Mark Your Calendar?

So, we had some Chinese food tonight and this was my fortune. We're actually down to seven weeks until the ESTIMATED due date (starting week 34), but maybe the folks in charge of my vegetarian potstickers know more than we do.

Here's an Otter shot, too, just for kicks. I can't help myself. Plus, I worry he'll get jealous if we don't include him every once in awhile.

Vegas, Baby, Vegas

Well, this weekend marked the end of an era...the last pre-baby trip for me. David has at least one more work trip left before the anticipated due date, but after a long weekend in Las Vegas for a friend's wedding, my feet will now be planted in the Bay Area. While the wedding was wonderful, we learned that Vegas is perhaps not the most amenable environment for an expecting mother -- one gets a few odd looks when sporting a sizeable baby bump while waiting in a taxi line at midnight after attending a bachelorette party. Fortunately, David's parents and my friend, Christie, were there to keep me company and away from the roulette tables, and the hotel pool was available for some much-needed respite from the 105+ degree temperatures. Having experienced the third trimester in that excruciating heat, I am now forever grateful to be spending the summer pregnant in cool SF, where a heat wave constitutes mercury rising above 72 degrees.

For those keeping track, I'm now in my 33rd week of pregnancy. The baby is doing her best to keep me up at night, but I'm still finding her kicks and midnight dancing sessions to be endearing rather than exhausting. We are still awaiting our nursery furniture, which is rumored to be making its way from Canada this week -- hopefully we'll get her room in shape before she decides to join us.

Birth University is now complete. We can proudly say we now know how to properly hold an infant, conduct CPR, and soothe her cries (well, we're not sure how successful we'll be at that last one -- but we did learn some techniques). We also learned all about the joy (and horror) of childbirth, in all its graphic detail. But most comforting of all, we learned that while there will be an almost endless supply of frustration, sleep deprivation, and cluelessness in our near futures, there will also be hefty helpings of excitement, laughter, and unbelievable happiness. That's the hope anyway!

The photo is from the Vegas wedding -- our growing little girl can be seen busting out from under David's hand. Though you can't see it here, I made it through the night in high heels (switching to flip flops only at the end, after several rounds of dancing). Judging from my soreness the next morning, I'm guessing that I can find that under the Things Not to Do section of my baby books.

Let's cross our fingers that the next photos will be of a FINISHED nursery!

XO- Lara

San Francisco Shower

The amazing and overwhelming generosity of our friends and family continued this weekend with another baby shower, this one hosted by our sister-in-law, Chris (with David's mother serving as the incredible and integral unofficial host). This party was held in San Francisco and was great fun. After some mingling among the yummy appetizers and cocktails (mineral water for me, of course), we celebrated the soon-to-arrive baby with a lovely lunch. Jimmy the Giraffe, a gift from Grandma Corey, kept a watchful eye over the festivities and will be a welcome addition to the still-disorganized nursery. It was a fantastic afternoon made all the better with lots of family activities throughout the weekend -- David's Aunt Wendy and Uncle Dick were in town from Chicago, Chris's parents were visiting from Los Angeles, and dear family friends Sheila and Jeff were up from San Diego. Here are some photos:

http://picasaweb.google.com/chrislaucorey/LaraSShower

As you can see from the pictures, Baby Corey will be quite well-dressed -- not to mention outfitted with some pretty awesome toys, books and other gadgets. David is especially thrilled that Kat, our friend kind enough to attend while visiting her family from Boston, made it her number one priority to make sure our girl will be a San Diego Chargers fan from birth (though she was kind enough to include some Bucs socks).

I'm finding that while my mind still thinks I can maintain my pre-pregnancy activity levels, my body has another agenda -- the weekend, while wonderful, has been exhausting! I see some very early bedtimes in my near future...

Next on tap is Birth University, our baby preparedness course that will take place in the next two weeks. I'm sure this will be an eye opener for David and me, who soon will be schooled on the basics of labor, breastfeeding, and diaper-changing. I'm very curious to see what it's like to have a few dozen VERY pregnant ladies in one room (along with their dazed spouses). Maybe there will be pickles and ice cream on everybody's desks? We'll see soon enough.

Thanks again to all our friends and family who made our bi-coastal showers so special -- we will treasure the memories and look forward to one day telling our little girl about what great people you all are!

XO- Lara