28 Weeks.

Third trimester.

I can't wait to meet this boy. I can't believe there are only twelve weeks until my due date.

If time continues to move at its current pace, January 18 will feel like "tomorrow."

(No real pregnancy updates, except: I have a new official preference for yoga pants.)

Chatty Charlie

Will's new favorite words (his own spin on them, of course):

TOWEL
CLOCK
TOE
CLOTHES
CLOSET
MORE

His new favorite signs:

-light
-food
-what?
-where?*

*When Dave saw Will signing"where," which consists of wagging your finger back and forth, he asked "Who kept saying NO to Will today?"

Will's new favorite things:

• any first birthday cards with dogs or Cookie Monster on the cover
• the lifelike stuffed beagle toy I purchased, of which Dave is afraid because "its eyes look possessed"
  
• flowers--specifically, sniffing them and saying "Ahhhhh"
• pulling all his clean clothes out of the closet and throwing them in his hamper
• pulling all our dirty clothes out of the hamper and onto the floor
• pulling our socks out of our drawers and then receiving applause for putting them "Back IN"

Will's new favorite book:

OK, this one is a story in itself. I went to the religious kids' book section to get some appropriate reading material to distract/engage Will at church. While perusing a couple of cute children's prayer books, Will grabbed a board book called "Jesus Loves Me" off the shelves and proceeded to tear off the corner with his teeth. It was what you would call a forced purchase.

However, the book is actually very cute. It features a bear family (mom, dad, baby bear), which is Will's favorite kind of family, picture-wise, and the illustrations are nicely drawn. There's a lot of repetition in the actual text of the book (can you guess what keeps getting repeated? Hint: it's in the title), but overall I think Will chose (chewed?) this book wisely.

THE END.

Partner in Pregnancy

I can't tell you how excited I was when our friend Aimee announced she was pregnant back in June. Our due dates are 3 weeks, 2 days apart (hers is the day after Christmas), and what that means to me is that stuff like:

• two-week checkups at the pediatrician
• finding out whether your baby likes or dislikes the bouncy seat
• discussing weird rashes and baby acne
• getting through the day when you have a winter baby in New England

and other miscellaneous topics that are SO DULL to everyone else will actually be exciting to her--and vice versa. (If not exciting, at least tolerable to hear about.)

The kicker is, we live relatively close to one another. I've already promised (warned) her that I will be at her doorstep over the Christmas holiday to deliver meals and generally pamper her. After all, I'll still be in nesting mode with almost a month to go, Dave will be home for a few days at least, and we'll be missing our family in New Jersey. What better way to distract ourselves than helping out (imposing) at Aimee and TJ's?

Six Months Along with Baby Two

"Wait, how far along are you now?" asked Dave.

"Six months."

"Six calendar months?" he checked.

"Yeah. And 27 weeks, so if I were counting like I counted last time, I'd probably be saying I was seven months pregnant already."

"Seven lunar months?" Dave scratched his head.

"Right. And that was silly. But the benefit was, I could say I was nine months pregnant for a whole month."

*************

Six months into this pregnancy, my body has begun to realize that there's a baby in there. I know, it can be slow on the uptake. I launch myself out of bed in the morning, I heave myself in and out of the car or up the stairs with Will in my arms throughout the day, and I lie in seven different positions trying to sleep for an hour in the evening while this kid kicks the stuffing out of me.

Ah, yes. This is what being really pregnant feels like. I'd honestly forgotten.

Last Holiday

As previously mentioned, we spent the first weekend in October visiting the Powers in Florida. It was our last aerial escape before baby two arrives in January. Bee took the photos of the kids wearing their signature shirts, but I did manage to get a great close-up of sleeping baby Connor in his Dad's arms:

Also previously noted: Will's enjoyment of the Powers' pool:



Mark can easily cradle the baby in one arm--how cute is that? Mom was busy keeping Connor protected from the high-eighties sunshine. I have to admit, Bianica is a much cooler cucumber than I was with a two-month-old. She is a natural.
The flights there and back were happily uneventful. I know we are lucky to have a kid who is, despite being on-the-go at all times, supremely good-natured. However, I think the luckiest part of our travels so far are the people we meet in airports and on planes. On our trip back to Boston, we sat across from a former flight attendant (she'd flown for 38 years!) who coaxed us to use the seats next to her as a changing table for Will.

"Are you sure?" I asked skeptically.

"Oh, please, I have six grandsons," she scoffed. Get this: she even dangled toys over his head to distract him while I whipped through the diaper change. I was blown away by her thoughtfulness.

We also were whisked through the "requires special help" line at security (although that may have been some sort of backhanded compliment), and passengers seated in front of and behind us were craning to see/praise/amuse Will on both flights.

I know I probably sound like an annoying Miss Polly Sunshine, but I want to remember these good experiences--and particularly the good samaritans--in case our luck doesn't last much longer.

First Birthday with Nan and Mamp

"BAH...OOOH," Will says when he sees the balloons.

The packaging on the sparkler said DO NOT USE INDOORS, but Mamp and Dave convinced me it was OK. Will did like seeing the lights flicker. Almost as much as the Bah-ooooohs.

Thinking Inside the Box