Babies + summertime.

Friday is my last day of work until October. Thankfully, after today, Thursday + Friday shows no forecast of work so I can spend my last two days saying farewell to my friends + colleagues throughout the building.
It's still amazing to know that I will be getting paid to spend time with my daughter + husband!

Unless Olivia Bee comes early, the next couple of weeks will be spent working on her baby book, taking walks to the park + the library with the puppy, + hopefully a couple of visits to my aunt + friends in Brooklyn - but mostly, resting for the big day!

The summer appears to be shaping up quite beautifully. Jason gets off work most days by 2:00 so this allows for convenient nap times and swapping of responsibilities between cleaning, feeding + caring for our little girl. Luckily for both of us we are used to getting up early so hopefully the transition of feedings, etc. won't be too much of a toll on either of us.

We are going to be meeting a lot of people with the upcoming craft shows we are participating in as well socializing Olivia Bee quite nicely (I'm sure Grandma Karen is excited as well since it will mean practically the entire month of June in her little granddaughter's presence when the heat gets too extreme at the fairs). July/August are looking to bear glorious weekends alternated between the Jersey Shore with the little ladies' godfather or else at her grandfather's house on the river in Virginia.

Now all I have to do is give birth to the darling one - she (+ we) have no idea the adventures in store for the three of us!

WARNING: you may need crackers with this cheese....

Jason and I are not the cheesey people who go out of their way to discuss how wonderful things are but for those who have had the pleasure of this experience - upon your first child you really just want to climb to the top of a mountain and scream + share the wonders of life. On the contrary, conversations between us + many times our friends are about what we are doing with our life, what direction we would like to see our life move in, etc.(normal thirtysomething banter) - whether it be about jobs/careers, children, our own personal inner growth...all of which add and enhance to the our closeness as a family.

As the time draws closer to Olivia's entrance into our lives we look back at all of the people who have contributed to our lives and how they have helped mould us into the people/parents are about to become. Although we come from such diverse backgrounds it is phenomenal to learn and understand each other's ups + downs during our developing years - all of the successes and mistakes we may have made and/or crossed along the way. To those people who were a part of that, we thank you + commend you. We thank you for allowing us to grow but most importantly to learn - to learn to be better people and therefore better parents - if we can give anything to our daughter, it is the hope to give and share all of the experiences we have had to let her know that the world isn't that bad or scary of a place - especially with the love and support of the people around her (who she may hate, or curse, or never want to speak to again -but will ultimately teach her later a bit about herself and the world in perspective).

Thank you - we wish you all the best.

xoxo
the sposa family.

Save the Dates!!!

The hubs + his art project, aka: Underneath My Tree, has been given the honours of being vendors at two very lovely 'indie' craft fairs!

Stop by + say hello to the fam.
Special guest appearances and show + tell of Miss Olivia Bee Sposa (the baby) + possibly Milo Sposa (the pooch).

Click on the links below for the specs...

Renegade Craft Fair - Brooklyn, NY
Crafty Bastards - Silver Spring, MD

Hugs + kisses,
la maman.

Holy Dilation, Batman!!!

Tuesday we [namely; myself, Olivia, + Jason] had our final ultrasound and the first of several weekly appointments. The doc said she was in a wonderful position - already dropped, upside down, chillin' to the left, and turned (meaning, a less painful back labor - *knock on wood*). Anyway, we also had a test for GBS which included a swab in the almightiest of no-no spots which wasn't nearly as bad as my foolish request to check if I was dilated.

Now, in reality, a woman can be dilated 1-3 cm for up to a month, so I thought I would take my chances and see what's going on down + up there. Well, as I awaited for the normal sensations of a gynecological exam - it became the WORST feeling ever known to woman, and especially if really thought about, mankind! Down then UP he went...only find that I was am not dilated at all and that, indeed, I have a sailor's tongue (mentally, I was thinking 'What have I gotten myself into - this isn't even labor and it totally sucks'...of course, a more abbreviated, X-rated version came out in that 3 seconds). So, ladies, don't ask to be checked until the last possible moment - I promise, you DON'T want to know unless you really are in labor.

So, this weekend we enter our 36th week which means if Liv decides to come she would not be considered pre-term + is now totally cherub-like and what the doc approximates a 5-5.5 lb baby at the moment. I will begin the raspberry leaf tea ritual once again. As a refresher, the tea strengthens your uterus; however, in my case, it made my BH contractions less painful and more frequent - so I ceased immediately as to not self-induce or create stress on Liv. Anyway, figured I would go ahead and take our chances now that she's good and ripe...and dang, now that I pseudo-know what I am in for....need to work the Kegels + the tea!

On another note, the Pope is visiting the UN (where I work) tomorrow. So, Olivia and I will get to see him speak to the staff + delegates. Well, atleast she'll get to hear him and see the lighting scheme through my burgeoning belly!

And one one more FINAL note, found out that within the first year of little babe - as long as I am breastfeeding I get two hours to leave early or come in late to feed the little lady. Sweet - so hopefully, I can work my lunch in that two hours and get to leave by about 2:30ish....Niiiiiiice.
Here's to a healthy baby, leaving work early to spend time with the fam, and [hopefully] voluptuous boobies.

xoxo
la maman.

Insurance, dude.

This morning I got up early since the medical examiner for my life insurance needed some blood + urine samples to complete my application process. Sort of strange since I had never heard of a home or office visit to obtain these items - anyway, nice guy; however, I can't seem to shake the feeling that he looked like someone who would sell babies on the black market.

Anyway, I was on the brink of passing out since I had ceased food intake at 6:30 the night before and was starving by 9:00. Of course, Miss Olivia was starving as well so regardless of the fact that I drank our weight in water I couldn't pee since she was absorbing all the water. Who has ever heard of an 8 month pregnant woman not be able to pee on command?!?

So, that's my morning. I got into work a little late but no worries since today is the first day in a couple of weeks of no work [THANK GOD].

Hopefully all of the paperwork will go through and Papa and baby will be alright in case anything happens to la maman.

New Layout!

I personally got super bored with the default layout by Blogger and finally convinced Melanie to change it.
It was pretty much like pulling teeth!

"No, it wasn't", says Melanie sitting next to me.

"Yes, it was". says a very pleased Dad.

Goodnight.
I will post more. I promise.

xo
jason.