Christmas break

I feel extremely lucky to have a job that actually closes down the last week of the year so I can chill. I was in pajamas until 11 am today and I only left my house to drop of some returns at the Post Net store...it felt so utterly decadent! Aside from reading through the New York Times and watching daytime TV, I managed to finally order my summer cruise pictures from Kodak Gallery and I completed my Target Registry (it's public now). I think the Registry has more stuff than I absolutely need but not so much that my house will be overrun by stuff. My cousin has promised to come help me transform my beloved purple guest room into the room that I will let Zoe borrow while she is underage ;)

Christmas was great with lots of relatives from out of town and delicious of tamales and black cake. We also had a big breakfast for like 3 days straight but unfortunately the recession brunch did not take place this year due to a scheduling conflict. So for the rest of this week, my plans are to check references for daycares, figure out the July Costa Rica trip, work on my wedding album ( I totally plan on getting it done before valentine's day) and getting a pedicure to start of the new year on the right foot. I am also giving some thought to getting pictures taken...I really just want one good picture for Zoe to have. So I am not sure if it's worth the money or if we could have a DIY moment.


The year and decade is almost over and I am not sure if anything will happen to update you on before then. I have no doubt that 2010 is going to be just as action packed and filled with the unexpected so I am going to rest up and get ready!

Said bye to the dress and 22 week photo

My crazy time is almost over so I should have much better updates in weeks to come. Today I finally went to donate my wedding dress to charity so I was a little sad to see it go but it is going to a good cause and I won’t be using it again. In retrospect, while I loved the dress, I sure wish I would have stuck to my plans and been practical about how much I spent. It’s ok ; my confidence in my own gut instinct has grown a lot in the last 2 years, which is great because I totally need it now.

Here is a picture of me at 22 weeks…I know am posting it 3 weeks after the fact but a sister has been busy! I have gained 1.5 lbs since this picture so you aren’t missing much ;) I totally killed some KFC extra crispy last week…for the first time in the 10 years we are together I asked Todd for fried chicken, what a milestone!

Surviving the crunch time

So today I just had to order pork fried rice and chicken wings. Now lets keep in mind that I eat this stuff once per year in real life so it's highly unusual for me to even think about it. Earlier this week, I went through the trouble of making turkey casserole and green beans (which DH totally killed) only to decide that I didn't feel like eating it. Finally at 9pm, DH convinced me that Zoe might be hungry even though I was not hungry and luckily I had Masala chicken in my freezer which I was able to eat. So I think my theme for pregnancy week 23 is all things Asian! Perhaps on Friday I will go for some sushi to round out my Asian food week. This fickleness is making it very hard for me to grocery shop though because I have no idea what to eat from one week to the next.

As expected, my week has been crazy but I am staying just one step above the fray. Also, my presentation on Data Governance got a enthusiastic review thus far...let's see how it fares in my meeting tomorrow. While all the madness is going on at work, I also have a contractor at home painting the stairs and tiling the entryway; more contractors are coming in next week to put carpet in the bedrooms so I need to relocate all my clothes out the closet. This weekend I have 2 events + I need to decorate the Christmas tree. Did I mention that I haven't completed my Christmas shopping? My shopping has mostly consisted of randomly ordering stuff online...I am getting quite the pile of boxed in my living room. But it's all good, come January (God permitting) I will have my life back in order! Allegedly I am supposed to feel tired in the last 3 months, so I am proactively managing all my projects to lead a "normal" life by then. I can sorta see how this could happen because despite my best efforts, my cardio workout just keeps getting harder to complete every week at the gym...it feels like I smoked a whole pack of cigarettes before getting on the elliptical machine (who are these women who run up until their due date?); my goal is to make it 2x per week to the gym until my due date even if I can only workout at a level 1 by the end and to keep up with my yoga as exercise and drugs are my only plan for an easy delivery.

And to finish off this week's update, my favorite statement for this week was "oh you are almost in your 3rd trimester? you are going to double your size in the next few weeks!" I love, love all the awkward comments that I generate ;)

Mental Break

I am currently working on a data governance presentation but I am kinda tired so I decided to take a mental break by updating my blog ;) The thanksgiving break while fabulous is now but a distant memory as I make my 3 week push at work and at home to get ready for Christmas break. At work, that involves no less than a dozen meetings per week plus all the required prep and debriefing work. In my 11 am meeting yesterday, the AVP for our group got a worried look on his face when he saw how I fazed myself out of the project plan in the spring...it's great to be needed, I hope it results in a promotion because the baby needs a college fund!

The baby, aka Zoe unless DH comes up with a better name, has new shoes! Yes, a diva has come through with Jordans and crocodile driving shoes. In addition to that, she has an assortment of onesies courtesy of another diva, shirt "en Francais" and a tunic and mini skirt courtesy of my of my girlfriends extraordinaire. I am still buying her a week's worth of onesies and white sock. I just don't want to buy a whole bunch of stuff since she will double in size the first year and I don't like clutter in my house (in fact, I just got rid of a bunch of stuff this weekend, it's like therapy!).

I did go online to target and I created a registry with the things that I actually plan on buying ( i am going to check the thrift stores in the fancy neighborhoods too!); at some point I will make it public for anyone who actually wants to see whats on my list. The whole baby shower thing came up again at thanksgiving and I was really surprised that my mother would bring it up since she has a sweet 16 and a 50th b-day party to plan for next year; I thought it would be a big relief that I don't even like baby showers! Full disclosure: I attend baby shower for the 1st kid and I may even have to help plan one at some point because most couples do want one. What about DH? he doesn't like parties and indulges me by attending events but he did find the prospect of free stuff appealing, hehe! I spoke to my grandma and aunt in Costa Rica and they were totally in agreement with me, maybe I get my ways from them because I pretty much get an incredulous look even from men when I tell them that I am not having one ;) My plan is to finish paying my Amex by February (the bill is not as scary as it used to be thank God!) and then I will have a"baby shower" by myself in March by spending some QT at Bliss and going to dinner at my favorite french restaurant which I love and seldom get to visit ;-)

OK, I feel work calling me back. Tonight it will be fun times at the Jones' house as I drag DH through the seasonal decluttering of his office and tomorrow night my house will be all set to decorate for Christmas! On Friday I am going to my favorite German bar after work with my co-workers as we do the first Friday in December every year. On Saturday I plan to have a day by myself (yoga, followed by beautician and then HGTV!) and then on Sunday I have church, play date with former co-workers and then dinner in the city. So much to do but as my girl Maya Angelou would say: Life loves those who live it!