The photographic proof

I get it. I all announced my pregnancy, and then "Poof!" disappeared for a good six months or so. Part of that was because with part-time work, a full-time toddler and pregnancy symptoms like "general ickiness" "wanting to puke-itis" and "OMG I'm so tired" abounding, I just didn't have the gumption to write anything (semi) intelligent about our lives.

But there was more to my lack of blogging than just shear pregnancy-induced laziness. What I didn't realize with my first pregnancy was that while every experience was NEW! EXCITING! WORTH BLOGGING ABOUT! to me, there are a million (or a gazillion, I'm no fact checker) other women out there who have experienced exactly, or at least pretty damn close to EXACTLY THE SAME THING AS ME and my unborn wunderkind. Meaning... whatever I believed at the time, I ain't so special. And (shocking, I know) neither was my pregnancy.

Being knocked up a second time is all about the symptoms with none of the romance. My first pregnancy sweet talked me into thinking I was special, that it loved me, that if I'd just let it get to second base we could have a happy future together. My first pregnancy was a complete a-hole, stringing me along by introducing a neat new baby/fruit comparison each week to get me all hopped up on its love, then would hit me with 5-10 pounds of acne and some weird kind of tummy hair.

This time around, I know the game. I'm older. Wiser. Meaner (or crotchety, pick your adjective). Things seemed just a little less funny, a little less ironic and a little more "OH SWEET LORD LET THIS BABY HURRY UP AND FULLY GESTATE ALREADY."

Please don't get me wrong. I am beyond excited about baby E2 and how he will truly complete our little family. It is just different. I tend to focus less on the day-to-day details of creating a little life, but I still talk to him, still get shivers when I feel him moving and still get teary eyed when I think about HE will be the responsible one who takes care of me when I'm old, crabby and possibly balding from Kate-induced stress (she will either be president or a criminal mastermind I'm sure, both of which will cause me some hair pulling and gnashing of teeth I am sure). But a second pregnancy is... it is just different. And I've asked around. You know, the mommy-circuit. And it seems I'm not alone in feeling this way, which is kind of comforting because I was starting to think I really SHOULD be looking at my week to week fruit baby and getting all giddy because OMG a plum. A PLUM BABY!!!!

However, moving on to the point of this post, I feel like I owe you something to prove I really am "with child" despite my lack of fruit-related blog posts. So I've included some photographic proof to ensure you that I AM in fact pregnant, and not some nut job who just tells people I am and then steals some baby from the NICU or carries a doll around and calls him "Henry."

These photos were taken over Easter weekend, so I was, um, 28 minus a few weeks, carry the one and divide by 20... I was about 24 weeks here. Which means I am currently BIGGER than this, which doesn't seem possible but I assure you, is quite possible. Ask my husband who is currently clinging to his tiny sliver of the bed, trying to fight for space against my pillow nest I've created to sleep in. He will attest to my big-ness. And my love of pillows.

THIS GIRL

Who slept all night long in her new big girl room / big girl bed? Who didn't wake up once and even slept IN this morning? Who totally rocks her mama's world?

Yeah. THIS GIRL.

Changes

I don't really know what nesting is, or when it kicks in, but I figured something was going on last month when I found myself feverishly digging through our spice cabinet, throwing out anything that was even NEAR an expiration date. I think I left us with salt, pepper and some paprika my sister-in-law brought us from Hungary. 

It was also about that time that I started to get really itchy to get the rest of our house in order. Our master bathroom has been under construction for the last several months (I blame the DIY network for leading us to believe it wouldn't be LIVING HELL to remodel our bathroom ourselves) which has pushed us into the guest room and all our stuff into various living spaces. Add to that the new clothing, decor, and STUFF we've purchased for the new baby and basically, our home runneth overeth with crapeth.

