We had some friends over last night, and three of us started talking about shopping. Somehow it came up that I had a hard time finding jeans recently. My two friends asked me where I was shopping, and I said "Kohls...in the Junior's section." They both laughed at me. One is a mom already, the other is due to become one this summer.
So I guess I'm that old lady I used to wonder about in the Junior's section. "Why is she shopping over here? She's way too old. Let go of your youth, lady! Time to grow up!" Ugh.. I'm not ready for that! I feel like the day I stop shopping in the junior's section will be the day I stop being cool. That's silly, isn't it? There's plenty of fashionable clothes in the.. what do they even call it? The Lady's section?
I'm close to 30 now, so I guess it is time for me to move on. Forget my youth, and move on to the next stage of life. *Sigh*
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Friday, February 15, 2013
Telling an Irish girl she can't drink... HA!
Everyone knows that drinking alcohol while pregnant is an unhealthy, irresponsible decision (maybe this is too strict? I've read some doctors say a glass of wine is ok every once in a while). But what about when you're preparing your body for pregnancy?
Of course, alcohol isn't good for your body - not the type I drink, at least. I'm not a wine drinker, so I can't use the excuse that a glass with dinner is healthy for my heart. I'm not a beer drinker either (believe me, I've tried a lot of them.. not a fan). Nope, I like the liquor! Give me a mixed drink that doesn't have a strong alcohol taste, and I'm slurping it up. Shots are ok, too, but a drink like Captain and Coke is much more enjoyable for me.
I apparently acquired a reputation at work for being the "party girl," although I don't think it really fits me. I'm not one of those social butterflies who's out drinking and dancing every weekend. Anyway, this reputation led to me being designated the Happy Hour planner. Not a hard job at all, and I love the people I work with so hanging out, drinking and eating half-priced appetizers once a month is actually fun.
A problem emerges, however, when the Happy Hour planner wants to stop drinking and start eating healthier. First, if I'm in any social gathering and NOT drinking, someone always points it out and asks if I'm pregnant. Most excuses are not good enough to convince the person otherwise, which is pretty annoying. Second, most bars have pretty crappy food. Its definitely not what you'd want to eat if you're looking to lose weight and get in shape (yes, round is a shape, but not the one I'm going for).
So if I wasn't the planner, I'd just skip the monthly "after-work event," but I don't have that luxury. I'm thinking I might try to pass it on to someone else in the group, but I need to think of a good reason to do that. Maybe I want to give someone else the power to choose which bars we go to? Or maybe I'd like to give someone else the responsibility so that they can improve their planning skills?
For now, I'm drinking infrequently - maybe once a week - and not in excess (except for Valentine's Day, I'll admit.. we went a little crazy with the Captain). I know this isn't ideal, but I'm thinking its ok. My main concern is that I'll get pregnant before we really start trying (off birth control now, so we're trying to time everything perfectly to avoid the fertile days), and I will drink without knowing I'm pregnant. Even this scenario happens all the time, and the mom and baby are fine.
My conclusion? Over the next two months, I will enjoy myself within my own limits (after that, I'm saying goodbye to the Captain and his friends!).
Cheers!
Of course, alcohol isn't good for your body - not the type I drink, at least. I'm not a wine drinker, so I can't use the excuse that a glass with dinner is healthy for my heart. I'm not a beer drinker either (believe me, I've tried a lot of them.. not a fan). Nope, I like the liquor! Give me a mixed drink that doesn't have a strong alcohol taste, and I'm slurping it up. Shots are ok, too, but a drink like Captain and Coke is much more enjoyable for me.
I apparently acquired a reputation at work for being the "party girl," although I don't think it really fits me. I'm not one of those social butterflies who's out drinking and dancing every weekend. Anyway, this reputation led to me being designated the Happy Hour planner. Not a hard job at all, and I love the people I work with so hanging out, drinking and eating half-priced appetizers once a month is actually fun.
A problem emerges, however, when the Happy Hour planner wants to stop drinking and start eating healthier. First, if I'm in any social gathering and NOT drinking, someone always points it out and asks if I'm pregnant. Most excuses are not good enough to convince the person otherwise, which is pretty annoying. Second, most bars have pretty crappy food. Its definitely not what you'd want to eat if you're looking to lose weight and get in shape (yes, round is a shape, but not the one I'm going for).
So if I wasn't the planner, I'd just skip the monthly "after-work event," but I don't have that luxury. I'm thinking I might try to pass it on to someone else in the group, but I need to think of a good reason to do that. Maybe I want to give someone else the power to choose which bars we go to? Or maybe I'd like to give someone else the responsibility so that they can improve their planning skills?
