Grandma's First Visit

I have been counting down the days till Mom gets here and yesterday she finally arrived. I worked hard to get all of my school work done for the last week of the term, so all I have to do while she is here is show up to class. We started her Oregon adventure off by stopping in to share in the 'day after daze' with the Daby's. It was a wonderfully lazy afternoon with nothing on the agenda but lounging over leftovers and finishing off the holiday spirits! It was quite a treat to be able to enjoy the first photos of Scott and Miranda's new little girl, Isabella Christine.
We picked up the pace when we got to Eugene and hunted down local treasures at the holiday market, picked up tye-dying supplies and wine for the blessing tomorrow and had a cozy family dinner at Katie's place.
We even found time for a couple of belly photo ops in the fancy new outfit Mom brought out for me. Today is the first day of week thirty-five...just over a month to go!

Old Wives Tales

Before the days of ultrasounds many couples looked to cultural myths to try to help them solve the boy--girl question. And while Greg and I are quite content not knowing whether our little bundle will wear pink or blue, it's still fun to indulge the old wives tales.

The first one I heard is if you carry low you are having a boy and if you carry high you are having a girl.
My baby belly feels pretty centered, maybe on the low side. All I know is I can still touch my toes even though I can't see them when I'm standing.

The 'Pendulum Test' says that you take your wedding ring and tie it to the end of a string and let it swing over the baby belly. If it swings back and forth it's a boy, if it swings in a circle it's a girl.
Our pendulum swung back and forth.

They say the more morning sickness you have the more likely you are to have a girl. Although my lucky mother had two healthy girls and was never sick....hmmmm. I was happy to find that she passed those genes on to me!

There is also a myth that looks to the father's belly for the answer to the boy girl question. If dad packs on pounds during the pregnancy, then you are having a girl, if he doesn't gain a thing you're having a boy.
In spite of the constant supply of ice cream and weekly pizza indulgence, Greg still has the metabolism of a fifteen year old boy and is as fit as ever.

My naturopath told me that if your linea nigra (the line running down your belly) starts below your belly button you are having a boy, if it starts above, you are having a girl.
As of right now, I only have a line below my belly button.

The only myth that is close to having some kind of scientific backing says that if your baby's heart rate is under 140 beats per minute it's a boy and if it's over 140 bpm it's a girl. Our baby's heart rate is usually right around 150 bpm.

Finally there are those that say that your intuition can often predict the gender of the baby, in which case we will have a boy. It's fun to apply these myths to our personal experience of pregnancy, but overall, I love not knowing. This is the only time in life that we will get to know a being outside the bounds of gender roles. I know it makes shopping for showers more difficult, but it will all be worth it when we get to make that announcement after he or she is born.

So now you decide. I am adding a poll to see who thinks it's a boy and who thinks its a girl. We'll see the strength of these old wives tales in about six weeks!

Diaper Duty

I have a confession to make. I know that many women fear the actual labor of their child, as they open up their minds and bodies to encompass a pain that is beyond the realm of language. But the thought that I can't get my head around right now is, well, diapers.
Greg and I have done a lot of research on the great debate of cloth verses disposable diapers. There is evidence that equates the environmental impact of both options, saying that cloth diapers are not necessarily as 'green' as once thought due to the water use from continual laundering. So we looked to factors outside of the environmental footprint. While disposable diapers have made some progress in becoming more biodegradable, cloth diapers would allow us to contribute to local business, purchase used materials and maintain a greater influence over the type materials that we use. So we decided on cloth diapers and I promptly set out to find gently used materials on craigslist.

As it turns out there are many different styles and schools of cloth diapering. I knew that I was in over my head when I got a lot of diaper duds that was complete with diaper pins! I sat wide-eyed with the diaper pins in one hand and a cloth diaper in the other, trying to imagine how they went together. I began wishing that there was a Diapering 101 class to compliment the labor and breastfeeding classes we are taking. Every mother that I got diapers from was more than happy to give me a brief tutorial on their style of diapering that ultimately ended up making my head spin.

Eventually Greg and I found ourselves at my favorite local baby shop, Bambini. Where Shannon, the beautiful owner, sat me down for Diapering 101. She gave me the run down on sizing and materials for prefold diapers, diaper covers, pocket diapers and "g" diapers. In anticipation of our upcoming busy schedule we were looking for the simplest approach, which ended up being pocket diapers. There is even a brand, Happy Heinys, that makes diapers that are one size fits forever!

