Game 6 of the World Series in Boston 2013

Kevin has watched about a hundred baseball games this season, and probably every season. He was thrilled when the Red Sox made the World Series, and he tried to buy tickets online countless times, but the page was overwhelmed with fans and kept crashing. His childhood friend Kevin got all the way to the checkout portion of the page before the site crashed. So the boys hashed a plan to drive to Boston for the potentially decisive game 6 of the series and buy day-of tickets at Fenway.

Unfortunately, even though they got there early, the line was already too long for everyone to get tickets and no one else was allowed to get in the line. But their back-up plan was a solid one. They went to Bleacher Bar, a bar that is attached to Fenway and actually looks out onto the field. So they were able to watch the game both in person and on the televisions there. So that was awesome.

Casey, Jon, Kevin, and Kevin

Line outside of Fenway to get same-day tickets

Outside Fenway

View of the field inside the bar

Kevin, Kevin, Jon, and Casey in front of Fenway

When the game was over they were able to see the World Series trophy delivered to the team, and afterwards they were able to celebrate with the entire city of Boston!

Scene outside after Red Sox won the World Series

With fireworks!

My friend Ian was inside Fenway for the game, this is his picture of the celebration.

Yay! Congratulations to the Red Sox (they read my blog right?) and to all their fans!

Brian's 30th Birthday 2013

We went to Virginia last weekend to celebrate Brian's 30th birthday! That's 30 years of awesomeness, now with harder abs. Haha. We celebrated with drinks and cupcakes at Copperwood Tavern in Arlington, Virginia. The bar is pretty new, and everyone loved it. It's big and cool-looking, and Kevin said the beer on tap is good. I enjoyed their delicious water.

Brian (argyle sweater) and his Crossfit peeps!

Cupcakes


Carrie and Brian- Carrie made the cupcakes

Me and Kevin

Roger and Lina

Cory and Robin enjoying cupcakes

Kenny and Beng

(Special thanks to Jaime who babysat while we went out.)

The next morning a few of us had brunch with Brian on his actual birthday at Medium Rare in DC. Despite reservations, being there first, and ample space, they didn't put us at one table? Everyone had a good time though and the food was pretty good. Even James thought so.

Some UVA Brunch peeps

Gloria, McKenzie, Alexis, and Beng

Opening presents from Kenny and Diane

Happy birthday, Brian! 

Diary of an Angry Pink Baby #8: The Dentist

Poor James had a mouthful of cavities despite never eating sweets and only possessing teeth for a few months. The main culprit, Ericka and I concluded, were the several gallons of milk he drinks a day. So now we thoroughly brush his teeth before bed and allow him no more than two gallons of milk a day. It's called parenting.

James wasn't allowed to eat or drink anything before his 9:00 am pediatric dental appointment, and this was my biggest fear, as he knocks back milk, oatmeal, and yogurt long before the sun rises each morning. At 4:00 am, James sprinted into our bedroom and immediately commenced a list of horrifying demands: "Milk dinner bagel yummy. Dada, I NEED this. HUNGRY." In James's defense, he has consumed milk upon waking every day of his life; my offer of water was dismissed with a combination of crying and angrier crying. Rarely have I seen anyone more disappointed by anything than James and the sippy cup of water. He would have traded me on the spot for eight ounces of milk. This is not hyperbole. He might have done it for four.

At the dentist's office, James got intoxicated for the first time, though unfortunately for James it was a baby sedative. His reaction was a little funny, but mostly it was sad. He tried to flirt with another kid, but he couldn't walk. The waiting room was like a bar full of toddlers. We then received a guided tour of his house of horrors complete with the usual spears and razors, as well as a baby-sized straitjacket. I was thumbing the Velcro of the latter when we received the unexpected news that we wouldn't be allowed to sit with him during his session. Instead, we sat directly outside the room to listen to him scream. I suggested coffee. Ericka looked ready to cry.