For now, I'm drinking infrequently - maybe once a week - and not in excess (except for Valentine's Day, I'll admit.. we went a little crazy with the Captain). I know this isn't ideal, but I'm thinking its ok. My main concern is that I'll get pregnant before we really start trying (off birth control now, so we're trying to time everything perfectly to avoid the fertile days), and I will drink without knowing I'm pregnant. Even this scenario happens all the time, and the mom and baby are fine.
My conclusion? Over the next two months, I will enjoy myself within my own limits (after that, I'm saying goodbye to the Captain and his friends!).
Cheers!
Friday, February 8, 2013
This Post is Brought to You by the Letter "J"
We celebrated our first Valentine's Day in 2010 by spending the weekend in New York City. We took a train directly from Atlantic City to New York, but didn't have set plans on how to get home. Yes, this planner can be highly influenced by the spontaneous love of her life. We ended up hopping three different trains to get home, and we spent the time talking about any and everything...and cuddling. So much cuddling that the miserable woman across from us said something.
One of the things we talked about was baby names that we liked. Not that we had any plans at the time - we were just enjoying getting to know each other better. It was on this trip home that we realized the J coincidence. Both of us come from families where all the kids' names start with J. My parents had Jennifer, James, and Jessica; Jared's parents had Jonathan, Jared, and Jessica (yeah, this makes family get-togethers pretty confusing). What are the odds??
I don't usually get sentimental or crazy about fate or whatever you want to call it. But given these circumstances, how could we not give our future kids names that begin with J? Of course, this disrupts my plans of having a Sara and Sean in my life, but some things just can't be overlooked!
This works out for Jared, though. He's always loved the name Jasmine. I like it too, but I'm not sure how well it would fit with our future daughter. I'm an Irish girl with super genes (all of the girls in my family look alike, even my great-niece who's father is Egyptian and black as night); Jared is a mix of German and some other nationality that happened to give him dark hair and the ability to tan (read "jealous, Irish wife"). I just don't see Jasmine fitting a pale, Irish girl, do you?
We agreed on a boy's name that starts with J. Jacob Allen. Jacob seems to be gaining popularity again, according to the Baby Name websites, and I imagine this is because of Twilight. I'm a big Twilight fan so I don't want the accusation that we named him after Jacob Black (uh, no way... Team Edward!!!), but Jacob Allen is the perfect name. Our little boy's name, and I love it. <3
I don't remember how we came across this name - maybe it was in a Baby Name list somewhere. We both love the name Jana Marie for our future daughter. Its an Irish name, so very fitting. It seems to be pretty unique, too, without sounding like a disease which is nice. Jana Marie - our little girl's name. <3
One of the things we talked about was baby names that we liked. Not that we had any plans at the time - we were just enjoying getting to know each other better. It was on this trip home that we realized the J coincidence. Both of us come from families where all the kids' names start with J. My parents had Jennifer, James, and Jessica; Jared's parents had Jonathan, Jared, and Jessica (yeah, this makes family get-togethers pretty confusing). What are the odds??
I don't usually get sentimental or crazy about fate or whatever you want to call it. But given these circumstances, how could we not give our future kids names that begin with J? Of course, this disrupts my plans of having a Sara and Sean in my life, but some things just can't be overlooked!
This works out for Jared, though. He's always loved the name Jasmine. I like it too, but I'm not sure how well it would fit with our future daughter. I'm an Irish girl with super genes (all of the girls in my family look alike, even my great-niece who's father is Egyptian and black as night); Jared is a mix of German and some other nationality that happened to give him dark hair and the ability to tan (read "jealous, Irish wife"). I just don't see Jasmine fitting a pale, Irish girl, do you?
We agreed on a boy's name that starts with J. Jacob Allen. Jacob seems to be gaining popularity again, according to the Baby Name websites, and I imagine this is because of Twilight. I'm a big Twilight fan so I don't want the accusation that we named him after Jacob Black (uh, no way... Team Edward!!!), but Jacob Allen is the perfect name. Our little boy's name, and I love it. <3
I don't remember how we came across this name - maybe it was in a Baby Name list somewhere. We both love the name Jana Marie for our future daughter. Its an Irish name, so very fitting. It seems to be pretty unique, too, without sounding like a disease which is nice. Jana Marie - our little girl's name. <3
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Baby Yoga: Preparing the Mind and Body
I'm a planner. I like things to be in order and to be as prepared as possible for what's to come. So the advice "Just have a baby.. it'll all work out 'cause, well, it has to!" or "There's never a right time to have a baby" falls on deaf ears.
Anyone who is recently married will tell you, the single most frequently asked question is "When are you guys going to have a baby?" I like to tell them that we're just practicing at the moment - but the more serious answer is that we're waiting. Waiting for what? That answer has evolved much like my thoughts on having children.
My husband is in the process of finishing his college degree. Its probably best to wait to have kids until both of you are done with college, right? So that was our first timeline - we'll have a baby after Jared graduates. But that was too long for us to wait. Given the increased risk with pregnancies after the mom is 35, I'd like to be done having kids before I reach that age. So waiting for graduation is unrealistic.