While I don't have any control over the master bathroom at this point (sweet LORD please send a handy-man angel to our home to finish it while we are sleeping), I knew that I could start to transition Kate from her nursery to her new big girl room. After a week of painting, moving, organizing, shopping and talking about the new room like it is the next best thing to backstage at a U2 concert, we've finally made the BIG MOVE tonight. 

So far, fingers crossed, it is going gang-busters. Despite a thunderstorm outside, we haven't heard a peep from Little Miss Thing since I tucked her in. Although she could just be operating in stealth mode and may have already snuck through the duct system like a ninja to steal the car for a nice joy ride.

Next up, I tackle the nursery for E2. And in less than three months, I'll have a baby to put in it, which totally blows my mind because, um, where did those first two trimesters go? And, can I please have them back so I can properly prepare for this whole family of four thing that freaks me out every time I see a mother with two kids at the supermarket (is that panic, despair or a little of both I see in her eyes?)

But that mini-freak out is surely a post for another time. Tonight, we celebrate the BIG GIRL ROOM!

Baby E2: Week 22/23

I haven't posted a lot about this pregnancy. Mainly because its been so routine and, frankly, I said it all the first time around. Yes, I still hate being pregnant, but yes, I'll suck it up because I'm fairly certain the whole stork bringing a baby thing was a mean-spirited myth meant to give future mothers hope that they could have a bundle of joy without their bodies being wrecked by an invading army (i.e. baby) for nine months.

Lying jerks.

Anyways, I'm currently 22/23 weeks along now. I give an estimate because frankly, I'm even a little confused about how far along I am. Baby measures big, not sure exact date I'm due, blah, blah, but I CAN tell you I am past the half way mark in my pregnancy and very large in size.

I can also tell you that being pregnant a second time is much less stressful than the first go around. While there are still worries in the back of my mind (will this baby be healthy, will he run for president someday?), I don't find myself flipping out with every new symptom of pregnancy. I mainly roll my eyes and go, "Oh, yeah, forgot how bad THIS SUCKED."

I've also gained less weight than a hippo this time around. Which is a bonus, but then again, I JUST got my appetite back from a pretty sick first trimester and I gained more in the last month than I gained in my entire first three months, but, you know... whatevs. I'm trying not to go totally out of control this time, but lets be honest. This is the LAST time I'm EVER going to be pregnant, so might as well enjoy the ride, am I right?!

In more recent news, little boy E2 is a mover and a shaker. I told Ben that I could literally feel him squirming at 13 weeks. At about 20 weeks, he was kicking hard enough that Ben could feel him. And while I can't get Kate to sit still long enough to feel him yet, I can't wait to let her feel her baby brother moving. Because she certainly isn't tying this all together just yet. I need a book. Or a movie. Because "Your little brother is in mommy's tummy" isn't cutting it.

And in, just this week news, the sleeplessness has kicked in. Yay for trying to be patient with an impatient two-year-old on very little sleep. I mean, double Yay! Every morning from about 3:30-5:30 I'm up, futzing around on my iPhone and willing myself back to sleep. Some of it is baby E2 kicking me awake, and some of it is the typical stress and anxiety of pregnancy. But all of it sucks, and I'm ready to sleep through the night again. In what, oh, three years (sigh)?

I keep promising myself I'll upload photos of the belly soon, but that would require TAKING photos, so we'll just see when that happens. But in the meantime, just imagine me. Ten pounds heavier, with all ten of those pounds located in my belly, hips and thighs. Ahhh, an image of beauty is coming to mind... is it not?

The green bug fan club

Kate: MOMMY!!!!!! Green Bug!!!

Me: You found a green Bug?

Kate: YES!!!!!! GREEN BUG!!!!!!

Kate: TOUCH IT.

Me: Um, I don't want to.

Kate: TOUCH IT MOMMY.

Me: (Pretending to touch it): There, mommy touched it. Very neat.

Kate: M O M M Y.

Kate: T O U C H.

Kate: G R E E N.

Kate: B U G.

Me: Kate, I don't want....