In recovery, James was already developing a hangover. Things, his droopy eyes seemed to suggest, would not be the same between us. I hadn't seen that look since his circumcision, but he had no idea who I was then. I tried to explain. He was pretty droopy for the rest of the day. He has to go back for two more cavities, but I'm not sure who is volunteering for this mission, perhaps one of the grandmothers, perhaps somebody who owes us a huge favor or several thousand dollars. Very soon James will lose all of these teeth and grow new ones.

Sedated James playing with new dinosaur finger puppet from dentist.

3 Months Pregnant 2013

9 Weeks, September 19-25
The doctor called to tell me my Vitamin D is low which is strange considering I go outside most days for a walk. So now I'm taking a supplement for that. At least they're little and not huge like the prenatal vitamin horse pills I take.

We told our moms this week! Yes, it's early but after our first sonogram we were feeling pretty good and thought we could share the news with just our moms since we didn't want them to guess before we told them. We told them it wasn't public yet. Well, they both immediately got on the phone and told basically everyone they've ever met. I seriously got emails from Kevin's 3rd cousins congratulating me.

Our moms are happy because they're getting another grandbaby!

Baby progress: Baby is the size of a grape/olive! Baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form -- as do tiny teeth. The embryonic tail is completely gone.
Symptoms: mild nausea, cramping, sore boobs, hair loss, sleepiness, bad skin
Cravings: SALAD (had it at 9:30 AM one morning), FISH, nuts, American cheese
Anti-cravings: None really
My Weight Gain: 1 pound (Last time 2 pounds)
Compare to week 9 with James

9-week belly picture

James and Grandma reading "I'm a Big Brother"

10 Weeks, September 26- October 2
Cathy visited on Saturday, and on Sunday people came over for football and food. We took James's to his first dentist appointment. Sarah and I went to Fall for Dance. My nausea got much worse, then it lifted at the end of the week.

Baby progress: Size of a kumquat/prune, vital organs are in place and starting to work, nails and peach fuzz hair are starting to grow. Baby's head is bulging from his or her developing brain.
Symptoms: Intense awful nausea, vomiting, sore boobs, hair loss, sleepiness, bad skin, acid reflux already
Cravings: Cheeseburger even though it makes me ill
Anti-cravings: coffee, and pasta is kind of gross
My Weight Gain: 1.5 (last time 3 pounds)
Compare to week 10 with James

11 Weeks, October 3-9
My nausea came back. I learned the hard way that I should not eat Indian food while pregnant, even if it's only the first trimester- I felt ill for hours afterwards. Mom had her surgery and it went well! We had some extra genetic testing this week since I'll be 35 when the baby is born, but it's fancy new testing that's non-invasive... and tells you the baby's gender early!

Baby progress: Baby is the size of a fig/lime
Symptoms: SO SLEEPY, sore boobs, hungry but also full after a few bites, hair loss, bad skin, acid reflux
Cravings: Very cold milk, vanilla, dark chocolate
Anti-cravings: Greasy things, spicy things.
My Weight Gain: 1.5 (last time 3-4 pounds)
Compare to week 11 with James

THREE MONTHS!, 12 Weeks, October 10-16
I was looking forward to my sonogram on Friday- it's always a thrill to see the baby moving around. I think I've been feeling movement and maybe some kicks already, and I asked the sonogram technician if that was actually possible. She said that it might be because it's my second pregnancy and I know exactly what it feels like.

Then we found out the baby's gender on Monday from our genetic testing last week!! (We didn't find out with James until 20 weeks!) Stay tuned for an announcement on that!

Baby progress: Baby is the size of a lime/prune but really we're a week ahead size-wise, so the baby is bigger. Baby is developing reflexes, and baby's nerve cells are also developing.
Symptoms: Hungry, sleepy
Cravings: Cereal, Swedish fish
Anti-cravings: I think I want coffee and then I don't finish it...
My Weight Gain:  1.5 (last time 4 pounds)
Compare to week 12 with James

12-weeks and showing already, 10/11/13

James is Two and a Half 2013!

