Oct 31, 2011

day trip to annapolis.

i went to 5 parties this weekend. i am 38.5 weeks pregnant and i went to FIVE parties this weekend. what's stopping me, really? besides wanting to be in sweatpants all the time, i feel fine, so why not go have fun with friends and get my mind off my long list of baby to-do's?

and then, a miracle happened on sunday. TH suggested that we take a day trip to annapolis! coming from a guy who really cherishes his lazy sundays, this was a real jump for him. and we totally made the most of it. candy, girl scout cookies, chocolate, and some amazing mexican food from jalapenos.
annapolis.
julie in annapolis.
annapolis
julie 38.5 weeks.
mark in annapolis.
caramel apples.

annapolis was the perfect getaway to help us feel like we went out of town, and only 30 minutes from DC, we didn't feel too far away from any midwives or hospitals that might be needed. wink wink baby.

Oct 29, 2011

good job, baby.

i'm so proud of little baby. already an obedient and sensible child, baby listened to mama and stayed inside until midwife returned from her out-of-country trip.

at 38 1/2 weeks, now we are officially on baby watch.

Oct 26, 2011

missionaries.

we have two sets of missionaries in our ward. we had them both over for dinner last night (pizza and store-bought brownies and ice cream - i'm no fool). so there we were, dorky me and TH entertaining four 19-21 year old boys.

i forgot how funny 19 and 20 year old boys are. they are such dorks and i love it. TH and i had the best time joking around with them and hearing their crazy stories. i love our church and love that these boys are brave enough to take 2 years of their life to learn and share about Christ and serve others. it's super inspiring and makes me feel hopeful for positive change in the world. any time people put someone else ahead of their own needs, i feel like they should get a standing ovation.

Oct 25, 2011

DC food truck festival


as it turns out, yesterday was Food Day and DC participated by throwing a K street food truck festival. and guess which lucky lady was the beneficiary? mm hmm.

i tried a tofu korean taco from far east taco grille, a cheddar on sourdough from the big cheese, and a veggie empanada from DC empanadas, which i ended up being too full to eat. bummer.

the awesome thing about all these food trucks in one place at lunchtime, was there were enough food trucks to serve the number of hungry people and the lines were totally manageable! i was finally able to try those food trucks i've always wondered about. and the verdict? fojol bros is still the best, but far east taco grille makes one heck of a korean taco.

also, another verdict - people love to s.t.a.r.e. at pregnant ladies, especially when they are holding multiple bags of food from different food trucks. leave me be, people. i'm growing a human being here! this is my time to eat 500 extra calories a day with abandon. just doing my duty.

ps, did you know that we own a food truck with our friends? it runs in fairfax county and we think those gourmet hot dogs are pretty darn tasty.

Oct 24, 2011

i need to put my feet up today.


it's monday. and i just don't feel like it today.

maybe it has something to do with...
this big baby bump?
the new moody M83 album that is lulling me right now?
the too many chocolate donut holes i ate this morning?
how no matter how much sleep i get lately, it just never seems to do the trick?

i only have 10 days left in the office before baby leave begins, so i gotta make it count, but man! days like today are rough on my exhausted body.

Oct 21, 2011

full term! we made it!


after a completely failed attempt at celebrating the actual full term day on wednesday (work too busy for a fancy lunch break, dinner was a disaster cloaked in too much walking, humidity and tears), we had a successful celebratory dinner at Oyamel in Penn Quarter on thursday night.

At a sweet intimate table (read: small, cramped table in the corner) we shared the guacamole (best I've ever had, ever), fresh tortilla chips, and ordered a ton of small plates. BBQ pork tacos, cactus leaf salad, brussel sprouts with pepitas and lime, and other crazy good food. Oyamel also makes fresh juegos every day for us teetotalers. I had the blackberry fresca and I can say with a clean conscience that it was ridiculously refreshing and tasty.

We wanted to celebrate baby, but also we wanted to celebrate us. We've come a long way in 18 months of marriage, and an even longer way in the last 9 months. It takes a lot of courage to bring pregnancy into a new marriage, and we had no idea how much it would change us and test our relationship - ultimately making it stronger. I can only imagine the difference it will make to have the actual tiny baby in our arms and those 2am, 4am, 6am feedings. I still can't wrap my head around the fact that I'm going to be a mother. But you know what I can wrap my head around? Walking without the urge to waddle, running fast through a field, eating pizza without fear of heartburn, and sleeping on my back as much as I want!

We can't wait to meet you, tiny T. just wait until November when my midwife is back in the country. moms orders.

Oct 19, 2011

I go to bed with Ben and Jerry, I wake up with Cider.

Lately I've been having trouble eating. I'm hungry constantly, but I just can't eat very much. When I do, my body rejects it and it's scary. I think I've hit that point in pregnancy where there just isn't a lot of room for anything other than baby in my stomach.
I've realized that being forced to eat in smaller quantities means that I'm pretty much snacking all the time. Like last night when I had wheat thins and apple juice for dinner, a late night snack of cereal, and midnight snack of Ben and Jerry's cookie dough ice cream. This morning I woke up with a glass of apple cider, followed by a small yogurt with granola and later in the morning a granola bar.

This is not the most healthy diet I've ever been on, but at least I'm keeping my food where it belongs - in my tummy!

Funny sidenote: my sister was explaining to Lizzie (4 years old) about pregnancy and being sick. Lizzie was so worried because she thought if you throw up, you throw up the baby, too. Because "the baby is in the stomach. Right mom?" Cue my sister trying to teach a 4 year old the difference between and stomach and a uterus, leading to the age old question - "but how does the baby get in there, mom?" i'm glad i don't have to handle those tough questions...yet!

