Social endeavors

I've been rather lonely lately. Maybe lonely isn't the right word, but I've missed adult conversation. I love staying home with my little one, however our conversations generally consist of saying "AAH!" back and forth at increasing volumes. Plus, he's been stuck like Velcro to me. I thought it would be good for him to socialize with other people - maybe if he's more used to others he won't be a cling on as much. So the other day I started looking for daytime activities that my little guy and I can go do together. We came across and number of groups and have already tried out a couple things.

We went to the library the other day and Ryker had a good time pulling books off the shelves and crawling as fast as possible away from me. The following day we attended story time along with over 30 other kids! It's interesting to watch how he reacts to other kids. He sat quietly on my lap most of the time with the occasional bout of clapping and bouncing during songs. We will definitely check it out again.

Yesterday we busted out the stroller and went jogging with a group of moms. I'm making an effort to meet new people, something that doesn't come naturally to me. I was so nervous and wanted to turn around and head home. But I sucked it up. And managed to get a workout in too. I started the couch to 5k program and hope to stick with it. Maybe I'll even learn to enjoy running!

I have finished a couple of projects and took pictures. I just need to post them....they're coming soon!

kindness of strangers

i went for a walk a few days ago with little ryker in the ergo.  the weather cooled off a bit (still in the 80's though) as the sun began to set.  as we walked along, i described our surroundings to my little boy and pointed out fun things on our route to the grocery store.  in the store, we had many oohs and aahs and exclamations of "kawaii!!" (cute!!) as people saw ryker's blue eyes and drooly grin.  after we paid for our goodies, we headed out...to find the weather took a turn for the worst.  it was raining.  oh well.  i plopped a burp cloth on ryker's head and away we went.  we passed a couple of small shops and apartments.  suddenly, i hear a woman calling "sumimasen! sumimasen!" (excuse me!) behind me.  i stopped and turned to see a small japanese woman running towards me with an open umbrella.  i gladly accepted her kind offer, bowed and said thank you.

i could not believe how kind and considerate a complete stranger was to me.  i was floored.  that one small act made my day.

adventures in motherhood

the last couple of months have been incredible - incredibly amazing, incredibly trying, incredibly challenging & rewarding.

you know that saying "sleep like a baby"? i imagined a swaddled baby snoozing away peacefully in his crib. my reality: my sweet little munchkin hates to sleep. and when he does sleep, he snorts, coos, kicks and flails his tiny limbs around. but i have to admit it's pretty cute.

the days of 8 hours of sleep are long over. i've had about 3 hours of sleep at the most and no caffeine. i'm functioning at a level i never knew existed - and in college i thought i was tired...HA!

there are some days that i am overwhelmed by taking care of this tiny little person. the only other thing i've been able to accomplish during the day is brushing my teeth. but there are moments during those difficult days that make it all worth it - like when ryker looks at me and smiles when he wakes up from a nap. i look forward to those moments every day.

welcome to the world!

hubby and i are happy to announce the birth of our baby BOY, Ryker! he was born on april 7th at 12:41pm, 8 pounds, 4 ounces and 21 inches long.

he's handsome and sweet and i just can't stop kissing and holding him. i'm so thankful he is healthy and happy.

projects and pups

in the midst of all of this baby prep, i received a letterpress printing request! i told my client that i was due soon, and thankfully, the news didn't scare her off. after all of the logistics were figured out, i'm ready to start working on her project. i'm so excited and am looking forward to sharing the results - although it might be a little while :)

i'm also mulling around another project - some letterpress birth announcements for the kiddo. i have a general idea of the design, but haven't committed it to plates yet since we won't know the details til after the baby is born (obviously).

the pups are being cling-ons. i think mia is more clingy than normal. i wonder if she can sense what's happening. i kinda doubt it. i do think that they are going to adore the baby. especially once the kiddo starts eating solid foods. i'm sure we won't need to buy napkins - the dogs will take care of vacuuming food bits.

