35 weeks

Today is Thursday and it marks your 35th week of gestation.  It is one of the hottest days of the week, 82 degrees, yet the sun is still hidden from the dreary sky and occasional gust of wind and extreme humidity makes it feel as if a storm is on its way.  The month of October has its unusual perks, but it doesn't stop us from accomplishing goals we have set out to do. 

 With the presidential debates between Mitt Romey and Barack Obama in the process, the filming of The Hang Over 3 in Newport beach happening this weekend,  and the Cardinals in the running for a  possible win of the World Series for the second time, your daddy and I remain focused, making our house into a home.  Just five weeks from now, we will no longer be living as husband and wife, but as a family.  Your daddy's first attempt at plumbing, the installation of a brand new faucet set from Kohler, is slowly coming to completion. He is determined to make it perfect, and for that I am so proud. Although our new floor installation had a few dilemmas, our trusted contractor, Ka is over at our house right now fixing it.

As October comes to a close, our seemingly continuous tasks will too and we know that one day soon we can all congregate on the couch, cuddle, and watch a funny movie together as a family.  

Almost 5 weeks left

10/15/12 I never believed in preparing too early as I didn't want to be too excited too soon.  But as your arrival day is approaching, I feel more confident and have a legitimate reason to be excited.  With almost five weeks to go and an energy level of a 90-year-old, our long check-off list remains unfulfilled, leaving more to be checked off than checked.

Today I'm reminded my your powerful kicks that I should get some things checked off.  Nowadays, nothing beats me up more than extreme hot weather and since the local forecast for the city of Fountain Valley is 84 degrees, my mom and I head out to Babies R Us earlier than usual -9:20am.  Being the first customers at the store, gives us plenty of room to browse and time to decide, we make our way down every single aisle.  Scheming through all the necessities from  feeding bibs and bottles  to accessories like breast feeding pillow and burping towel while reading every label and fine prints.  Little by little, we fill up the cart with baby blankets, bibs, bed time wraps, and other things we absolutely need.  Before the temperature increases to the point of discomfort for me, we head to one more store followed by lunch before heading home.

Although only a few items were checked off the list today, we feel accomplished and look forward to checking off a few more next week. 

Juliette

Today I pay more attention to your name, what it will be, what it means and how it can shape your character.  Of course a name is merely a name and no studies have shown that it will determine how one will turn out.  But in the unlikely case that it can influence the development your character, we hope to discover a name that will be equivalent to who you will become. 

From Scarlett to Kelly to Lauren, the only name that has since captured my love is Juliette. With no correlation to Shakespeare's  romantic novel Romeo and Juliet, I fell in love with it for reasons I hope you will embrace.  

To me, the name Juliette illustrates a woman with soft physical features and elegant by nature.  The  romantic sounding of the name immediately gives an image of a delicate silk gown that is draped lightly over the curvature of her shapely body. And she moves with great ease and class. But don't be fooled by her feminine physical features as Juliette's contradicting inner features will introduce a perfect balance to her personal identity.  

 With a soul urge number 8, which is your inner cravings and urges, you are naturally constructed with many strong characteristics.  For one, your deep desire to lead and organize will help you set and accomplish many goals.  Your determination to achieve  power and status will guide you to a place of wealth and when you are in that place, I wish you will be grateful and maintain a compassionate and loving nature which will in turn provide you with unconditional happiness.  Just remember that whatever you decide to do, stay humble and place happiness (for yourself as well as others) as your priority.  

Thursdays

10/4/12

Thursdays

Despite the escalated back pain prohibiting me from long walks, the new mole-like extra skin growing on my neck, and every hour on the hour bathroom break in the middle of the night, thoughts of getting to see your precious face makes it all worth while.  As my body continues to develop outward with round plump toes, puffy fingers and a growing belly button that was once an innie, I continue to enjoy every second of feeling your rolls and kicks.   Even though  my weakened body and forgetful mind has taken the best of me, the last eight months of carrying you around has been the best time of my life.  

