Class No. 1: Baby Care

Poop, boobies, boogers. Yup, we had our first baby class this week.

I'm clearly not ready to be a father. Oh, I can handle the tasks we learned at Baby Care. That's not the issue. Rather, I'm concerned that each of those words made me laugh. This brings into question whether I possess the requisite maturity level for this rather significant life experience.

To be fair, you would've been laughing, too.

About Iris, our instructor. She  was a rather squat woman with a down-home accent and a highly energetic demeanor. Iris's already animated voice seemed to rise with excitement as she anticipated sharing what I can only assume were her own original phrases. "Make a boobie sandwich." That's one of them. There's more, but this is was should be a family blog.

Iris was the type of person who would be perfectly cast as "Happy Consumer No. 1" in a late night infomercial: "Doggie Poop Helper (tm) Changed My Life! Now I have more time to make boobie sandwiches!!!" And you'd believe her. What was that number to call again?

Close your eyes and picture a younger version of your grandmother. Now imagine grandma talking excitedly about parts of the human anatomy and body functions using elementary school terms. That was Baby Care in a nutshell.

Poop, boobies, boogers.

Now as far as my efforts to use hand shadows to pick the baby's nose during the slideshow, that's another story.

[I should mention that Erica and I liked Iris and found her to be endearing. She reminded us in words and in actions that it's supposed to be fun. And we'll always have Iris-isms to make us laugh when things get stressful.]

Buy This Book

We're very proud of our friend Jon, whose book American Wasteland was released last week. We celebrated the accomplishment at a recent party held in his honor. Jon's wife, Emily, organized a great gathering at Rue Cler in Durham. They both deserved a chance to celebrate after the many sacrifices they've made in this process.

Jon's given a lot of himself to this book. Watching him work provided us with a new appreciation for just how difficult it is to have your writing published.

The book grew out of his master's thesis at UNC in 2006. I can remember having breakfast with Jon and Emily in D.C. when he told us his plan to take a year to try and turn his thesis into a book. We respected his determination and willingness to take a risk then. That respect has only grown over the past four years.

We picked up our copy of American Wasteland on Saturday afternoon. Jon's book is in good company, appearing on the shelf next to authors like Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer.  You can secure your copy here or at one of many fine book sellers near you.

Here's a link to Jon's blog and the many press clippings he's earned.

Kudos to Jon. Buy his book!


American Wasteland blurb

What Tom Vanderbilt did for traffic and Brian Wansink did for mindless eating, Jonathan Bloom does for food waste. The topic couldn’t be timelier: As more people are going hungry while simultaneously more people are morbidly obese, American Wasteland sheds light on the history, culture, and mindset of waste while exploring the parallel eco-friendly and sustainable-food movements. As the era of unprecedented prosperity comes to an end, it’s time to reexamine our culture of excess.Working at both a local grocery store and a major fast food chain and volunteering with a food recovery group, Bloom also interviews experts—from Brian Wansink to Alice Waters to Nobel Prize–winning economist Amartya Sen—and digs up not only why and how we waste, but, more importantly, what we can do to change our ways.

Celebrating Four Wonderful Years

Four years ago today, Matt and I shared a day we'll never forget. Surrounded by family and friends, we committed our lives to one another and became Mr. and Mrs. Taylor. What a wonderful experience, and what amazing memories we've created during the last 1,460 days. My prayer is that God will continue to bless us as we continue our journey together.

Week 25 Update

Well, I sailed right into Week 25 this past Saturday. It's hard to believe that I only have 15 weeks to go! Things are going really well these days, so I certainly can't complain about that.

Highlights of Week 24:

• We ordered and picked up the glider and ottoman for Bunky's room. It's super soft and comfy, so I certainly like that! It's so exciting to imagine all of the time we'll spend with our little one in that chair, whether it's reading, feeding, rocking him or her to sleep. Given what we've heard about parenting, we may do our fair share of sleeping in that chair as well.
• Bunky continued to be very active with lots of kicks. He or she has now added rolls and other squirmy moves to the repertoire. It certainly makes for some interesting feelings in my belly! Although baby has spurts of activity throughout the day, he or she is definitely most active at night. The magic time is right around 10 p.m. It's so funny how predictable he or she is in that regard!

What's happening in Week 25:

• Bunky continues to put on weight (and boy can mommy tell based on the size of her growing belly!)
  
• Baby can touch and hold his or her feet and make a fist.
• More and more hair is growing on baby's scalp.
• Baby measures about 13 1/2 inches and weighs about a pound and a half.
  