I was able to breath a deep sigh of relief at having the mess of diaper details simplified for me. And Greg was able to breath a sigh of relief when Shannon told us that we could sell any diapering materials that we weren't planning on using to her store and explicitly told me not to buy any more, but just to have fun and register.

Finally Furnished!

After a couple months of compulsively checking craigslist and running around town fetching gently used furniture, the nursery finally looks like a nursery! As I eluded to in a previous posting, craigslist has become a way of life for me. I probably check it twice a day. There is a plethora of baby gear from cribs to clothes to carriers that make the goal of green parenting even more affordable and attainable. I have found great deals not only on furniture, but on the other major baby investment, diapers.

The prenatal purchases I have made from craigslist have served to expand my sense of connection to the local community of mothers and families. With every exchange I meet a new mother with new insight and inspiration about parenthood and connecting with other like-minded parents. So not only am I getting a great deal on used furniture, but I am meeting hip mamas who approach family life from a fresh perspective. This sense of community has been a great comfort to me, as Greg and I are among the first of our friends to begin the transition from a couple to a family.
So while I plan on continuing to indulge my craigslist habit throughout the years to come, for the time being I am cut off from more baby purchases until after the showers and baby blessings....not that that stops me from checking the new postings!

Father-Daughter Day

As my last trimester unfolds I am finding that there are more moments that I wish I could share with family and friends who are so far away. They are mostly just the subtle, everyday moments, feeling the baby kick, having an oversized ice cream sundae, taking Bishop to Mount Pisgah, assembling the crib and folding tiny baby clothes.
Yesterday, I finally got to share some moments with Dad, who was up here doing business in the Salem area. We got together for a great dinner at the McMenamin's brew pub, followed by the most incredible pumpkin crisp...ala mode, of course! The baby showed off it's kung fu kicks for his Grandpa. Dad shared some family folklore that will no doubt make its way into infammy as the stories are told over and over again for little ones trying to draw out their bed time story hour. I wish that dinner with Dad could have lasted a week, and not just because of the ice cream! There is no replacement for the love and support of family.
It was such a treat to see you Dad! Just think, the next time we see eachother, you will be a Grandpa! Crazy!
Love to you all who are so far away yet in our thoughts every day!

The Big 3-0

Yesterday the belly turned thirty weeks! For you math majors out there that means we are 3/4 of the way there! Time is just flying by. I thought I would honor this little milestone by divulging a few of our mother-baby statistics.


Belly size: 30 cm top to bottom
Weight gain: 20lbs
Baby's approximate weight: 3lbs
Favorite Activities: Hiking and Yoga
Ice Cream: Daily
Remaining Vice: Occasional Caffeine
Cleaning: Compulsive
Craigslist: 12 step program
Craving: Indian Food
Warm Fuzzy: Baby kicks
Gripe: Indigestion and RLS
Love: Prenatal vitamins affect on hair
Miss: Hot tubs
Conundrum: Baby name
Preferred Pamper: Raindrop Therapy

Much to my surprise I am loving just about everything about being pregnant, even the growing belly is feeling great! (Although, you should never tell a pregnant woman she is "Huge", tell her she's "All belly and looks great!" It's just better for all involved.) It's impossible not to feel remarkable and amazing as you witness the crazy things your body is capable of, plus I have never been able to get Greg to rub my feet this much!

Market Mamas

One of my favorite things about living in Eugene is the Saturday Market. It's a place where food, music, art and people come together once a week to showcase the fruits of their labors, both literally and metaphorically. There are only a few more markets before the arts and crafts move indoors for the Holiday Market and then after Christmas the long winter hibernation begins.
There is no substitute for market veggies. You can taste the labor of love and lack of truck time in every bite. I miss these spirit saving flavors during the rainy winter months, so I am getting there as often as I can to stock up on fresh fruit and veggies. I have a freezer full of fresh berries that give smoothie mornings a taste of the summer sun that will be priceless come this January.

This week I went with my friend Mary, who is expecting come this May. It was a beautiful fall day complete with colorful trees and seasonal snacks. We treated ourselves to fresh raspberries and apple cider and scored a few local treasures for ourselves, may favorite being a sweet succulent planted in a bowl made from Mount St Helen's ash. The asking price....$5! I love market days!