martin

Alaska at last!

2008-06-16T21:46:00.000-07:00

I've been overwhelmed by the volume of photos Brent and I (ok, mostly Brent) took during our Alaskan cruise, so it's taken me a while to gear up for this recap.

I won't be doing the 6-part version like I did for our Italy recaps. Instead I'll give you some of my favorite highlights.

Here's the big boat we called home for a week. It's the Island Princess.

Here are some of the stunning snow-covered mountains we saw.

Here is one of the many glaciers we admired.

We even caught some of the glacier melting. Damn global warming! Um, or maybe just the season changing...

Brent and me in front of the glacier.

My bro-in-law Tyler and me in front of the glacier.

A pretty snow-covered mountain.

Earlier in the cruise, when we were further north, there were nights where it didn't get any darker than this!

We saw a ton of wildlife, including lots of bald eagles.

And as previously mentioned, whales! Here's the tail of a humpback!

Here's Tyler battling a squirrel. I think the squirrel won.

We did a seaplane excursion at one of the ports. We had some breathtaking views of the Alaskan wilderness and hidden lakes.

The pilot landed on one of the lakes and said, "Ok, let's hop out!" Um, hop out where exactly? Onto the pontoons! Here I am, holding on for dear life. The pilot assured me that he's never had anyone fall in. I didn't want to be the first.

I didn't feel seasick or nauseous the entire time on the cruise ship, but on the seaplane? Oh, boy - it was turbulent. Then the pilot made a very sharp 180-turn to point out a black bear, which looked teeny tiny from our viewpoint but was still cool to see. Anyhow, the turbulence and sharp turn made Brent and I both feel really nauseous. Luckily it just took a couple of snacks to get us back to normal.

Back on the boat, Brent's family and I were invited for a special VIP tour of the boat's bridge with some of the captains. Here are some of the fancy controls on the bridge.

When we were cruising between the three ports, we spent a lot of downtime relaxing and checking out movies in our cabin.

Oh, and I turned $40 into $127 in the ship's casino! All my years of playing Blackjack with my Filipino relatives paid off! I befriended a Filipina dealer who was impressed by my Blackjack expertise and encouraged me to join the ship's tournament. I didn't, but I was flattered by her invite.

I also took advantage of the ship's spa with a massage and a much-needed facial.

All in all, we had a really nice and relaxing time. I came away with a greater appreciation of Mother Nature and wildlife. Brent and I have never had much of a desire to take a cruise, and Alaska wasn't necessarily high on our list of places to see at this point in our lives, but we couldn't pass up the invite from my awesome in-laws. And if you're going to see Alaska, I can't imagine there's a better way to see the state than from a cruise ship!

"When I was your age, I was putting myself through college in Boston paddling swan boats for the tourists." - Jack
"Is that a euphemism for some kind of sex worker?" - Kenneth, 30 Rock

Family style

2008-06-15T22:24:00.000-07:00

I survived the heat! I didn't make it into the pool as I opted to stay in the air conditioned-indoors instead. I got to spend lots of quality time with the world's cutest kids, too.

I hung out with Shelby's new niece, who is about the cutest little butterball ever at 4 months old!

And I happily played with my nephew, who turns three next month. It was also an opportunity to try to fiddle with our new camera. I'd point the camera at him and he'd instantly say, "CHEESE!" quickly followed by, "Lemme see!" as he ran over to see himself on the screen. (Isn't it funny that kids these days seem to know about the instant gratification of digital photography as opposed to when I was growing up and had to wait a week or longer to see the developed photos? Not including Polaroids, of course.)

I can't believe how much he's grown! His big blue eyes still get me every time.

We played and played and played.

After my mom cut and filed his nails, he took his turn with her nails.

At one point he was jumping all over me while I was chilling on the ground. He started to sit on my belly, which I cautioned him not to do because of the baby.