James is officially two-and-a-half! Since he turned two and become a chatter-bomb, James has expressed a number of opinions on a broad range of topics. I adopted this toddler interview from Owen's cousin's blog: 

1. What's your name? James.

2. What's my name? Mama

3. How old are you? Two.

4. How old am I? Mama. (Okay?)

5. What is your favorite animal? Bats! (This is true, it was half inspired by a Little Einsteins episode, and then encouraged by Halloween coming around. He also claims giraffes half the time I ask. And recently he asked for a baby panda. "I NEED THIS. I need a baby panda, mama.")

6. What is your favorite color? Green.

7. What is your favorite food? Pasta, apples, cheerios.

8. What is your favorite book? (He wouldn't answer this one, but it's Curious George and the Puppies.)

James at 2.5 years old

9. What is your favorite song? Itsy Spider.

10. What is your favorite toy? My robot! (It's probably actually his Duplo Legos Zoo. The stuffed robot says New Jersey on its chest because we bought it at a NJ rest stop for $3.)

11. What do you like to sleep with at night? Dinosaur! (Also Mickey Mouse and Fudgie- every single night. He just added the dinosaur to the sleepover two nights ago.)

12. What is your favorite show? Little Einsteins.

13. What are you going to be for Halloween? A pirate. I need a hat. I wanna be a pirate. I wanna be a tiger.

14. Are you funny? Yeah! I funny.

15. Who is your best friend? Dada. (Aw, I love this.)

Best friends.

A year ago when James was 18 months, and two years ago when he could barely sit up!

2 Months Pregnant 2013

5 Weeks, August 22-28
This week began badly. My mother called to tell me that scans had revealed she had a growth on her kidney. We didn't know yet if it was cancer or not, but it was obviously a big concern for all of us, and we had to wait  two weeks for an appointment with a urologist to find out more. The connection to my last pregnancy is hard to ignore, since my dad had been diagnosed with kidney cancer around the time I got pregnant with James. I saw my mom over the weekend, and we all went to Ash's barn party.

With James and mom at Ash's barn party

I was so impatient for the sonogram this week. I really wanted to know everything was going well.

Baby progress: Size of a sesame seed, looks like a tadpole, neural tube and circulatory system are just beginning to form
Symptoms: SLEEPINESS, HOT FLASHES, headaches, nausea, bad skin, sore boobs, hair loss, getting hungry...
Cravings: Water, watery fruit, oranges, tuna, salad, lentils.
Anti-cravings: Kevin: "I was going to make tacos tonight." Me: Clutching stomach, "Noooooooooooo."
My Weight Gain: 0
Compare to week 5 with James

6 Weeks, August 29- September 4
Brady was here for the weekend, but luckily I wasn't feeling too sick when he was here.

Baby progress: Size of a lentil, the baby's kidneys, liver, lungs, eyes, and ear canals are forming
Symptoms: SLEEPY, NAUSEATED, HOT, mild anxiety attacks (not fun!), hungry, sad, hair loss
Cravings: Chocolate, salad, lots of water
Anti-cravings: Coffee and tea kind of gross me out
My Weight Gain: 1, oh dear, already? Disaster.
Compare to week 6 with James

7 Weeks, September 5-11
The doctors confirmed my mom has renal cell carcinoma, and scheduled surgery to remove her kidney for October 9.

Jaime visited and we went out for dinner and karaoke to celebrate Rachel and Christina's birthdays, and they figured out I was pregnant when I refused sake bombs.

Baby progress: Size of a blueberry, baby is growing brain cells, a mouth, tongue, arm and leg buds. It's doubled in size since last week.
Symptoms: mild nausea, back pain, sore boobs, hair loss, sleepiness, bad skin, cramping
Cravings: Strawberries!, corn, sushi, Thai food, soup
Anti-cravings: Coffee, hot dogs (I can't eat them anyway but they sound SO GROSS)
My Weight Gain: .5
Compare to week 7 with James

James discovers the wonders of the pregnancy pillow

TWO MONTHS!, 8 Weeks, September 12-18
I was SO EXCITED to finally have a sonogram on Monday to confirm that the baby was doing well and the heart was beating. The doctor told me the baby was already trending big! This is a familiar story for me. The baby also had his or her back to us. Mooning us!

