nursery.

85% done at this point -- we're still waiting on a wall decal to arrive, which you can see here (ours will be a dark brown tree with teal birds and eggs). Also, the framed picture above the changing tray looks like this in reality, but with the name of the baby -- I obscured it with a piece of construction paper to keep the surprise until the big day!)

(this is the view from the doorway looking slightly left; the framed poster above the rocker is from the Kathe Kollwitz museum in Berlin, which Jason visited in February of 2002 -- we've been waiting for the right time and place to hang it, and now we have one!)

(view from the doorway looking head on; you can see our whale tub and activity gym peeking out from under the crib in this one -- we have to get creative with storage in such a tiny room and house!)

(this is the view from in front of the closet; the dresser is pressed up against the left wall, which will eventually have the decal on it -- pictures to come once it arrives!)

good friday.

A much needed day off of work today -- have been mostly lounging around, but also tried to tidy up the house from the tornado of baby things that have hit this week. I had a baby shower at work on Tuesday, which was lovely: we received our activity gym and bouncy chair, as well as some darling little outfits, a great diaper bag, and some other wonderful baby gear accessories. The trunk of our new car was perfect for hauling it all home in!

Life continues to be rather full. I finally have my maternity leave sub in place, thank goodness -- she shadowed me on Thursday and will be back again on May 2nd-3rd to transition into the job. Monday night was the only time I didn't have something going on; Tuesday was the shower and a Passover seder, Wednesday was a meet-and-greet with our back-up doula at the DeKalb Library followed by choir practice, and last night was Maundy Thursday service, but I had to leave after the choir rehearsal to head over to the hospital for our new baby care class. And tonight is a Good Friday service -- never really been to one before, but we're performing a great choral piece. Busy, busy, busy! Baby has been busy, too, with lots of wiggling and poking me at all times of the day and night.

Hoping we'll be able to hang up some pictures and the mobile this weekend, as well as attach the changing tray to the dresser -- we'll post the results here if we're successful. Happy Easter and Gut Yontiff and Pesach to all!

goodbye to the old life.

Yesterday was a momentous day -- after 15 long, happy years together, Jason said a tearful goodbye to his old friend, the Green Monster. In some ways, it was a ceremonious end to an era. We went for the tried-and-true bandaid removal method: get the painful part over as quickly as possible. 5 hours of car test-driving and shopping later, and it was done -- with a little goodbye kiss, we said farewell to Jason's trusty truck.

Oh the places they had been and the things they had seen! Learning to drive in the Twin Cities, accidents near the MN State Fair, trips to the cabin, tooling around Appleton during college, back and forth from the midwest to Boulder CO and up into the mountains during grad school, not to mention infestations by a variety of rodents, being packed to the gills with wedding gifts and household items during cross-country and cross-town moves -- Jason and his truck had been through many life changes together.

But 125K miles later, Jason's truck had definitely seen better days, and it just didn't seem safe for toting and carrying our new precious cargo. Don't be mistaken, however: our new car is certainly not an upgrade -- you can't get any better than the 2-door SUV wonder that was the 1996 forest green Ford Explorer that brought us back and forth to so many of our best memories. Thanks for the good times, beloved car. We'll never forget you.

worn out.

It's been a little while since I've updated our blog -- and it's not because we haven't had much to share. On the contrary: I'm exhausted with everything that's happened in the past few weeks! A fun weekend in Chicago with uncle-to-be Ross, officially joined my church, taught several guest/model lessons in English classes at my school, did more work on the nursery, picked up some after-school responsibilities for a little extra cash before the baby comes, attended our breastfeeding class...and Jason's been busy too, judging a business ethics competition and doing some guest lecturing of his own in addition to his normal schedule. To top it all off, Jason caught my cold, and then my cold turned into a sinus infection. If you couldn't figure it out already, I'm totally wiped out -- being extra busy and sick added to the normal fatigue of the third trimester is really taking its toll. But in only 3 weeks from today, I'll officially be on maternity leave. Counting down the days and minutes until I can (maybe) get some rest before baby makes that impossible!

by the book.

Today, I begin my 32nd week of pregnancy (a.k.a. 31 weeks, 0 days have passed by so far). We had a doctor's appointment (they're going to start occurring every 2 weeks now) and it went great! My doctor says my uterus must have "bought the book" on pregnancy -- I'm measuring exactly where I should be. This was the first time I hadn't gained a pound a week since the beginning of the second trimester (only 1.5 pounds since my last appointment), so I'm feeling good about not getting too large too fast while I still have 8-9 weeks to go. And we talked about some concerns I had with labor and delivery and found out some reassuring information (she's very in favor of natural birth and avoiding pain medication, and she also encourages women to eat and drink [very light amounts] during labor to keep their strength up -- so I won't just be chowing down ice chips). I'm starting to freak out about giving birth, but it was good to hear that she's on board for the kind of birth we're hoping to have. I've also been reading, reading, reading to get ready for birth and beyond. The books I can be most often found flipping through include Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way, The Nursing Mother's Companion, and Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. I also just received Secrets of the Baby Whisperer from Stephanie at my shower. If you have any other suggestions for great mother-to-be reads, feel free to pass them along! I know I won't have much time to read once baby is here, but since my maternity leave starts in just over a month, I hope to squeeze in some more birth and parent education while I can.

showered (and a little sick).

Went to MN this weekend for the baby shower, which was unbelievably lovely. So nice to catch up with old friends and spend time with family! It would have been even better if I wasn't battling a head cold the whole time...but I can't complain too much since I've been very healthy so far this pregnancy. Here's the event in picture form!

so many thoughtful gifts!

a special family heirloom from Jason's Aunt Julie

one of many pink outfits for baby (Go Twins!)

mobile for the baby's room, in fabric to match...

...the new quilt!

Juliette got in on the fun.

one of Jason's favorite gifts: fun bath time ahead!

owls, handmade by my cousin to match the quilt and mobile

the "young people": Beth, me, Stephanie holding Juliette, and Sara

preparations.

Jason and I went to our "prepared childbirth" class yesterday. It was long (6.5 hours) but definitely worth it. The nurse who ran the class was very personable and informative, and though a lot of the information was review for me, there was some new stuff -- and it was all pretty new for Jason. Watching the childbirth videos was a little tough at times (especially for the J-man), but also helpful. And it was really great to get to tour the maternity suites at the hospital. They are beautiful and hotel-like, so I'm pretty excited about getting to stay there. As we left the OB ward, we got to stop and peek into the nursery, where there was one little newborn just stirring from slumber. Jason told me later that was the first time he'd ever seen a newborn baby in his life and he couldn't believe how tiny he was!

The preparations continued today as we assembled the glider for our nursery (thanks, Mom and Dad!). The crib will be delivered on 3/28, and then we'll have plenty of time to finalize the decorative details and get the room ready for baby Hanna's big arrival. Apologies for the bad photo lighting and the bare-ness of the picture -- the room will look much cozier once the curtains are back up (they are being redone by my mom, seamstress extraordinaire!).