"Baby???" he replied as he started to lift up my shirt, which I had motioned to.
"Oh crap," I thought. I can't start to explain birds and the bees to a 3-year-old. My mom just laughed.
"Where's the baby?" my nephew asked.
"Um...in Auntie's belly."
"Can baby come out?"
"No, not yet. Baby is still growing."
"It's sleeping?"
"Yes, the baby has gone night-night. It can't come out yet. But soon she'll be here and you can play with her."

He continued to have a puzzled look on his face, and randomly through the night he'd point to my stomach and say, "Baby!" He also motioned to the gift box with the onesie that I had given to my mom the last time we were there. I guess he had opened it previously because he seemed to know that the thing inside was for the baby. He pointed to the box and then pointed to my belly, exclaiming, "Baby!" Such a cutie. I'm excited for him to meet Em Dash. And although I managed to survive the heat, my nephew certainly made my heart melt.

"If you can give your son or daughter only one gift, let it be enthusiasm." - Bruce Barton

Glutton for punishment

2008-06-12T22:55:00.000-07:00

This weekend in Santa Monica:
This weekend in my hometown, Visalia:
Guess where I'll be.

Yikes.

Luckily my mom has a pool, and I just received the maternity bathing suit I ordered. And every time I talk to my mom she asks, "Do you have a belly yet???" excitedly, so I gotta show her.

I imagine I'll be more than ready to recap my chilly Alaskan vacation upon return.

"I don't drink hot liquids of any kind. That's the Devil's temperature!" - Kenneth, 30 Rock

If money were no object...

2008-06-10T15:45:00.001-07:00

...I'd do our little girl's nursery completely in Restoration Hardware's new baby and child line.

It's so cute that I think my heart is going to explode!

Egads! And the clothing!

Must. Look. Away!

(Obviously I'm a big fan of pink and brown.)
Ohhhh, they have a registry. [wringing hands together]

"The smile that flickers on baby's lips when he sleeps — does anybody know where it was born? Yes, there is a rumor that a young pale beam of a crescent moon touched the edge of a vanishing autumn cloud, and there the smile was first born in the dream of a dew-washed morning."- Rabindranath Tagore, Gitanjali

Random baking thoughts

2008-06-08T22:11:00.000-07:00

- I love my cookie dough scooper.

- I love my Kitchen-Aid mixer.

- I love this recipe, but I always forget that it makes a TON of cookies before it's too late. I always realize that I wanted to half the measurements after I start mixing ingredients.

- My convection oven could kick your oven's ass.

- When I start a baking marathon, I'm reminded that my ability to stand for long periods is nowhere near as long as it used to be when I worked retail. Two+ hours on my feet tonight. It's so worth it, though.

- I started to mix the ingredients for these cookies and realized that I had mixed up Brent's bread flour with the all-purpose flour. After some internet detective work, I determined that I shouldn't substituted bread flour for all-purpose as the cookies would come out more chewy (and probably not in a good way) because of the extra gluten. Dah! I'm happy I caught it before it was too late.

- Although I really need to just invest in some silpats, I truly appreciate whomever invented parchment paper for baking. Makes clean-up and cooking multiple batches a breeze!

"Holly is sweet and simple. Like a lady baker." - Michael, The Office

Bump Watch 2008, 20 weeks, 6 days - Whooooa, we're halfway there...

2008-06-07T17:27:00.000-07:00

We skipped last week's belly pic because we were on vacation. Lately I haven't been feeling like I look pregnant, but instead feel like I just look pudgy.

Brent took some photos this morning. I previewed this one and said, "I don't really look pregnant."

But then Brent took some more after I was messing around with my shirt and he exclaimed, "Whoa! You REALLY look pregnant here!"
So there ya go.

I'm now more than halfway through my pregnancy. I feel pretty good. I've been sleeping even better thanks to the awesome Snoogle pillow that Wan lent me.
Luckily we have a California King bed so I'm still well within my allotted space and Brent doesn't curse me for hogging the bed with my Snoogle.

In other baby news, we picked up our crib yesterday. It's at my in-laws' until we get the second bedroom cleared out for the nursery. I want to get the nursery painted before it gets too hot (August and September are typically the warmest months here in LA). My mom offered to buy the dresser that we want to use as a changing table for the nursery, which was very sweet of her. I also want to get a little bookshelf. I won't say much about the wall decor I have planned until it's done and I have pics to share.