Oct 18, 2011

wicked waffle.

i finally tried the new lunch spot in farragut - Wicked Waffle. ohhhhh mouthwatering deliciousness sandwiched between 2 WAFFLES. i tried the grilled cheese and tomato waffle sandwich. yes. others really liked the mango and brie sandwich, and the prosciutto tomato and arugula sandwich.

i mean it's a WAFFLE. what's not to like? they also had a killer sweet potato soup.

i've been living off waffles lately, no joke. my all time favorite recipe is here, the morning-of waffle. that molly kills it every time and these waffles are no different.

on the way back from lunch, we ran into large headed JFK. so, pretty much the best lunch break ever.

Oct 17, 2011

weekend roundup: pregnant edition.

my boss just came in to ask me what i did this weekend.

...crickets...

i couldn't even remember! it honestly took me about a minute to even recall anything other than sleeping and eating. oopsie. i hope i am not wasting away my pre-baby time on nonsense. but! then i did remember one awesome thing i did:
we saw Moneyball and walked around the city for about a half hour and saw a high speed chase being filmed by professional movie makers! cool!
and then i remembered another awesome thing:
we walked around Eastern Market and had lunch at Teds Bulletin (me: green green salad and french onion soup, him: turkey sandwich and white bean chili)
and then even one MORE thing i remember:
we had amazing Indian food at Haandi in Falls Church with TH's family.

but really this is what popped in my head and what i really remember from this weekend:
eat, sleep, eat, naps, walk, eat, why is this bathroom line so long?!, walk, nap, movie, walk, sleep through church, TV, eat, nap, eat, walk, sleep.

what has become of my life?

Oct 13, 2011

google is not...

...your doctor
...a nutritionist
...an expectant mother
...a parent
...a creative mind
...your mom

when i was extremely sick the other night, i googled "vomit 36 weeks pregnant" and google basically said "you are in labor". freak out panic time for a few minutes. but of course i was not in labor. i don't know why i ever use google as any of the above.

i need to remember to seek out more human advice (including listening to my own instincts). i have a feeling this will become ever more important in the next month or so.

Oct 12, 2011

our plans for october.

Romania Countryside
Piata Sfatului 1
Sibiu
Piata Unirii
endless
Back in January we had big plans for this month. We were going to take a few weeks to travel the Romanian and Hungarian countryside and maybe even take a sail down the Danube. TH speaks Romanian and has wanted to return to the country since his short stint there in 02. The way he talks about the simple beauty and the Romanian people, the country just tugs at my heart a little bit.

Instead...well...surprise baby! It's just funny how you make plans for your life, but other things have a way of just happening. So we put off the Romania trip for another year and hopefully this time next Fall it will be a trip for 3.

Oct 11, 2011

on nesting.

finally finally this weekend we got around to really getting the house ready for baby T. it helped to have the holiday yesterday so i could visit The Container Store and a few other select shops. Baby's nook is looking so good! Because we have such a little 1-bedroom apartment, we're being very selective about what we choose to bring into the house, and how we store it. I'll share some pictures in a couple weeks when we're finished, but so far I'm really happy with how things are turning out. Next up on my list: make curtains, hang some pictures, and finish sewing those bassinet sheets!

i woke up this morning and looked over at Baby's nook. i just imagined a little baby in that bassinet, kicking its little swaddled mermaid legs, and my heart was so full. not much longer to wait!

ps did i mention TH deep cleaned the bathroom for 3 hours saturday night?? i've never been so attracted to him before. is that weird to say?

Oct 8, 2011

35 weeks and the weekend.

35.5 weeks at Union Station
35.5 weeks in NYC
when you only have a few hours to have fun in NYC, it can seem impossible to narrow down the list of things to do. but when you are 8 months pregnant, it's easy = food.

we went up just for friday afternoon for some work-related meetings, and then we spent the remainder eating. eating weird deli food in strobe lights, eating dinner at Westville (our favorite place), and eating breakfast at Absolute Bagels on the upper west side (my favorite bagel shop ever).

we did a little walking around and window shopping in the east village, but i'm only good for about 2 hours before i start begging TH to rub my back and start obsessing about finding a place to lay down.

we spent the rest of the weekend cleaning and organizing, trying to get things ready for baby T. little baby T finally found that extra space by my ribs this weekend, and feeling those little feet explore my tummy is just so adorable, i don't even think about how uncomfortable it is. i love this little baby.

Oct 6, 2011

long NY weekend.

coney island
brooklyn museum mark
brooklyn museum julie
hello. this is me, signing off for the weekend. off to NYC for a couple of short days, then home to enjoy the extended holiday weekend. (do you get columbus day off?)

this is our last NYC trip before baby. and going to NYC while pregnant means you have a free pass to eat whatever you could possibly get your hands on, right?

TH and I have so many good memories of falling in love in that city - like the pictures above from a summer day in brooklyn 2 years ago. and soon we'll be able to add the memory of us as anticipating parents walking around town. i can't wait.

Oct 5, 2011

what'll i do?


today i am blue. this song is helping me stew in it, but it also just reminds me of the great gatsby. such a tragic love story. if you haven't seen the robert redford version from the 70's, take a couple hours to watch it this weekend. it's so so beautiful and haunting.

Oct 3, 2011

coffee table the 6th.


since we got married just 18 months ago, TH and i have owned five iterations of coffee tables. FIVE. i know. it's ridiculous. i always like the coffee table when i buy it, but when i bring it home it just doesn't look right in our house.

yesterday i bought the 6th and hopefully FINAL coffee table. this is the first time that we both like it. (or maybe TH is so sick of this whole thing he just could not care less.) it's just been really hard to decorate a carpeted living room!

the weekend in pictures + 10 words.

fun laundry.