Baby progress: Size of a raspberry, webbed fingers and toes, eyelids, and starting to lose the tail
Symptoms: mild nausea, mild panic attacks, cramping, sore boobs, hair loss, sleepiness, bad skin
Cravings: French toast, chocolate, fruit, salad, chicken, fish, nuts, American cheese- so yeah, everything
Anti-cravings: chicken
My Weight Gain: 0.5
Compare to week 8 with James

Baby's 1st sonogram! Mooning us.

Queens County Farm- October 2013

Even though I see Christina and Rachel pretty often, we haven't gotten our families together since we went to the Bronx Zoo over a year ago. Even though we selected a more low-key location this time, I was still exhausted half-way through our visit. In October, Queens County Farm has a pumpkin patch, a corn maze, petting zoo, and hayrides.

Tim, Isaac, Eleanor, Rachel in the pumpkin patch

Dan, Hudson, and Christina

James, me, Kevin- James is distracted by the pumpkin magic

There's my little pumpkin!

We took James back to see the goats he loved so much last time, and he seemed to remember his love for them. So much so he kissed a goat and tried to get a goat to kiss him. Um, yeah. Luckily these goats are pretty gentle. He definitely smelled of goat when we got him home.

In love with a goat.

Everyone even got a hayride around the farm. It was James's first hayride. I was banned from the ride because I'm pregnant, and even though the ride seemed extremely gentle, I took the better safe than sorry approach. I also got 5 blissful minutes to drink a cider by myself. Ha!

This hayride is BUMPY! Or not.

Off to see the farm again.

At this point, everyone needed some snacks and refreshments, but the excitement continued because there was a loose chicken in our midst. Luckily this chicken was also gentle and tolerated kids (not just ours) chasing her around for quite a while before she was returned to her area of the farm.

Chicken pecking at Kevin's shoe

Chasing the chicken under the picnic table

Group photo that Isaac is barely in (to the right)

Also, Eleanor and James got some serious bonding in. They find each other mutually hilarious. Eleanor is 8 months older than James but the gap is closing a bit as they get older.

The flirting


The affection


Mutual joy.

Fun day at the farm!

Oh Baby! 2013

When I had James, I documented everything and took a lot of pictures. I was cognizant of the fact that I should try to do the same things for baby #2. Obviously, things will be busier this time with a toddler and a baby, but I really enjoy blogging and looking back at old posts, so I'm hoping I can keep up with it. That said, I think I might have been excessive to the point of being dull last time, so I'm going to try to keep it a little more condensed this time.

0-2 Weeks, Mid-to-Late July 2013
It's difficult to pinpoint when the magic happens, and most women are typically not pregnant in the first two weeks counted towards your due date. Just out of curiosity I took my temperature this month- and it peeked on Tuesday, July 30th, coincidentally also the 6-year anniversary of our first date.

We had great news when Kevin signed a contract for his short story collection, We Were Flying to Chicago, due out in May!

Kevin and me in Baltimore visiting his cousin Katie

2 Weeks, August 1-7
By now I started to suspect we were successful this month. I was hot all the time, I was moody, I was craving a burger I never got. I was drinking milk with ice cubes. But I didn't notice any change in appetite, so I thought it was possibly wishful thinking. (With James I wasn't hot, and wanted to eat ALL THE TIME). We had more good luck this week: I got a job!

Symptoms: So hot all the time! Very moody.
Cravings: hamburger, milk with ice
Compare to weeks 0-2 with James.

3 Weeks, August 8-14 
Then on 8/10/13, I had a very specific symptom I had with James on 8/1/10. By then I was also feeling some abdominal tightness or bloating. I got dizzy for the first time (like I had with James on 7/19/10 and a few times after). I felt nauseated. I drank a lot of water and made a lot of trips to the bathroom. Kevin's mom was here visiting and she asked me no less than 3 times if I was pregnant, but she knew we were trying so she was kind of playing dirty. Nonetheless, kind of funny that she was here the day I had my first avalanche of definitive symptoms.

Kevin and me on the LIRR after a night out in Manhattan

Then finally on 8/14, I took a pregnancy test. Kevin knew I was going to, so I got up early and then went back to bed. Kevin thought it was bad news because I didn't say anything so he snuggled me while I soaked in the good news. Kevin was really happy and cute about it when I finally told him that morning.