 My cravings have evolved from sour green apples dipped in heavy sea salt to various Vietnamese soup noodles to ice cream cones to Mc Donald's french fries accompanied by two containers of hot mustard, all of which I have enjoyed in a sparingly manner. Every day I load my body up with at least 3 cups of Silk Almond or Soy milk, a banana, an apple or strawberries, omega 3, and two prenatal pills just to ensure you're developing at a normal pace.  I no longer see food as food, I see it for what it's worth - its nutritional values.  I no longer eat for me, I now eat solely for you. 

Your daddy's attentive and caring nature has made this pregnancy that much more pleasurable for me.  Occasional ten-minute foot massages,  regular house chore activities, and feeding my serious cravings by allowing me to eat the entire large french fries from Mc Donald's all by myself has relieved me from some weird pregnancy symptoms. As I reach the end of this journey, all I can think about is the actual time of giving birth to you and how that thought has given me doubts of whether I can go through with it.  Along with all the prenatal classes are detailed stories I've heard from friends and family about the delivery process,  both has heighten my sense of uncertainty and lowered my confidence.  I'm not sure if your daddy has recognized my fear, but he has done a great job trying to lessen my fear of delivery by conveying to me how easy this all will be and how it will all happen quickly and painlessly.  He has also provided me with relaxing weekend get-aways to the desert and sweet endearing comments that makes me feel beautiful. without your daddy, I think this journey would not be as smooth.

Today we celebrate your 33rd weeks of gestation with a double order of Mc D's french fries and a movie called Baby Boom.  We talk about you all the time and we are counting down the days until we get to meet you. And to make sure you arrive to a clean house and a beautiful room filled with everything you need, we are working extra hard and fast to have a brand new wood floor replaced and installed before your arrive. We think you will really enjoy it.  This is just the first of many wonderful things we anticipate doing for you.

You are our first and the love we have in stored for you has magnified beyond measure.  We love you dearly and will sacrifice everything for you.  

See you in roughly seven weeks!

I want to meet u

7/30/12 Our maternity photo shoot is scheduled for tomorrow evening with Andrew Lombardi and rather than planning our outfits and  background setting, all I can think about is what this journey into motherhood means to me, how it has affected us as future parents,  and our hopes for you as our daughter to be.

 There are no words that can express what I'm going through and there isn't exactly a drawn out plan as to how this special occasion can be completed in a way that is perfect.  All of our hopes and dreams for you will begin with a simple prayer.  I think of you often and I think about the way you take care of me, especially during the most chaotic time of my life - the marriage between your daddy and I.  Your silent comfort inside of me has provided me strength to coordinate a wedding I never knew I could have, so ideal and so dreamy.  Because of this, the extra pounds of weight gain, wide hips, soften thick thighs and puffy feet that I am enduring for the first time in my life are all being compensated for.  My girlish figure will forever be gone and a new voluptuous shape will be my new forceful embrace.  And I do this all for you.

    It has been 23 weeks since your conception and every day that passes, your subtle movements grow into mini kicks and punches which naturally intensifies a feeling of connection between us. Everyday I wish you would kick me a little harder just so I can feel you, just so your daddy can feel you, just so  we both know you are healthy and growing.  I look forward to the day you kick me with tremendous power, leaving me with pains I can smile for days.

You have brought me a profound sense of happiness that I never knew existed and a much needed value for love will forever change your daddy's view of life and possible of women as a whole.  We owe this next level of humanitarian experience to you. Often I think about your distinguished features intermixed between two different cultures, your values as well as your personal character.  The tint of your olive skin against your pale brown hair and bright hazel almond -shaped eyes or your light creme skin against your chocolate brown hair and dreamy eyes will never determine your personal character.  You will discover your own unique self, become an individual that will shine through this dense population that co-exists with you.  It is the collective values between your daddy and I that will help guide you through the tough road of the real world, ensuring a stable and succeeding life for you.

  I try to picture your precious face, but I can't. All I can see is the gorgeous little girl with blonde braids at the super market earlier today.  I want you in my arms so I can smell you, but I can't.  All I can smell is the scent of your daddy's hard work at the office sitting next to me.   I want to look you in the eyes and tell you that you are my number one, but I can't. Because if I did, your daddy will be too jealous.  I want to tell you that even though I have never met you and don't know what your name will be, I will always love you.  

