Ok, baby... there's really no new news out here, other than you are now at about 14 weeks (though I think you are farther along), I've had to go up TWO holes in my belt and a lot of my pants don't fit anymore. I hope you enjoyed me playing music for you the other day. You seemed to like Tribe Called Quest, which is great because they are one of my favorite music groups. Soon, I'll introduce you to Beastie Boys!

I've been looking at all sorts of cute things for you, like your first bacon!

"I'm bacon!"

 You see, little pistachio... bacon is a wonderful food.  I'm sure you will love it.  See all that cuddly fat and yummy meat? It comes from a magical animal called a piggie and piggies make all sorts of yummy food like bacon, pork chops, pulled pork sandwiches (the bread comes from grains like wheat and flour, but that's another post) Someday, you will meet some piggies and we will make bacon :)

Plus, I've picked out some colors for your room! I hope you are doing okay in there and you are excited to see the world when you come out. I know it's going to be quite a while, but I am just so excited!!!

Whew

Sometimes I feel really tired, baby and I can't figure out why. Like right now, it's 10:30am, I got plenty of sleep last night, but I'm feeling really exhausted. Is it you? Are you draining all my energy like an adorable parasite? Was it all the learning I did yesterday at school? Who knows?!

Today, I'm going to be painting the bathroom. Daddy is sanding all the bumps and grooves away so the walls will be nice and smooth for me to paint. Then, we are going to put in the new tiles and the new tub fixtures.

I have yoga tonight as well, so hopefully that will help my mood a little bit because I have a pretty busy day tomorrow.

I leave you with 2 pictures; of your Aunt Dani and your Aunt Aimee!

Daddy!

Hello pistachio!

Mom hates when all the doctors keep calling you a peanut. I said it the other night and she didn't like it, so then I called you pistachio. I thought it was cute. Here's a pistachio commercial featuring the famous keyboard cat. (This will never make any sense to you, so don't bother trying to understand it)




Anyway, just wanted to say I've been thinking of you 16+ hours a day, and I talk about you at work all the time. Sorry I haven't written anything on here yet, just been busy with my jobs, and fixing up the new bathroom. We're putting a light in the shower so we can see, and make sure you're a spotless clean baby for when we go out!

Ok, I have to get back to work, Love you and hope you are swimming peacefully.

-Dad

Woops!

Been a couple days since I posted something. It's not because I haven't thought about you, baby... I've done little else, actually! My job is gearing up again, so I'm a little bit busier. Plus, we were still a little unsure about how old you really are. Remember I said 2 weeks ago you were 13 weeks? It turns out, you are 13 weeks NOW!

So let's see, what's been happening... we saw you the other day!

what's going on in there baby?

You look so comfy in there. And you were moving around and doing somersaults... you made me laugh and the technician couldn't do his job! If you felt some poking, it's because he needed you to move so he could look at you all sides. Also, I got the all clear to tell the whole world! There are lots of people who are VERY excited to meet you; lots of family here in Philadelphia! Oh and all my friends at my work. Did you know I work on a farm?

Looks fun, right?

I can't wait to introduce you to my chicken and pig coworkers, as well as the human ones. I work on a project that is a bit closer to home. I drive a big yellow truck:

mmm... fruits and veggies!

and go all over bringing folks fresh fruits and veggies. You are due to be born right smack in the middle of the season! My own little veggie!

I missed 2 yoga classes and was trying to get it in by doing it on my own, but I missed going to the studio, and today I was able to fit it in. I was soooo happy to get back to it. I hope you felt all the stretching and positive energy I was directing toward you.

I've been kind of lazy about keeping track of the food I'm eating, but I feel like I'm back on track now.

Daddy is re-doing the bathroom and so there is a bit of a mess in the house, but once it gets done, we get to work on your room! Any suggestions? I was thinking about light green with brown accents, I'd paint a BIG tree on the wall and have birdies and flowers on it. I've also been thinking about things that you will need; bottles and clothes and all kinds of things.

The other evening, I was so tired and I laid down on the couch. Your fur sister, Sydney (you've probably heard her barking) decided she wanted to lay with me and put her head on my tummy, she laid there the whole time! She doesn't like to stay still for long, so this was really cool. I think she wanted to know how you were doing. Here's what she looks like:

Ready to party!

I think that's all that's been happening. I hope you are continuing to grow and be healthy. I can't wait to feel you kicking and see you again in a few weeks!

We get to see you!

We are on our way to get an ultrasound... We get to see what you look like!

Plants!

Another thing I love, baby, is plants.  All kinds of plants, but I especially love plants that make food! Right now, its cold outside and food doesn't grow very well.  There are special places called farms where they grow lots of food and have big buildings called greenhouses where they can grow food all year around.  There are plants that do better in the cold, like potatoes, beets and green leafy plants like kale and collard greens and they can be outside. I work at a farm and we grow food plants!

I go to school at a place where I learn about trees, which are BIG plants, and pretty other plants that are not for eating. I am able to get small pieces of trees and other plants and bring them home to grow them to make the house look pretty from spring to fall. I also get food plants from work and grow them so we can have fresh food from right in our backyard.


Here are some of the plants I've gathered:

I can't remember what this plant is called, but it's very unusual with it's spotted leaves and I love the little purple flowers that have come up all winter.