We asked James if he wanted a brother or a sister, and he said, "A seester!" Then we asked him if he wanted a sister or a brother, and he said, "broder/seester!" Just to double-check we asked him if he wanted a baby or no baby, and he looked like he was thinking about it and then said, "A baby! Yes!"

Baby progress: Tiny ball of cells, implantation!
Symptoms: TMI, abdominal tightness/bloating, dizziness, nausea, moodiness
Cravings: WATER!, Salad (Thai food- but I didn't get it)
Anti-cravings: Second cup of coffee: I went from drinking 3 cups a day to just one basically overnight.
My Weight Gain: 0
Compare to week 3 with James.

4 Weeks, August 15-21
Baby progress:  Size of a poppy seed, official embryo with amniotic sac and yolk sac (like a chicken) inside a primitive placenta
Symptoms: Sleepiness, sore boobs, bloaty, hair loss
Cravings: Water, water, water, water (also I ate cold tomato sauce one afternoon)
Anti-cravings: I ate ice cream 3 times this week, but each time it failed to hit the spot, so I gave up.
My Weight Gain: 0
Compare to week 4 with James

Kevin, James, and me in Vermont visiting Aubree, Patrick, and Avery

A little note on pregnancy weight: Before getting pregnant this time, I lost all but 5-6 pounds of the weight I gained with James. My plan is to "lose" that weight through this second pregnancy by: 1) gaining less weight this time (not having as much juice and ice cream as I did last time), 2) not randomly gaining weight after I have the baby like i did with James, 3) breastfeeding without supplementation this time. 

Things My Wife Complains About #26: Second Pregnancy

If you thought being pregnant the first time was hard, you should try being pregnant again. My wife is finding the whole second pregnancy thing pretty exhausting. As in, she's tired all of the time. As in, she fell asleep while I was writing this. She woke up to fall back asleep.

There are a few things that make the second pregnancy harder, such as James, James, James, and James. Last time my wife was pregnant, nobody in the house woke up at five o'clock every morning. Nobody screamed "I NEED THIS" for everything from a Curious George book to an abandoned pretzel. Nobody dropped a fork four to seven hundred times each dinner, and nobody insisted she admire lego constructions that are supposed to be "planes" or "bats" but actually look like wheelchair ramps designed by someone coming down from a bad trip.

Beyond fatigue that borders on hibernation, her symptoms include cravings so exotic I suspect she's participating in a reality show, and I'm being clandestinely filmed. After expressing deep concern at the absence of Panda Puffs this morning and simply writing "Graham Crackers" in an email, she appeared legitimately heartbroken that I failed to bring home a pumpkin pie donut, not to be confused with the pumpkin donut or pumpkin munchkin I fetched earlier (she didn't like either). A recent trip to Trader Joe's yielded no fewer than a half-dozen pumpkin items, despite my wife's claiming that pumpkin isn't a pregnancy craving.

As noted last pregnancy, there are no possible solutions. I can now say from experience that pregnant women become increasingly rational, fair, and kind throughout their pregnancy. So I have that going for me, which is nice.

12-weeks, 10/11/13

Baby Luke 2013!

Jane and Rob had a beautiful baby boy Luke this week! They waited to find out if they were having a boy or a girl so it's kind of a fun surprise for everyone. He's is beyond adorable! Look at that full head of hair. Absolutely everyone is already in love with him.

Baby Luke on the day he was born

Congratulations, Jane and Rob! He is quite the treat!

Sick Day for James 2013

Poor James was sick with a fever all day yesterday. This is his sick day pose. He also snuggled a lot, which I feared made him warmer. We did the same four puzzles five hundred times but at least he enjoyed that. We think he has roeola.

Sick day on the couch with Fudgie the pug and Mickey Mouse.

No fever today but he's not eating yet, so he must still be recovering. Silver lining in this is that we all got a ton of sleep last night because James slept in until 7:30 a.m. That's never even come close to happening before.

University Awards Dinner 2013

Kevin gets a grant for the Writing Program.