 Our decisions as parents-to-be and our future together as first-time family will automatically  change because of you.  You are a blessing to us and every decision we've made thus far, including the conception of you, has been the best decision we have made together and it has brought us incredible joy and closeness - forever.

Sunniest Easter Sunday

It is 9:59am, 55 degrees outside, hazy and rainy as I am nestling  under a hair dryer near the back of the salon where I can hide from my fellow workmates until my next client arrives.  As I quiet my mind, fragmented images of Angels stadium, Universal Studios Hollywood, Katsuya Sushi in Laguna Beach, and  Sprinkles cupcakes all race its way into my thoughts, stirring it ever so lightly.  I realize my Easter weekend was jam packed with unforgettable events and celebrations.   Let's back track to  the most gorgeous Easter sunday one could ever wake up to.  We were granted with an amazing sunshine and impeccable uplifting mood swings. There was no church, no easter egg hunting, just breakfast at JD Schmidt,  the baseball game, a few lolly pops and frozen lemonade, and lots of Angels surround our presence. Our day was blessed with so much joy and happiness.   Following Easter was Dan's first visit to Universal Studios, best known for their unavoidable lines and screaming kids, where we ventured through a couple of rides and a few I unimpressive shows.  Even with a late start, showing up at the gate around 12:30PM, just a short six hours later, our bodies were destroyed of enthusiasm and fun sucked dry from our body, forcing us to conclude our day early with Shrek 4D.  With four extra visits left on our ticket, we were in no rush to complete all the rides or see any more mediocre shows.  We headed home bound.   Fast forward our weekend to Dan's midweek  birthday, April the 11th, marking his second year celebration with me.  Our day started out with the typical work load and Katsuya, a fancy sushi restaurant serving Kobe beef in Laguna beach awaits us sometime in the evening.  Locking ourselves into a dinner reservation would've been too restricting for our liking, so we purposely left it open to feed our free-flowing spirits.  We arrived at the restaurant close to 7PM and and left a little after 8.  We headed for Broadway, a restaurant recommended by a good client of mine, for their signature desserts and coffee. But our timing was off, they had reserved the entire restaurant for a private party, so we were left with a back-up plan that I had intuitively set up - red velvet Sprinkles Cupcakes hiding in the small refrigerator hidden underneath the wet bar.  Dan was thrilled.   It was a long weekend to recap, but it was too significant to not blog about.  It went by too fast. Here I am, the week has propelled to Friday and even though the weekend is starting all over again, it will never be the same as weekend we had before.  

Stuffed men, children & cousins

I turned down a weekly meeting today, to take care of things that prove to be priority in my life this exactly moment in time,  my cousin and her family.  While our house isn't exactly the first reason for their visit to California, where  Universal Studios took top priority in this scenario as the kids are on spring break and costco's 5-days-for-$59-value is hard to pass up, they thoughtfully added us to their chaos schedule to come over and have  a meal with us. For this, I am grateful.  To hold me over, the first part of my day consists of coffee, instant udon noodle, gardening, and Andrew Zimmern's "Jamaica" Travel.  The day travels slowly as I finish up Jamaica and head out to a much sweeter place, Cinnabon!  Half a dozen and nearly three pounds of dough, baked and coated with creamy frosting will be coming back home with me before 6 this evening.   One by one, my cousin Van, Derek, and three kids march into the house, each with either a family pack of OC grown strawberries, roasted chicken, caesar's salad, cheese and salami plate, two loafs of garlic bread and a super size pepperoni pizza.  Throw in a bottle of Pinot Noir and this is one fat feast you wouldn't want to miss.  Even Dan knew to force things at work to finish early so he can join us at a decent time. With Derek's willingness to wait for him  before diving in,  Dan is gauranteed to have a eating partner.   NCAA Finals dominates the house as the two newly acquainted men blab about stuff I can care less about while Chase shows me his white to green belt Kung Fu techniques, Christian and Kellen rests their tired bodies on the coach, and Van rambles in the kitchen - getting things tidy. Cinnabon cleans our palate and fills the sugar tooth, making it another satisfying and stuffed night.