"What a cute bench!" - Pam
"Thanks! That's my bed. Jan, uh, has some space issues so I crawl up on that puppy." - Michael
"He fits perfectly!" - Jan, The Office

Around the (pregnant) web

2008-06-05T08:26:00.000-07:00

How did moms-to-be learn about stuff before the internet? Books, schmooks. Heh.

I love finding sites and blogs for moms-to-be and new moms. Given that half of the women I know seem to pregnant these days, I thought I'd share some of my favorite sites.

Cool Mom Picks - The title tells it all. Cool moms share product finds for other cool moms. Some of the stuff is way out of my price range, but it's fun to know what's out there.

Ohdeedoh - Formerly known as Apartment Therapy's "The Nursery," this site highlights home design and products for kids. I especially love the nursery tours, which is where I found some inspiration for our upcoming nursery. The posts feature items more on the modern side, which I totally dig.

Pregnancy Calendar - This is brought to us via mommy blogger extraordinaire Amalah. This is a fairly new blog/site and I'm technically one week ahead of where she is in the timeline, but I still like to read her weekly updates.

RookieMoms Blog - This site is by two moms who talk about "pregnancy, babies, toddlers and the products that go along with these experiences."

Showing Pregnancy Fashion - This blog features the latest in pregnancy fashion and hot baby products, especially with celeb moms.

Matt, Liz and Madeline - I read quite a few personal blogs of new moms and moms-to-be, but this one deserves a special shout out. It's the blog of a Pasadena man whose wife died suddenly shortly after the birth of their first daughter. Admittedly it may not be the sort of thing that a mom-to-be should be reading, but I can't help but be drawn to it. He chronicles his struggles as a new father and widower. His writing is very concise yet powerful. His daughter is beautiful. His photos are telling. And he's an amazingly strong person.

"Worlds can be found by a child and an adult bending down and looking together under the grass stems or at the skittering crabs in a tidal pool." - Mary Catherine Batesman

Meal appeal

2008-06-03T23:02:00.000-07:00

I'm still not ready to digest and recap our Alaskan trip in its entirety, so I'm just gonna post some pics of food. Not just any food, though - really cool (and sometimes creepy) looking food!

This was near the 24-hour buffet. (Yup, you could get food any time of the day. I'm so tired of eating.)

These were the food sculptures found around the special "Taste of Alaska" buffet.

Notice the flower in the background above, too.

It's hard to tell because I didn't get a good profile shot of that one, but it's a fish... made out of fish. Creeeeeepy.

"Just be glad you're at the top of the food chain and nothing eats you." - Mary, 3rd Rock from the Sun

If this blog's a rockin', don't come a knockin'

2008-06-02T22:06:00.001-07:00

It didn't seem like I felt the cruise ship rocking a lot, but apparently seven days on a boat can throw one's equilibrium out of sync. As I sit in my stationary condo, I can still feel the rocking.

Anyhow, I'm home and relaxed and really tired from the travel. We have 700+ photos to go through and I have to work tomorrow, so I'll just leave you with one of my favorite experiences of the trip for now.

This was from our whale-watching tour. We saw plenty o' humpbacks, but we got a rare treat when a pod of orcas not only popped up, but swam right next to our boat!

Brent says he used zoom on this photo, but I swear, this is how close they seemed to the boat.

So freakin' awesome!

"I am a whale Eddy, an endagered mammal. Hug me!" - Ed, Ed, Edd and Eddy

Suze's Sass - c'mon down!

2008-05-24T14:30:00.000-07:00

You're the winner of "Em Dash's Sex is Right!"

(as determined by Random.org, which put you at the top of the list of the 46 commenters who guessed that Em Dash is a girl.)

Suze - email me with your prize choice and it's yours when I return from Alaska. And thanks to everyone who ventured a guess!!!