Kate: N O W.

(This continues on for exactly ONE HOUR)

Kate: MOOOOOOOMMMMMMMYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Me: (Just about to lose my mind) Yes, Kate?

Kate: GREEN BUG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Me: (rolling eyes) Yep, I've seen it. You found a green bug.

Kate: YES! TOUCH IT! GREEN BUG TOUCH!

Sound of me gnashing my teeth together to keep from screaming or stomping on the green bug so it dies and I never have to hear about the green bug EVER AGAIN. What do I do to make this stop?!?! Oh, right, what every good mother does...

Me: Kate, do you want to watch some TV now?

Blessed silence from the green bug fan club. Now if only I could get Kate to watch Dora on mute.

Terrible Twos and Boy Bits

When you blog regularly, posts seem to just happen. I mean, its daily life and while it may not be totally fascinating every time, it isn't too difficult to come up with regular content. I've been MIA for three months or so, and frankly, I've been putting off coming back because I truly don't know where to start.

So here is a quick recap of the last several months, edelspot style:

1. I got pregnant. Not an oops, but more a WOW, that happened fast. I'm not going to go into details, (you perverts) but I can tell you that it involved an anniversary, an iPhone app and a bottle of RandyZin, a wine we picked up in Sonoma that practically GUARANTEES a baby.
2. I found out I was with child while Ben was on his three week trip to India in December. I told him over Skype. His computer microphone was broken, so he mimed excitement for awhile and then I went to throw up.
3. Exhaustion and nausea ensued.
4. We told Kate she was getting a baby sibling. She kissed my tummy. Then kissed her tummy and told me, she TOO was having a baby. Since I'm certain she isn't a promiscuous toddler, I just assumed she CLEARLY did not understand what we were telling her.
5. My parents got an apartment in town to be able to spend more time around Kate and the family. Every chance I get when Ben is working, Kate and I go hang out with Grammy and Pops. They may be older, but they are WAY less pregnant than I am, and therefore have more energy to follow around my tiny Energizer Bunny of a toddler.
6. I started showing when I was around 9 weeks pregnant. I was in maternity pants by the time I was 12 weeks pregnant. I see no reason to hang on to dignity when I have all those nice stretchy pants in my closet to stuff my quickly expanding tummy into. Ahhhh, elastic.
7. Kate turned two in March and we had a great birthday at her favorite park. It included kite flying, and you are going to think I'm lying, but Kate was the best kite flyer out of the whole group of adults. She just walked around with her tiny Barbie kite in the air, defying gravity and wacking everyone she walked past with string or kite. She didn't even TRY and it stayed up, seriously for like an hour, while the rest of us struggled to get ours off the ground.
8. In the last few months we've seen Kate changing. She has turned into this amazing little girl. I mean, she was always pretty awesome, but now she seems so grown up to me. She is so wise, and imaginative and this truly funny ham that loves to be the center of the universe. I just can't believe some of the things that fly our of her mouth. Best. Age. Yet.  
9. Kate ALSO turned into a two year-old, and I mean the terrible kind. Holy Hell. Where did that come from? One minute we are best friends and playing an awesome game of hopscotch when I suggest she use the pink piece of chalk and you would have thought her little perfect world had collapsed down around her in a flaming pile of dog doo. Stupid mommy, pink will not do. Not TODAY. Because apparently you forget that yesterday it was YOUR FAVORITE DAMN COLOR. 
10. We found out that baby E2 is a boy. I'm excited and terrified all at the same time. Mainly because if it were a girl, I would, like, totally know what to do. But its not a girl, its a boy. With a penis. And other boy things that I'm not quite sure about, like burping, monster trucks and an interest in SPORTS (God help me). But, if Ben can learn to play tea party like a champ, I'm sure I'll be able to adjust. I'm just looking forward to a really fantastic, loving, momma's boy. You can't go wrong with a momma's boy.

Kate's big news