The reality that we're having a baby is slowing hitting Matt and me. We'll be in the middle of a conversation or driving down the street, and one of us will turn to the other and say: "We're having a baby!" It's just funny how, although we've known this for several months now, it's hitting us in a new way lately.

Exciting things are in store for tomorrow: I have another ultrasound! Although it's a diagnostic ultrasound to make sure that I'm not at risk for pre-term labor, we should be able to get another glimpse of our sweet baby boy or girl. More to come later!

Working on Week 24

I'm 3 days into Week 24 of my pregnancy, and things are still going well. I've finally grown into my maternity clothes (full panel pants, anyone?), and the baby seems to be growing each day.

Highlights of Week 23:

• Matt and I saw Bunky kick for the first time. Up until last Saturday, we were only able to feel him or her move around by pressing on my stomach. Last weekend, though, we were able to see the movements just by looking at my belly. Crazy!
• My appetite continued to increase. It seems like I'm hungry all of the time now. I'm trying to balance things so that I don't overeat, but it sure is hard! (Side note: One of my weaknesses at the moment is french toast. I can't get enough! I've now sampled the crunchy sweet slices at several Durham and Chapel Hill area restaurants, so I'm becoming quite the expert. If you're ever in town and need a recommendation of the best place to get french toast, I'm your girl!)

What's happening this week:

• Bunky is starting to plump up!
• As the fat packs on, his or her skin becomes more opaque. And, it's developing a fresh pink glow!
  
• Baby has gained around 4 ounces of weight since last week. This puts him or her at more than a pound and more than a foot long (the length of an ear of corn!).

Matt and I are beginning to realize all the work we have left between now and Bunky's arrival. There's moving and painting and organizing galore. I'm sure it will all get done, but it's starting to become a bit overwhelming. Given the weekends we've planned to be out of town during the next couple of months, we're left with limited time for room prep. So, we've got to get moving. Wish us luck!

Something Magic Happens

We recently enjoyed a great weekend in Catonsville, which gave us a chance to see Madelyn play soccer, to spend quality time with all three of our nieces, and to relax in the newly renovated upstairs bedroom at Dad's house.

It seems Dad, Denise, and Pete are ready for "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" given how quickly they turned around that room. Impressive stuff.

The girls had a sleepover at Denise's on Saturday night, which provided Pete, Michele, Erica, and me the opportunity to visit Canton for dinner at Nacho Mama's and dessert at Vaccaro's. The trip has become an annual tradition for the four of us. We moved things up this year since Erica and I won't be visiting Baltimore for the holidays (something about a baby being due). It was nice to spend quality time with Pete and Michele. We certainly don't take it for granted.

There were a few great options for Sunday afternoon; we ended up at Camden Yards to watch the final game of the Orioles - Yankees series. I'm sure glad I made that decision.

It was my last baseball game before becoming a father, so it's fitting that we went with my dad. Some of my favorite childhood memories are of attending baseball games with him. We added another great one on Sunday.

Outnumbered by Yankees fans in the home ballpark, we watched the Orioles slog through several uninspired innings before mounting a comeback that culminated in Luke Scott's ninth-inning home run off perhaps the best closer in baseball history, Mariano Rivera.

The O's then improbably held off the Yankees in extra innings - even after New York put a runner on third base with no outs - and won the game in the 11th inning with a double by Scott and a game-winning hit by Ty Wiggington. Afterward, I continued my campaign to name our child Luke, regardless of gender.

Sunday's game added to Erica's remarkable hot streak. The Orioles have won two of the three games she's attended in the team's final at-bat. She now understands the classic song "Orioles Magic" - "Something magic happens, every time you go ...."

Doctor's Report + Shoe Woes

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, Matt and I went to the doctor for our 24-week checkup yesterday. After peppering the doctor with all of the questions we'd noted since the last appointment (and getting sufficient answers), the doctor reviewed our ultrasound from last time and measured my belly. We were told that all is well with our little one and that everything looks to be on track so far. We also got to hear the precious heartbeat again. That's quickly becoming my favorite part of the non-ultrasound doctor's visits.

Fast forwarding to this morning, I experienced a "first" in my pregnancy. I had difficulty putting on my shoes! I still got them on, so no worries there, but I could barely reach my feet. I couldn't believe it! To be fair, I was standing up and trying to put them on, but that's never been an issue before. It looks like it's quickly becoming one, though.

More later!