I'm almost done packing and updating my ipod. We leave super early tomorrow morning. While I'm gone, you all can chew on these for a bit.

Em Dash's latest portrait! I love her little arm up by her face.

And some initials. It's no coincidence that they happen to be "B" for Brent and "N" for Nanette nor that they happen to be on Brent's regular jogging path. My hubby, the romantic vandal. Please don't send him to the clink. Em Dash needs her daddy!

I'll be back from vacation with tons of tales and pics!

"I found out that Baked Alaska can be baked locally." - Rose, Golden Girls

Bump watch 2008, 18 weeks

2008-05-24T12:48:00.000-07:00

Here's the weekly belly photo, which we took right before we left for our big appointment.

I just ordered a couple of fun maternity t-shirts from the massive collection on Cafe Press. My office is pretty casual, so I can wear these to work, too.

This one I got with the upcoming concerts in mind (see the right column of my blog for all the shows I'm attending before Em Dash's big arrival).
Here's one that I fell in love with because, c'mon on, who DOESN'T love monkeys? And I ordered it in pink, ya know, to go along with our baby girl.
It still hasn't sunk in that Em Dash is officially a "she" and we can refer to our baby as "her" now. For so long she has been "it" and "the baby" and of course, "Em Dash."

Brent and I are starting to chat more about names now that we can eliminate 50% of the options. We want to find the balance between something that isn't insanely popular (e.g., Emily - in the top 10 names for the past 10 years or so) but not so unique that people can't pronounce and spell it. It's a lot of pressure to come up with something that has such an impact on our child's identity. We have to come up with a middle name, and it all has to flow with our last name, too? I'm sure we'll find something we both love and that won't scar our little girl for life, but still - so much to think about! Very exciting, nonetheless.

Joey: If you want a strong name, you should name him "The Hulk."
Phoebe: I don't know about "Hulk," but I like the idea of a name starting with "The"!
- Friends

The results are in!

2008-05-23T11:23:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of work to do as this is my last day before my Alaskan cruise, but had to just share the news with you all! I'll tell you more about our reactions later!

Wheeeee!

"I guess but we both want to have babies while it's still cool. I already have all the names picked out. If it's a girl, Bookcase or Sandstorm or maybe Hat, but that's more of a boy's name." - Carrie, 30 Rock

Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love ya tomorrow

2008-05-22T12:54:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow morning is our big ultrasound! Wheeeee! I think my head is going to explode with anticipation!

Shortly after I found out I was pregnant, I ran across an ad for Small Paul, the children's clothing line from Paul Frank. I saw this little boy in the ad and thought, "If we have a boy, maybe he'll look like this, but with darker eyes!!!"

Then, recently a co-worker called me over to her desk. "Nanette, I think the Gap stole your baby for their ad!"

(I think our little girl would be a little lighter than her because even *my* skin wasn't that olive when I was her age.)

Such cuties, both of them!

I'm really starting to feel Em Dash moving these days. I described the feeling to Brent as being similar to an eye twitch, but inside my belly. And it's so much easier to hear Em Dash's heartbeat with the doppler now, too.

You have less than 24 hours to enter the contest if you haven't already!

Oh, and p.s. about my previous post - although it didn't come across in my writing, I thought the whole stuck-on-the-balcony incident was freakin' hilaroius myself, during and after.

"Do you know what they're doing in there right now? They're watching Claire's ultrasound video. And I swear to god, even the baby looks bored." - Marshall, How I Met Your Mother

Damsel in distress

2008-05-21T14:19:00.000-07:00

Last night was my last night in Austin. A sponsor had organized some shuttles from the resort into Austin, but the majority of my team decided to stick around the resort for the night. Plus, pregnant or not, I'm not a huge fan of hanging out with a bunch of random drunk people, so I was happy to just chill by myself in my room.

Cell reception was pretty awful throughout the resort. I had heard folks say it was better outside, so when I retired to my room for the night, I decided to see if I could get reception on the balcony. I stepped out onto the balcony and saw a giant beetle. Not wanting it to crawl in my room, I closed the sliding glass door. I couldn't get any cell reception and headed back inside -- only to find that the door had somehow locked behind me!!! There I am, locked on the balcony of my hotel room, which, by the way, was on the SECOND FLOOR!

