You're a Winner!

We got a call from Whole Foods today saying I won one of the Earth Day gift bags (awesome) that were part of a raffle. This is totally awesome because lately I have been winning all kinds of raffles. About a month ago, I got an email from SportsBasement saying I won a discount shopping party for me + 200 friends. Since I don't have that many friends, I just forwarded the invite to all the friends of friends that I could think of.

But this earth day gift bag is totally rad. It has the reuseable shopping bag which I actually have been eyeing because I think it's cute. And it came filled with:

• Fig balsamic vinegar
• Fair trade eco friendly olive oil
• two books about saving the planet
• Rosemary something or other lotion
• earth friendly maxi pads
• Orange chocolate
• dish soap

Not bad for just filling out my name and phone number on a little ticket!

38 weeks.

In the final stretch now...last couple of weeks before she's supposed to arrive. This morning we went to CPMC to their Antepartum testing unit to try and turn the baby. They hook you up to some fetal monitors, do an ultrasound to check the position, give you some medication to relax the uterus...then talk you through the procedure, at which time you can choose to move forward or back out. We decided to move forward and the next step was the doc put his hands on the outside of my belly, lifted the baby's butt out of my pelvis and gwith his other hand, tried to coax the baby's head to move.

That is the key part there because our baby's head apparently does not want to move...lol. The doc commented on how her nice round head didn't want to budge.... I think that's code for "big head." It also looks like I have low amniotic fluid so they have me coming back in next week for another ultrasound to check on the fluid levels...

I ain't gonna lie, the procedure hurt and I am having some uterine cramping today (which is common) but am glad we tried this as I do want to try and avoid major surgery if at all possible. But it appears that our baby just likes where she's at so we'll just try to plan around her agenda.

Fingers crossed....this baby turns today for the doctor...

Last week of work....

Heddie and I got a baby shower from our co-workers at work yesterday. It was so sweet of them to do such a thing and I am constantly amazed at the amount of products out there that come in the color pink. It's funny because the most frequent activity I h ave been doing is going to baby stores to exchange sizes because we ended up with soooooo many things in 0-3 or 3-6 months or lots of little tiny summer clothes...and we all know in San Francisco, the shiz is cold all year round!

Keryun & Duke get married...

The couple's first dance...

The deal has been sealed! They got married at Ralston Hall in Belmont, on the campus of Notre Dame. The place was beautiful!

Santa Clara alumni pic - this was taken by Forrest as we were all in the midst of getting settled for the photo op. There were lots of alums there from SCU and MIT where Duke went to undergrad. It's cool to see peeps with a big base of college friends, even after a decade has passed.

The cake...of course I got up super close to check out the piping work - can't help it, I am a cake decorating junkie and always want to see what the pros are doing... it was tasty

This was their seating arrangement / treats table. The multi tier cake you see in the middle is actually a fake cake that has everyone's names and table assignments written on it in script - super cute...and totally original! The treats were my favorite :) being pregnant, I have this voracious sweet tooth. I dug into a few biscotti and bags of salt water taffy.

It just keeps getting uglier

Update on my bruise....

Ouch!

Jeez louise, it's like I'm trying to kill myself or something these days...that's how accident prone I am. I am basically handicapped in my ability to do anything like walking, breathing, sleeping...

So this beauty happened when I tried to put some shelves together and I turned around for a second and the support beam fell on me and hit me in the leg. The shiz was heavy. I screamed and freaked out Forrest who was in the other room. He runs in asking "what the heck is going on here?!" and I just ran out bawling (completely out of character)...

Basically I just freaked the fuck out - I didn't know if I had been hit by any more falling pieces anywhere else and didn't know what to do. Today...the leg hurts, but it's more of just a deep bruise/scrape.

I think I have been banned from shelf making now too... First high heels and walking outside...now restricted indoor activities. What's next? bedrest?

Exploring all routes

Not to gross you out with a picture of my foot...but what I really want to show you is that burn mark. And no it is not self inflicted, but the remnants of an accupuncture treatment for turning breech babies. Instead of needles, they take this stuff and burn it on your pinky toes...both toes, nine times. The intent is to draw the energy downward in a way that makes the baby want to turn. I know this all seems very granola coming from me, but truth be told this was recommended by my OB as something to try. I don't think it worked though...as she still feels like she's in the same spot, but next week we're going for an external turn by the doc - fingers crossed that one of these things work.

36 weeks...these are the end times

It is as if I robbed a sporting goods store and am trying to make a break for it by hiding the beach ball under my shirt. The belly really is just kind of humorous now, it's someone's idea of a joke on me - ha!

So interesting news...our baby is breech. Not just any kind of breech, but "Frank Breech" meaning the baby is butt down, with the feet and hands in front of their face...kind of like a pike position. This is a bit troubling as she has been this way the entire pregnancy - there has been no real variance in her kicking patterns which confirms to me that she has always been breech. Additionally, this means that I may have to have a c-setion :( eeek!

We'll see as this coming week I am going to try some acupuncture and next week I am going in for an "external version" when the doctors try to turn the baby...and if those two things fail, we'll have to schedule a c-section.