"weekend" adulting

our "weekend" was busy - i say weekend with quotation marks because it happens during my hubby's scheduled days off, instead of the traditional saturday and sunday. we were SUCH adults and did lots of adult stuff. for example, we took my car in to have the brakes checked & serviced. we grocery shopped. we went to my 38 week doctor's appointment. we checked the mail. and i even dropped by the legal office and had some advance directive papers drawn up. super adult. i should wear a cape.

with our guess-timated due date just two weeks away, i've been fervently working away on preparing for this kiddo's arrival. according to our last appointment, it could be any day now - although we've heard that generally first time moms go a little longer, around 41 weeks. hubby was pretty thrilled with the news that the baby could come any second...and has proceeded to tell me to go into labor. now. right now. i love that he's so excited to meet our baby. and we are both incredibly anxious to FINALLY find out if we have a boy or a girl! i would post a recent pic or two, except that i don't have any new ones where i'm wearing something other than sweatpants. i'll try to get a good one before the big event.

short book review

i just finished the lovely book "Great with Child: Letters to a Young Mother" by Beth Ann Fennelly. it was so sweet and compassionate. one thing i've just realized, now that this pregnancy is nearing the end, is that i haven't focused enough on being kind to myself over the last few months. while i have given myself breaks and countless naps, my mental dialogue hasn't been terribly positive. i'm a worrier - thankfully, hubby helps soothe some of my worries. most of the books i've read about babies/pregnancy haven't been very supportive - i know they mean to be, but the focus on the medical & physical side of things is overwhelming.

source

"Great with Child" was a breath of fresh air - it was filled with kind advice and funny, touching stories. it was as if Beth Ann was writing to me. i heard about it through joanna goddard's blog Cup of Jo - go here for the post about the book. if you are looking for a good book to read during your pregnancy, i highly recommend it.

lately...

well, i'm a week away from being full term (37 weeks) and i've been running around the house frantically organizing stuff. my mom says it's nesting. but when i asked hubby, he said "ehh, you've always been like this." so i don't know. what i do know is that we have more dog hair tumbleweeds in our house than i've ever seen - even though we cleaned approximately 3 seconds ago. which means one of two things: our dogs are shedding more or they are shedding the same amount and all of that hair was eaten by the carpet of our old house. (gross.)

*****

i've been toying with revamping the blog and am getting an idea of how i want to set it up. nothing too crazy, but a blog facelift would be nice. i toyed with blogger a little bit, since my lack of web design skills are keeping me from doing anything major. i've looked at the designs of blogs i admire and wondered "how did they do that??" taking on another project doesn't seem like the wisest idea at the moment, but it's good to get the wheels turning now. has anyone else switched from blogger? or designed in dreamweaver & uploaded your results? any tips?

*****

when i woke up this morning, i had a hankering to do some art stuff. i've had an idea for printing some small book covers for quite some time and spent the morning sketching out the new idea. i think i'll get back to my roots and carve this guy from a lino block. partially because i am impatient and don't want to wait for a letterpress plate to arrive. that, and i'm feeling guilty about letting my beautiful new-to-me press sit in my studio.

collection of thoughts

you guys, it is raining sideways outside right now. like pouring buckets, howling wind, the whole nine yards. and it's one of the things i like about living on a tropical island.

*****

i've been working on my graphic design classes and just finished a class on design & composition. i took quick a few art classes in college, and most of them seemed to expect that i possess an innate ability to know what a good composition is without anyone ever telling me. this particular class was SO helpful - very straight forward and clearly stated explanations. here's a couple of projects i turned in:

the first two are addressing different kinds of negative space, using the theme "ode to bicycles"

the second image is a poster for a "mostly mozart" concert. i used images on flickr, found under the creative commons license.

what do you think?

*****

last night, during another bout of insomnia, i was perusing some websites and guess what? i found a doula on island who teaches a natural birth class!! just in time too...my due date is coming up quickly. i am so excited to start the class and relieved to have found another way to approach childbirth, rather than the negative stories that i addressed here.

childbirth is scary...or so they tell me

i went to a childbirth basics class today and it was...interesting. the course went over what to expect during labor & delivery, along with the different stages of labor, average hours per stage, and other bits of information along those lines.

there was a video - but it wasn't as graphic as "the video" from a previous class. and by "the video", i mean the most traumatizing thing i've ever seen. have any of you seen a birth video? if you have, well, i'm sorry. if you haven't, then avoid it at all costs!! i guess part of the reason it freaked me out so much was due to the fact that i'm going to have to birth this baby at some point (he or she can't stay in there forever) and i really don't want my experience to be like the ones on "the video".

there is SO much focus on how painful and agonizing giving birth can & will be (according to most women) - it's like hearing women trying to "one up" each other. "well i was in labor for 30 hours..." "oh yeah?! i was in labor for 40 hours without drugs AND i had to get a c-section at the end anyway!! BEAT THAT!!"

why can't more of these classes focus on how our bodies are incredibly smart and know what to do, if we just don't overthink the whole thing? that women have been having babies forever so maybe all of those generations will have passed down some inherited ability to have a kid? and instead of telling pregnant women how painful this process WILL be, why aren't we told about the numerous stories of women who have had a pleasant, natural birth?