All the balconies are connected, only separated by a waist-high set of rails, but I didn't want to hop the rails -- partially because it's probably not something a pregnant woman should be doing and partially because even if I found a room with someone in it, I'd probably scare the bejeezus out of them. I know I'd freak the hell out if I heard tapping from the outside of my hotel room and found some random woman standing there.

But the room next to me had its lights on, so I took my flip flop off and used it to reach the window. Despite my tapping, no one from that room came to my rescue. My guess is that they ignored the tapping, didn't hear it or simply weren't in their room despite the lights.

I could hear a crowd of folks across the way, whom I'm sure were from our work's event. I was somewhat hidden behind a tree, so I don't think anyone could see me. But I finally worked up the courage to shout for some help, despite my fear of ridicule amongst industry execs. I yelled and said, "Um, can anyone hear me? Anyone?" Then a woman responded, "Are you ok? Are you stuck on your balcony?" "Yup!" I replied. "I'll call someone for you!" she offered. I told her my room number and thanked her profusely even thought I couldn't see her.

As I sat on the balcony waiting for help to arrive and relieved that I wasn't going to have sleep outside in the balmy Texas weather with bugs as big as my head, I realized that there was one more potential hurdle. As a cautious traveler, I had flipped that little arm on the door that serves as a faux deadbolt. So then I feared that when security came up to save me, they wouldn't be able to get in! Lucky for me they had some special tool that enabled them to push that little arm out of the way and unlock me from my balcony prison.

I probably should have complained to the hotel management for having a door that locked patrons out, but I was just relieved to be back in my room. And to that faceless stranger who heard my plea, thank you. I hope that good karma comes back your way.

"I’m going to be your new boss. It’s my greatest dream come true. Welcome to the Hotel Hell. Check-in time is now. Check-out time is never." - Dwight The Office

That's just how I roll

2008-05-20T11:18:00.000-07:00

My team and I ran into Russell Simmons after dinner last night. We were surprised that he was sitting there sans an entourage. We caught him on the phone, but he was very pleasant and seemingly happy to talk to us. And he smelled really nice - probably something from his own line of cologne. He was kind enough to take a photo with us (thanks to my co-worker's quick thinking to ask if he'd be willing).

"The nice thing about being a celebrity is that when you bore people, they think it's their fault." - Henry Kissinger

Don't mess with Texas

2008-05-19T16:08:00.000-07:00

Thanks for all the votes! Place your bets if you haven't already!

Yee haw!

I'm currently in Austin for a work event, which I always enjoy. Sadly I missed William Hung's performance on Sunday (I mean that in the most ironic way possible), but I did catch Russell Simmons' keynote this morning, which was entertaining.

Oh, and Leslie Mann, Judd Apatow's wife, was on my flight out here yesterday. I didn't say anything to her, but I've always enjoyed her work and am a big fan of her husband.

I'll be in Texas 'till Wed, and hopefully I can stay cool in this 90+ heat/humidity.

This weekend Brent and I had the pleasure of attending the simply stunning wedding of our friends Angie and Chris at the Firestone Winery near the California Central Coast.

Oh. My. God.

Actually, "stunning" doesn't do it justice. It was more than stunning. Angie incorporated so many wonderful little details that together resulted in a beautiful, beautiful event. She had chandeliers hanging from the wonderful tree that they stood under during the ceremony. Parasols, pashminas and flip-flops for the female guests. Cigars and matches for the male guests. Wine galore! Gorgeous floral arrangements and candles everywhere. And the bride and groom? So beautiful and so very much in love. It was evident how much they are loved by their friends and family.

Brent and I had a really nice time and were honored to share in their big day. I'll have to post pics later that some friends took as I didn't take any myself. I was too busy enjoying the celebration!

"But he's not your father. The guy swinging from the chandelier is your father." - Leela, Futurama