This is called a Cissus dicolor, Begonia Vine.  I love the stripes on the leaves and the red veins.  The underside is red also.

This is a Persea americana, an Avocado seedling.  I grew it from that seed you see in the bottom of the picture. It's going to get to be a big tree!

Soon, we'll be out digging in the dirt, planting little seeds together and seeing what grows.  It could be something tasty, or beautiful or both!

Here's a fun song about plants!

Yoga

I am really enjoying my yoga class, baby.  I hope you are as well. I feel taller and stronger, and I feel like I'm giving you more space to grow and giving you cleansing breaths to relax you and make you feel safe.  It's different than other yoga classes I've taken, they are less about keeping your core strong during positions, and more about relaxing and opening.

This one is called "One-Legged Pigeon":

Coo-coo

This one is "Warrior II"

Hi-ya!

This was is called the "Deep Crouch"

Get deep, baby!

There is so many more.  But, do you know what else, baby?  After you are born, we can do yoga together!

Could this be us?

All My Friends Are Dead

One of the things I am most excited about, baby, is reading to you and teaching you how to read. I LOVE to read (your Daddy, not so much)! I was so excited to learn how to read when I was a little girl and I can't wait to show you all the worlds there are out there.

I'm super excited to get this book for you

get it? 'cause he's a dinosaur!

Now, I know... some people may say it may not be appropriate. But, I think you are mature enough already to see the humor.













So Grandma Iline and Grammy Kay don't have heart attacks, I also can't wait to read this to you

good night chair, good night hair, good night zombie over there...

wait until you meet

This monkey is AMAZING, trust me. And if you don't, ask your Aunt Danielle

and of course,

there's a lot of anthropomorphisizing in kids books

Anyway, that's what's in store for you. Plus, Grimm's Fairy Tales and pooping and Yo Gabba Gabba and.... well, let's just leave Star Trek for later...

Oof

Little sore today, baby... I was told my muscles would get sore, but I was still surprised by this.  Seems like we're doing things a little backwards.  My emotions are a roller-coaster and since I've had this cold, I haven't been feeling well.  Here we are going into the 2nd trimester, the so called "honeymoon" trimester and I am not feeling great while some of my yoga lady friends have said they were jealous of how I didn't have any morning sickness. 

Good thing today is a day off and I have some puttering around the house to do.  I have been taking your fur sister Sydney out on longer walks, which she seems blissfully unaware is beneficial to all 3 of us. It's okay, she is really smart for a furry kid, but as far as humans go, she seems happier being ignorant.

Your Grandma Iline sent me this great pregnancy book that I need to look through which would be a nice, relaxing thing to do today as well.  Daddy and I downloaded a whole bunch of cool kid songs for you as well.  We are going to get some big earphones and strap them on my belly for you to listen to while you are growing.

Wistful

This is how I'm feeling today, baby.  Sort of wanting something but not really sure what it is.  I'm a little worried about things, but that's not for you to care about.  You just keep on growing and getting all your body parts in order.  I just wanted to share with you how I was feeling.  I wonder if you know that already, but just wasn't sure what the word was.  There ya go, I just taught you a word.

Yesterday I bought 2 new shirts with a gift card your Grammy Kay gave me.  They are stretchy and have lots of room for you and my tummy as you grow.  I also bought a pretty purple sweater, that will also grow with us.  Good thing, because here we are at 14 weeks and you are already giving me a little bump!

Anyway, I just wanted to say a little "hey" and tell you that I love you and I'm always thinking about you.  I hope you are doing okay in there.

Grammy Kay

Grammy and Daddy

Hi baby, I am your Grammy McMillan. Your Poppy & I are so excited about you. I have to tell you,,,, you have,,, parents that are probably going to make you,,,,, well how about the President of your time. So, I see you are the size of a peach as we speak, but it will not be too long until we all will be taking turns tossing you about. I will check in again soon. Love, Grammy

pretty picture

pretty flowers

Oh Baby!

Hi baby!

Your Daddy and I knew you were coming over a month ago, but we couldn't be sure until we went and saw a doctor.  Over the month, I started taking special vitamins and going to a yoga class special for mommies to be.  I knew I had to see a doctor soon to see how you were doing, but I also knew that even doing these two small things would mean a lot to you as you were growing.

Daddy and I talked a lot about you, and named you "Rufus" so we could make you seem more like a little person and not just a little pea sized entity in my tummy.  We don't know if you are a girl or a boy, but we figured either way, you were going to be the coolest kid ever and you wouldn't mind.

A week ago, I went to see my big girl doctor, Dr. Doshi and she told me that yes! I am pregnant! Then I made an appointment with a special nurse called a midwife named Dr. Bobbi and daddy and I went there yesterday.  Dr. Bobbi told us you were maybe a little older than we thought, 13 weeks! And then she brought out this special machine that let us hear your heartbeat... THAT was so cool!

We had broken the news to your Grandparents after our appointment with Dr. Doshi and they are so excited to meet you! So are all your aunts and uncles and cousins.  Your fur sister Marbles isn't so sure but Sydney seems pretty excited.  It's okay, it won't take long to be able to tell them apart.

this is how big you are!

I can't wait to show and teach you everything.  Daddy and I are so excited to be able to share our lives with you.  Oh, one more thing... don't let anyone tell you you were an "accident".  You, baby, were a surprise and we couldn't be happier when we found out.

Big zerberty kisses!