alright, i didn't mean for this post to be a rant. i understand that sometimes things happen and medical intervention is absolutely necessary. i'm thankful that we live in a time when we have the technology & medicine to save moms & babies. and i'm not saying that choosing an all natural birth or a c-section or any other kind of birth is right or wrong. i guess i'm just frustrated in how the information i'm receiving is so biased.

fortunately, one of my friends gave me this book before i moved - and considering there aren't any lamaze/breathing/natural birthing classes available here - it's been a very comforting read.

you know what's funny? i had no problem kicking butt through a multi hour martial arts black belt test, where i was tested physically & mentally for my endurance, knowledge & skill, broke numerous boards, sparred with a number of people (sometimes all at once) - yet having a baby is kind of freaking me out. time to put all of the mental strength training from years of martial arts to use - and focus on a positive birth experience for this baby and for me.

hooray internet!

hello blogland! we made it to okinawa, safe and sound. after a long and trying month, we have a home and a few adventures under our belts. we just had our internet installed (thank goodness!) and are slowly getting unpacked and organized. since i just found all seven seasons of the gilmore girls, the house organizing is now coming along at a snail's pace. but that's okay with me.

after staying a night in seattle, we started a 26 hour trip to this little island. while the flights were long, we were primarily concerned with our pups welfare. this airplane ride was their first experience flying...and they made it through with flying colors. they are much more resilient than i gave them credit for and am so relieved that they are alright. i'm pretty sure mia and vito have adjusted to okinawan life easier than i have.

we decided to live off base and found a wonderful 3 bedroom home. its so different from homes in the states, partially due to the fact that pretty much every building is made from concrete. one of these days, i'll take some pictures - but it's far too cluttered now :)

i'm 24 weeks into my pregnancy today and things are going well. i have nice bump growing and the baby is kicking quite often. seems to kick more when i eat chocolate....maybe a girl? :) we still haven't found out whether the baby is a boy or a girl and don't plan to unless the doc slips up.

hopefully i'll have some new posts coming up shortly...i do have a few stories to share. i can't wait to catch up on your blogs too!

hi there!

hello friends! it's been quite a while since my last post and i've recently been feeling the urge to blog again. i'll probably be inching my way back into the blog-o-sphere in the near future and have a bunch of catching up on your posts too.

the big move to japan is still on - we have about another week here in snowy alaska and then we start our adventure to the other side of the dateline. two sets of movers have packed up all of our belongings and sent them on their way, not to be seen for another month or two. i finished up my day job in mid september and have been surprisingly busy since then. i honestly thought i would be getting bored, but there's been so much to do day to day that i feel like i haven't had a chance to slow down. i have spent time working on books and printing cards (especially since my big press is going into storage, sadly) - creating all of these items has had a somewhat calming effect on me. i've realized that as things get more and more stressful, i'm going back to doing things that are familiar and comforting - making art and knitting/crocheting.

while the impending move has kept us busy, we've had another surprise come up:


that's right....i've been eating a lot :) hubby & i are expecting our first bipedal kiddo!! i'm at 17 weeks now and finally have a bit of a pooch. it's pretty amazing to see how my body is changing and adjusting to growing a mini-me. i was a bit hesitant on how and when to announce the big news on my blog, but i figured that this community has been incredibly supportive and kind in the past and i'm sure sharing this announcement won't be any different.

i'll do my best to post a few things here and there - i would like to write and share more about my pregnancy, but i don't want this blog to become a journal for baby stuff galore. i want to make sure i maintain my own personality...that being said, if i get a little baby crazy from time to time, try to be understanding :) that's all for tonight....take care friends!

baby blankets

here's the pics of the blankets for the baby shower i mentioned last week. my friend is having twins - a boy & a girl! i thought they turned out pretty nice!

this one was made for the girl:

and this one for the boy:

i haven't made anything like this in quite some time. i used to crochet & knit all the time and have gotten so busy that i just haven't. i've missed it - it's kind of a relaxing thing for me to do. hubby just recently had a new nephew added to the family so i might be busting out some more blanket skills soon :)

baby shower

i'm going to a baby shower this weekend - the second one in the past month! and i've been working on a couple of baby blankets for my friend....who is having twins, a boy & girl! i finished the first little blanket last night and really like how it came out; i made it with the little girl in mind. the second one is still in process for the baby boy.

i'll try to post the pics of the both blankets soon.

is it just me, or is there a sudden boom of pregnant women? i know NINE people who are currently pregnant. pretty crazy.