Hot Summer Days

It's been a little warm here. 

I've spent the last few evenings at the pool, floating and hoping that the lukewarm water would somehow eliminate the swollen existence that has overtaken my legs. (It hasn't).

Yesterday, on the way home from the gym, I saw two girls in a Toyota Corolla, with a giant raft strapped on top. I wanted to honk and give them a thumbs up of approval for heading to the river at nearly six o'clock in the evening, but I didn't.  Instead, I crouched down and snapped a photo.

Then, I went home and made ice pops. I received an ice pop mold for my birthday, and it is absolutely delightful. I've been experimenting with different flavors and fruit combinations. My new favorite is watermelon-strawberry-mint. They are delicious, but more importantly, they are a wonderful distraction from this miserable weather.

27 Weeks

I've been waking up a lot in the middle of the night. Surprisingly, its not the typical pregnancy symptoms, like needing to pee three times before morning or finding myself on my back struggling to roll to my side like a tipped over turtle. It's just that he moves. Like, really MOVES. 

He twists and kicks, squirms and punches. My uterus, with all of its amniotic fluid, must feel like an Olympic pool because he loves to swim to the end, perform a kick turn, and swim back to the other.  He does this all day, but even more so at night. Oftentimes, I'll wake up at 2 AM, and then 3, and then 3:30 wondering if my baby has decided to to rebel against exiting through the cervix and instead insist on clawing his way out through my belly button.

Dude, you're barely going to fit through door number 1. Don't even bother trying door number 2.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't hoping for a typical second born sort of kid. You know, the stereotype: mellow temperament, easy-going attitude, one who sleeps well, and who is, in general, a much easier baby than the neurotic first born. But, based on these kicks, and in particular the five kicks that were just now delivered to my upper right abdomen, make me think that I should throw these second born assumptions out the window.  Or I need to accept the fact that I am gestating an entire liter of kittens.  Either way, this is a wild ride.

That Crazy Pregnant Lady

Things that I've recently done that I will publicly admit and I will wholeheartedly blame on being pregnant:

1.  I demanded that Josh go to Trader Joe's just to buy their roasted coconut flakes for me. (When he came home with the last three bags that were available for purchase in the store, I was sad that he wasn't able to buy four bags.) 
2. After letting Gizmo out into our unfenced backyard, I proceeded to forget that I let her out, and 15 minutes later when I remembered that I let her out and realized that she wasn't in the backyard, I ran down the street in my bathrobe, yelling, "Gizmo! Do you want a treat?" Mind you, it was 11 AM on a Sunday morning, and when I went back inside the house, trying to figure out a way to tell Lola that I lost our dog, Gizmo was asleep in her bed.
3. Having what I call a pregnancy hot flash, and thinking that no one but Lola would see me, I decided to strip down to my bra and underwear while cleaning the house. Unfortunately, Josh came home early and found me mopping the kitchen floor in my underwear. 
4. During another hot flash, I realized that our ice maker wasn't making enough ice for me to eat/drink/transform into popsicles. I put on the only pair of clean shorts that I had, which were way too short and tight and never meant to be worn in public, and drove to the liquor store to buy ice.
5. I want mango. Lots of mango. But, I hate peeling mangoes. Luckily, this is the right season to find pre-cut. pre-peeled mango in the deli section of the grocery store. Glorious mangoes.
6. I also want popsicles, or shaved ice, or slurpees. Preferably all of them in either a coconut or mango flavor.
7. I am totally obsessed with the idea of going to Hawaii. I have no idea why. But, I have totally planned out the entire trip in my head. Somehow, I am going to make it happen.
8. At the grocery store, I stood in the main aisle, jaw dropped for what was probably a good minute, before audibly sighing and saying, "REALLY?! NOW Leinies is sold in California?!!" 

The last few weeks of preschool

Lola's preschool runs on a calendar-year schedule, and so unfortunately (for all of us), when the month of May ended, so did her preschool.

In the weeks leading up to the last day, Lola was very busy. One project assignment required her to color a "Flat Stanley" and then send her Flat Stanley on an adventure. She sent her Flat Stanley down to San Diego to go on a ride with Uncle Nick.

After Flat Stanley went on his ride, he came back to the preschool, and Lola had the opportunity to tell everyone about Flat Stanley's adventure during Circle Time. (The children were very impressed.)

One of the highlights was a camp-out hosted by the school, on the preschool grounds. Lola got a huge kick out of coming to school on the weekend, setting up a tent in the play yard, and playing with all of her friends until dark.

One of the activities that was set up was a miniature zip line.

There were marshmallows to roast, and skits and songs to sing. Josh and I also enjoyed ourselves.

With 20 or so kids all sleeping within a small range of each other, we didn't get much sleep that night, but we certainly had a lot of fun.

On the last day of school, L's teacher held a promotion ceremony. Most of the kids in Lola's class will go on to kindergarten in the fall.  Since Lola was one of the younger kids she has one more year of preschool to complete. This is a fact that she isn't too pleased about -- she claims EVERYONE is going to elementary school, but her.

That being said, all the kids participated in the promotion ceremony. Lola received a certificate stating that she had completed one year of preschool.

Afterwards, there was a little party with an endless supply of sweets. 

While I was watching Lola interact with her peers, I found myself thinking about how difficult it was for her at the beginning of the school year to make friends. For a while, Josh and I wondered if we had made the right decision to place her with the older children. But, on her last day, when she marched right up to the "podium" (aka upside down teeter toter) to accept her certificate and smile for a photo, I felt a surge of pride. She had survived her first year and she was happy.

My Birthday and Mother's Day

This year, my birthday and mother's day were only two days apart, so I milked it for what it was worth. On my birthday, Lola insisted that we eat birthday pancakes.

 

 

 Then, for lunch, we visited my new favorite Indian buffet.  Josh isn't a big fan of Indian food, but I LOVE it and since it was my birthday, he reluctantly agreed to go.  That night, with our bellies still full from lunch, we skipped dinner and drank Slurpees instead.

For Mother's Day, we had a quiet day at home. At Lola's preschool, there was a Mother's Day tea, and the kids were instructed to be "servers."  Lola took her job very seriously; however, every time I requested that she bring me fruit, she would substitute my request with a cookie. She is a firm believer in eating lots of cookies. Each child made their mom a special "bow" to wear. It was constructed from a large coffee filter, and was very adorable.

Each child also filled out a "mom survey." I think my favorite response is number 4.

Trying to be Mindful

Yesterday, Josh motioned toward my stomach and said, "We haven't really talked about this much, but there's a baby in there."

It's true. My uterus is currently occupied by a 20 week old fetus, but unfortunately for this child, it is already falling into a stereotypical second child status.

I'm trying, I really am, to pay attention to it. Trying to pay as much attention to it, as I did to Lola when she was in the womb. But the thing is, I'm failing.  My life, or should I say, our lives are so different now than they were five years ago.  Even as Josh made the comment, Lola was standing between us, jumping up and down, yelling about something that she felt needed an immediate response and our conversation ended with me barely acknowledging Josh's single statement.

Luckily, biology has assisted my attempt to be mindful.

This week, I started to feel some internal movement.  Movement that I can confidently attribute to the baby and not the reorganization of my organs or slowed digestion system.  Every time it kicks or punches me, I am pulled into the present to acknowledge what is going on.

That, and each time I catch my reflection, I find myself compelled to slow down and gaze at my profile. I instinctively place my hands on my stomach, smile, and think, there's a baby in there.

Sharing the News

A video of us telling Lola that she is going to be a big sister.