Almost ready for Donut

Just a few pics to show how we've been progressing in getting the baby's room ready for actual habitation. We've spent weeks just using it as a dumping ground for all the baby related stuff we've purchased or received as gifts. And since now that I am in the final weeks of prego-town, figured we should get everything put away and organized since it really could be "any day now"

I really wanted to make sure I made something for Donut as part of this process...and so I am proud to say that after YEARS of no sewing, I have been able to successfully sew Donut's quilt, crib bumper and curtains.

Since we are renters, we can't paint the rooms...so instead we bought these wall decal sticker things to put up instead. I continued with the "donut / dots" type of theme :)

The closet is not as organized as I would like it to be - heehee since I am a freak, but it's well on it's way. We ordered an adjustable bookcase thing from the Container Store (our favorite place) to round out the stuff in the closet - then we should be good to go!

Happy Easter!

This Easter, Forrest and I invited our friends over for a little "dinner" at 3pm. After a rainy week, I was pleased to see that the weekend was just filled with clear skies and sunshine! Most of our locally based friends had family plans for the kiddies, but for everyone else there was our casa. And boy oh boy was the conversation ROWDY! I think I burned ALL of the calories from my dinner laughing my butt off with these ladies...and well, Sal always hams it up pretty well for us.

Linh, Vy, me, Hollis and Hiroko (the ladies). My sorority sisters from college - note: the vast majority of our sorority sisters look like Hollis, not like the LVH and me...but since we traveled in a pack, people always assumed we belonged to an asian sorority - funny huh?

Hiroko and Linh like to give things up for lent every year (just for fun) even though neither of them are Catholic or even remotely Christian. Hiroko even goes to church on sundays....but has not been officially baptised so unlike the rest of us, God can't actually punish her for doing anything wrong because she didn't sign up on the enrollment form...she's just auditing the class.

After giving up alcohol ENTIRELY this year for lent, Hiroko was miraculously able to show up at the casa all primed and primed with her veggie side contribution. When I talked to her on the phone at noon, I was convinced that she wasn't going to make it....four drinks in already, I hadn't heard her that trashed in awhile. And amazingly, after dinner and some good youtube watching, she headed out to The Tipsy Pig by 7pm for another fiesta.

Linh however had a more interesting lent sacrifice. She gave up "binge drinking" which was later re-labeled to "unhealthy alcohol consumption" meaning what you say? Meaning the doctor told her that not drinking during the week then having 6 (lie, it was more like 10) drinks on a Sat night is binge drinking.... so she limited herself to 3 drinks in a 24 hour period and said drinks could only be red wine (given the beneficial properties of tannins, etc).....but she should have clarified WHO was pouring these glasses....

Spread for dinner. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the potluck! We only had to prepare a ham and dessert...and supply the dishware. It is so awesome. Vy brought a pasta salad... Hiroko brought the greens... Hollis + Sal brought the apps and Sam was supposed to bring salad but given his flight from Vegas was delayed, I subbed in for him.

OMG I FREAKING LOVE HOLIDAYS!!!!! NO longer can Forrest deny me the joys of celebrating holidays :) Well he will continue to rain on my personal parade but with the arrival of Donut, there is no way he can deny our daughter Easter Egg Hunts, Halloween costumes, EVERYTHING!!!!!

Sam turns 26 at House of Prime Rib

holy shit my brother is getting old.

Party for Donut's impending arrival

this past weekend was Donut's baby shower....and all her aunties and grandmas got together to celebrate with some good food, company and weather :) and boy oh boy do I look doughy!

doughy mama.
Molly and me...great pic of me and my platonic life partner :) even with my over aggressive armpit boob hanging over my dress.

ahhhh the LVH - these ladies and I go way back... it is now strange to think we are adults as opposed to the maniacal sorority girls we were just a mere...oh yeah, over a decade ago.

even daddy made an appearance as we had our out of town family visiting for the weekend....

Susan showing off her winnings! she won the "guess the baby food game" as she, Julie and MC are the only ones with recent baby food experience.

the bounty of food courtesy of hal-monee Ruth. The word Hal Monee means grandma in korean.

View the entire album here

6 more weeks to go!!!!

The countdown continues people!!! I am at 34 weeks this week and about 2 more weeks until considered "full term" meaning the baby could easily pop out at any time after and be totally fine. Oh boy am I ever ready :) She is getting so big that it is more uncomfortable when she kicks or rolls around in there. And those Braxton-Hicks contractions are strange too because your entire belly kind of just siezes up on you...wierd.

p.s. please note the beautifully sunny day behind me in the Presidio....

Baby Bounty

The latest wash cycle in our house...PINK - or more aptly put...pastels :) That is the bounty in different stages of sorting and folding that we received from the Chinns. What's great is that our friends had daughters exactly a year before Donut is due so the seasons work out right for clothes and we get loads of hand me downs!!! Annelise, your closet is next - lol...

Once I started looking at all the baby stuff out there, I was just overwhelmed with the sheer amount of STUFF that is available and how everything is really only good for about 3 to 6 months because of baby size and weight...so instead of creating more waste, I am going to try and create a recycling program where after I use it...I can pass to another person who is having a baby.

Grandma and Grandpa bought Donut a towel, washcloth and bib set from their summer vacation in France. I had Forrest model the hooded towel....only to realize he looked like a member of the KKK. Eh, what can you do? It is kinda funny.