Celebrating Mom!

We spent Saturday in Monterey celebrating my mom's 70th birthday. Isn't she cute? Saturday also marked the 33rd anniversary of when she went into labor with me.


The Panda is 27 weeks old today. He's active like his dad, and clearly practicing to be a star soccer player. He even kicked his way through my prenatal massage!


Josh is doing amazing things to our home in preparation for the Panda. The best advice my mom ever gave me was to marry rich or marry handy. ;)

Pandatastic vacation and lots of demo!

Just a quick update:

Panda (and Molly) spent last weekend in New York seeing friends, walking endlessly, and eating lots of good food. Much love and thanks to our now completely Brooklyn-based crew (David, Katie, Alex, Adele, Matty, Jodi) and our travel buddy (Kim) for the fun times!

Josh (with help from his family) has been busy deconstructing our house, reframing walls in the Panda's room, the kitchen, and the bathroom. We'll make sure to save a couple projects for when the Panda is here, so he can learn to be handy like his father.

Siena has spent most of this time sleeping, alternately on the deck and in the living room.

Panda, it is!

Panda narrowly beat out Jesus Ignacio (Chuy Nacho) in the naming poll, so we'll be sticking with that for now. More name polling to come.

The Panda is becoming more active. I can feel him doing what must be jumping jacks. Or the dance Jennifer Beals does in Flashdance where she's basically running in place. Yes, I am anticipating a very active Panda.


But now on to more pressing issues. Things that really keep me up at night. What kind of diaper bag should I get? Do I want to share one with Josh? Can two Virgos keep one bag organized in the "correct" way? As a bag connoisseur, I find it totally unacceptable that I'm not well versed in diaper bags. Looking for suggestions here, people!

FAQ

I know you're all curious about the Panda. Otherwise you wouldn't be reading this. And we're really thrilled that you're so excited about him! Here are some answers to questions you might have:

Due Date & Delivery

• Yes, we know when he's due. Estimates include 11/27, 11/28, and 11/29. No, he is NOT going to be a Scorpio. No, we will most likely not be at Thanksgiving, but thank you for the invite.
• No, we don't know where he will be born. We are going to tour Kaiser Oakland and Kaiser Walnut Creek.

Pregnancy & Parenting Advice

• Yes! We'd love to know what worked/didn't work for you.
• No, we do not want to hear what we "have to" buy, read, do, or eat.
• Yes, we know the benefits of breastfeeding, and yes, that's the plan.

Names

• Yes! The names in the polls are fun. No, we're not really going to go with any of them.
• No, we're not going to tell you the name until the Panda is here.

Stuff

• Yes, we'd love to know about baby/child stuff you're looking to pass along.

Other

• Yes, we will have a meal delivery plan, coordinated by the lovely Molly & Darren Croteau. Stay tuned.
• Yes, we are taking prenatal classes, vitamins, etc.
• Yes, there is a ton of work to be done on the house before Panda gets here, and yes, we'd love your help. Projects range from major demo & remodel (bathroom) to cleaning & painting (Panda's room). Let me know if you're interested in helping with any of it!
• Yes, we will have a registry for baby gifts. But not yet.

It's a...

Panda! And not only is it a panda, it's a boy panda.

The 20 week ultrasound (pandavision) revealed a very active, squirmy, flexible, and healthy kid. 

And now we get to start seriously considering boy names. Josh's family has made some very, um, interesting suggestions. Vote for your favorite!*



* Absolutely no guarantee we'll go with the name that gets the top votes.

El Panda Or La Panda

5 days until the 20 week ultrasound. That means only 5 more days for you to look into your crystal ball, wildly guess, or place bets on the gender of the Panda.

18 weeks in...

 

Whoa! On the way home today, Molly started feeling tiny bubbles in her belly - a sure sign of Panda movement. The quickening is here! (Josh says "there can be only one.") 

Molly is certainly feeling better...though not quite convinced of the glory of the 2nd trimester. Still waiting. She played her last softball game on the 19th, yet continues to attend games (dressed up, of course, as all players on the DL should). Her last two games were amazing - clearly the Panda is going to be a great softball player.

We've received some really great advice from friends that have children. Here are the top three:

3. Sleep in. And sleep as much as you can.

2. See movies. Lots of them. You won't have an opportunity to do this for quite some time.

1. Avoid children under 10. You'll have enough time with them later.

The 20 week ultrasound is scheduled for 7/11. We are definitely going to find out if it's LA Panda or EL Panda. Molly hates surprises.