A Midsummer Night's Shower

Last night, I went to my work friend Colleen's house for an all-girls' summer party. It turned out to be an all-girls' summer party and a surprise baby shower! Among many other delicious foods (homemade pizza, stuffed mushrooms, virgin pina coladas, yum...), I got to indulge in these scrumptious "It's a Boy!" cupcakes, the leftovers of which are now occupying our fridge:





Yes, those are blue gummy bears in the frosting--Colleen thought of everything!

My thoughtful colleagues also gave me a fabulous gift...there's no doubt that they know my style:





Thank you, ladies! I'm a lucky girl to work with all of you.

29 weeks!

The third trimester is here in full force! Although most people I've talked to and books I've read say that the second trimester is the best, I have to disagree. Little Nooner has stopped his Incredible Hulk growth patterns (maybe because of his ridiculous spurt in the middle of this pregnancy?!); that slowdown, combined with my body starting to adjust to its new and cumbersome shape, has made me pretty happy. Now if only the little guy would stop kicking me in the bladder...oh well, you can't have everything!

7 months along...

July 4 at Sunday River

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Get your own

Dave and I traveled to Maine over July 4 weekend. We weren't sure what to expect as we were staying at a ski resort in the middle of the summer. Also, since my physical activities are sort of limited, we didn't know what we'd do for three whole days. Of course, once we discovered the heated outdoor pool fifty feet from our hotel room, we relaxed through three consecutive days of beautiful weather.

Swimming was wonderful--all that painful gravity, gone in an instant! I told Dave I wanted to live in a pool through the month of September. Now, you won't be surprised to hear that I was also wearing a non-maternity bikini, and my baby belly was out for all to see...prompting one grandmother to ask if I was having twins. I was irritated until Dave pointed out that "that's what you get" for baring your belly at seven months; I couldn't argue with him!

Visiting the Philly Noons!

A few weeks ago, we drove down to visit our family in New Jersey, attend the Noon reunion picnic, and celebrate Renata's graduation from high school. We also got to spend the day with the Philly Noons (or should I say, "Phillie" Noons?!) and play with the coolest kid in town, our niece Megan. John and Jean even allowed us to read "Good Night, Boston" as Megan's bedtime story!

Here is a photo collage of our day with Jean and Megan:

63% of You...

...were wrong!

IT'S A BOY!!!

While Dave won't let me post the "revealing" photos online (you all know I would have no problem doing so!), we were given a very clear view of the telltale body part at both of our ultrasound visits. Dave and I were both so overwhelmed with the news after that first appointment that we stumbled onto the elevator as we left and rode it up two floors...before realizing we had entered the building on the ground floor and didn't need to use the elevator at all! We were definitely in a daze.

To make 63% of you feel better, out of my eight students, only one predicted it would be a boy. The rest were shocked to discover they had guessed wrong, and one girl even lamented, "I can't believe it!" before asking, "Are you sure, Miss?" My class is also being very protective of me, refusing to let me lift even the smallest object (which drives me nuts) and reminding me to drink water, "Like the doctor told you!" As much as I am looking forward to the summer, I will really miss them when school ends next week.

As for Baby Boy Noon, we do have some front-runners in the naming process, but we'll be keeping that under wraps until the newest Nooner makes his debut. We have to keep something a secret from all of you!

Large and In Charge

Happy six months of gestation, Baby Noon!

In honor of this milestone, I am posting pictures of Baby Noon's ever-growing home...my big belly. And yes, the "It's A ______" post is coming later tonight!

Two months along (8 weeks). I look like I am a giant. Thanks for being too lazy to stand up and take the picture, Dave!

Three months down the path (12 weeks). Mini-bump? Check.

Four months (16 weeks) and lookin' chubby! (In a good way.)

Five months (20 weeks), halfway there!

Yesterday, at six months (24 weeks). Alright, NOW I'm pregnant! What was that baby eating between five and six months? Geez! But, to be fair, below are some photos NOT taken directly after I ate a four-course (veggie) sushi meal followed by a J.P. Licks caramel sundae!

Note how sleepy I look in the morning. Let's just say the baby does NOT sleep when I want to!

The Big Reveal...

...won't be for another couple of weeks. Yes, we know--after two ultrasounds, confirmation is complete--but we're thinking we'll share the news at the six-month milestone. Sorry.

In the meantime, check out the results of that poll! An overwhelming majority have "Noonette" instincts, and we loved reading comments about how you all arrived at your guesses. (Grandpop's scientific method was our favorite.)

Whether your hunch was boy or girl, one thing you can be sure of is that this baby is going to be an excellent drummer, swimmer, boxer and soccer player. OK, maybe not "excellent," but certainly enthusiastic. Baby Noon hasn't stopped somersaulting through my stomach for weeks now, and we're just past the halfway mark. Dave felt the kicks for the first time last week, and we both agree that there's not a lot in life that's more fun than feeling those acrobatics. (As Colleen said, we'll see what I think when dramatic thumps to my ribcage are keeping me up at night!)