Family and Firsts

We had a wonderful few weeks with my mom, and were very sorry to see her go. Her visit was a complete blessing. Here we are with her at church on Sunday.

Among other things, she had the patience of a saint with Lucy, who has been "discovering her voice", to put it mildly.


We had a number of family visit over the past few weeks- it was so fun to have them meet Lucy. All of my uncles and aunts and most of my cousins on my mom's side were able to visit, and my grandparents too. Here is my grandmother with Lucy.

Like father like daughter. Lucy in the super-cute outfit my mom got her- she reminds us of Rumpelstiltskin in it.
Lucy had two firsts in the last few days. I didn't take a picture of the first one- her first "explosive poo", as my sister calls it, so you're spared that sight. Needless to say, it went halfway up her back. The second event was her first real tear (baby tear ducts don't work at first). You can see it glinting on her cheek below.
And to end on a happier note, here is a picture and video of Lucy enjoying her Winnie the Pooh mobile which our small group gave us.

Lucia Elizabeth

Our long-awaited little one has arrived! Lucia Elizabeth was born at 6:13 am on Tuesday, February 5th. It was a long labor, starting Saturday morning and staying pretty consistent from that night on, but my aunt Lee and Matt were great labor coaches, and she was worth it all. Here's a picture of Lucy at the hospital, where we stayed for a few days to recuperate.

Lucy loves having her hands up by her head, especially when she's sleeping.

From an early morning photo shoot.

Some quality dad-daughter time in our new glider chair.

Drying off after Lucy's first bath with a hippo towel from her Grandma Judy.

My mom is here for 2 weeks. Her help has been invaluable. She's been taking the night shift with Lucy, and cooking up a storm, including meals for the freezer. Her Lucy-calming techniques are also unparalleled.

Things are going great so far (we are looking forward to more sleep in the not-too-distant future, hopefully). Lucy is an absolute bundle of joy and we feel very blessed by this new addition to our family. We find her adorable expressions, hand movements, and noises (Matt calls her our squeaky toy) keep us entertained and enthralled. It's amazing to finally meet her after waiting for so many months!

A Sweet Evening

Matt and I squeezed in another date night last night (although who knows, maybe we'll have 2 more weeks for these). First we met up in Harvard Square at the Z square cafe for dinner. The food was so good- we split a BLT with avacado and a salad with organic greens, fennel, apple, raisins, walnuts and cheese.

Then we headed over to a favorite dessert place (though we've only been there once), Finale. Wow are their desserts good. We split the creme brulee and the manjari mousse (you can check out their website for descriptions and pictures if you want to vicariously enjoy). It was fun to be out on the town together in these last pre-baby-on-the-outside days.

In baby news, I've been having some "practice" contractions (aka Braxton-Hicks, false labor), but it could still be awhile. Hopefully not, as I'm finally starting to feel a bit uncomfortable- baby is getting big!

New favorite show- Chuck

So I thought I would do a little post in homage to our newest favorite show, Chuck.

Campy? Yup.

Unrealistic? Completely.

45 minutes chock full of nerdy/goofy/adventurey fun? Oh yeah.

1 sentence plot intro to whet your appetite- this nerdy guy who works at a Best Buy-like store gets some government secrets downloaded into his brain and then has to be protected by some CIA/NSA agents. And then it gets fun.

The first episode we saw was "Chuck versus the Sandworm" and it contained numerous references to the sci-fi series "Dune". Any show that does that gets bonus points in my book (I went through an extended sci-fi phase during high school). I've included a few lines of dialogue below to give you a taste of the show- they probably won't be as funny as they are in person, so I then recommend that you watch the pilot and the 3 most recent episodes at nbc.com.

[Harry is the oppressive/bad guy sort-of manager at the BuyMore]

Harry: Chuck.
Chuck: Hi... Harry. Ah, look we'll be back up and running in five minutes.
Harry: Five minutes? Do you know what five minutes means in BuyMore dollars?
Chuck: I didn't realize we had our own currency.

[Morgan is Chuck's best friend and Sarah is the CIA agent assigned to protect Chuck]

Sarah: [meeting Chuck and Morgan for the first time] Wow, I didn't think people still named their kids Chuck or, um, Morgan for that matter.
Chuck: My parents were sadists; and carnival freaks found him[Morgan] in a dumpster.
Morgan: But they raised me as one of their own.

[Casey is the NSA agent also assigned to protect Chuck]

Casey: You shoot him, I shoot you, I leave both your bodies here and go out for a late night snack. I'm thinking maybe pancakes.

Baby prep and artsy shots

The past few weeks have been full - and fun! - with final preparations for our baby. The recent long weekend was particularly productive- shopping, installing the car seat base, installing smoke & carbon monoxide dectors (long overdue), setting up the stroller and portable crib, and organizing our baby nook. Here I am in the right half of the nook, with the baby's dresser and the "Guess How Much I Love You" picture (kudos to Matt for picking a beautiful frame).



My aunt Karen and uncle Allen gave us a beautiful "Moses basket" bassinet, which will be especially helpful during the first month or two when baby sleeps in our room.

Now for a couple of artsy shots. This one is from our candlelit New Year's Day dinner. Matt made a delicious turkey feast and we reflected on what we were thankful for from the past year.

We've had glorious days recently, crisp and sunny.

A Discriminating Palate

A recent trip to the grocery store found us discussing the merits of two seltzer water brands - one is our main stay, but the other caught my eye as it was slightly cheaper (15 or 20 cents less). But Matt insisted that he could tell the difference between the two, and that he liked our regular brand better. So like any mildly competitive and curious couple would do, we set up an experiment once we got home. I poured 3 glasses for him, 2 of one brand and 1 of the other. His mission: to identify which 2 were the same and to say which he preferred.

The connoisseur in action.

The results? He did indeed identify which 2 were the same. And he had a very slight preference for the more expensive brand (it was more bubbly). Needless to say, I was duly impressed.

Ready, set.....

We're into the final stretch now and are eagerly awaiting the arrival of our little one (ETA 2-5 weeks).

The past week has been quite productive in practical preparations. Matt picked up a dresser from Craigslist to use for the baby's clothes, blankets, etc. and then, over the weekend, we met up with my friend Laura to do some shopping using gift cards we've received from friends. We were quite thankful for how it all came together, and Laura's advice as an experienced mom was invaluable. We found a stroller/car seat travel system we both like that is light and sturdy, and also aesthetically pleasing (not an easy thing to find!). We also got a bunch of baby essentials- snazzy red diaper bag, burp cloths, baby nail clippers, thermometer, diaper rash ointment, etc, etc, etc.

We're so grateful to all the friends and family who have generously helped us to get things ready for our little one. At this point it feels like we have basically everything we need..... but the baby!

Our baby nook (i.e., the back half of our dining room) is also taking shape. The dresser is on one wall, with a picture from the classic "Guess How Much I Love You" book hung above, and then we'll set up the pack n' play with its changing table, and move a comfy chair in too.

Meanwhile baby is continuing to stretch and undulate quite happily. I can definitely tell that he/she is getting more cramped in there. Stay tuned for a picture of me and baby sometime soon.