Next, I started a "Baby Bucket List." This list consisted mostly of travel, and we actually checked off all the places we wanted to go before baby.. in a year's time. First off to Vegas, then the Grand Canyon, followed by Disney World (my first trip there!), then Alabama and Mississippi to visit family, and finally Ireland and Scotland (the background picture of this blog is the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland). Another item on the list was to pay off our debt... Yeah, so the rest of the list was tossed aside.
Finally, the most practical reason for us to wait. I need to save my paid leave at work so I can have a maternity leave. My job will let me take off after giving birth, but in order to get paid during that time, I need to use my sick and personal leave. Sucks, I know. So I started a spreadsheet (Excel is my weirdest obsession) to figure out when I'd have enough leave saved up and when we could start trying to conceive (or TTC as baby message boards like to say.. that'll have to be another topic). The conclusion? We can start trying to have a baby in April of this year!
I'm a planner. So when I realized we were just a few months away from trying, I went into hyper-preparation mode. I think I'm driving Jared insane. Of course, I started an account on The Bump and read all of the items on the pregnancy checklist (you know, over the whole 9 months) just so I know what I'm getting myself into. I bought and read a book called Babyproofing Your Marriage (I highly recommend it!). I bought vegan prenatal vitamins. I nearly completed a wishlist on Babies R Us (because doing a registry this early would be insane, right?). All of this preparation.. done in January. Yep, a whole 4 months before we actually start trying to have a baby. Go ahead and commit me.
This was all to prepare my mind for this huge change. I know I can't plan for everything (hardly anything, really) when it comes to having a baby, but I feel so much better, more confident, if I know that I'm as prepared as I can be.
Now that its early February, I'm starting to prepare my body too. I've been off birth control for a few weeks now since "they" recommend you wait until its out of your system for a few months before trying to conceive. I'm trying to attend my kickboxing classes more consistently with the goal of losing a little weight. I'm trying to eat better (pizza and pasta are my weaknesses!!), and I'm taking those vegan prenatal vitamins. Did you know they can make your pee neon green?
So lots of preparations underway. My head is constantly stuck in what we call "baby mode." There's so much uncertainty in having a baby. Jared is much better at handling the unknown than I am, and he tolerates my control freak tendencies with ease. I think he just knows that planning is my way of centering myself, making everything right in my world.
Namaste.
Anyone who is recently married will tell you, the single most frequently asked question is "When are you guys going to have a baby?" I like to tell them that we're just practicing at the moment - but the more serious answer is that we're waiting. Waiting for what? That answer has evolved much like my thoughts on having children.
My husband is in the process of finishing his college degree. Its probably best to wait to have kids until both of you are done with college, right? So that was our first timeline - we'll have a baby after Jared graduates. But that was too long for us to wait. Given the increased risk with pregnancies after the mom is 35, I'd like to be done having kids before I reach that age. So waiting for graduation is unrealistic.
Next, I started a "Baby Bucket List." This list consisted mostly of travel, and we actually checked off all the places we wanted to go before baby.. in a year's time. First off to Vegas, then the Grand Canyon, followed by Disney World (my first trip there!), then Alabama and Mississippi to visit family, and finally Ireland and Scotland (the background picture of this blog is the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland). Another item on the list was to pay off our debt... Yeah, so the rest of the list was tossed aside.
Finally, the most practical reason for us to wait. I need to save my paid leave at work so I can have a maternity leave. My job will let me take off after giving birth, but in order to get paid during that time, I need to use my sick and personal leave. Sucks, I know. So I started a spreadsheet (Excel is my weirdest obsession) to figure out when I'd have enough leave saved up and when we could start trying to conceive (or TTC as baby message boards like to say.. that'll have to be another topic). The conclusion? We can start trying to have a baby in April of this year!
I'm a planner. So when I realized we were just a few months away from trying, I went into hyper-preparation mode. I think I'm driving Jared insane. Of course, I started an account on The Bump and read all of the items on the pregnancy checklist (you know, over the whole 9 months) just so I know what I'm getting myself into. I bought and read a book called Babyproofing Your Marriage (I highly recommend it!). I bought vegan prenatal vitamins. I nearly completed a wishlist on Babies R Us (because doing a registry this early would be insane, right?). All of this preparation.. done in January. Yep, a whole 4 months before we actually start trying to have a baby. Go ahead and commit me.
This was all to prepare my mind for this huge change. I know I can't plan for everything (hardly anything, really) when it comes to having a baby, but I feel so much better, more confident, if I know that I'm as prepared as I can be.
Now that its early February, I'm starting to prepare my body too. I've been off birth control for a few weeks now since "they" recommend you wait until its out of your system for a few months before trying to conceive. I'm trying to attend my kickboxing classes more consistently with the goal of losing a little weight. I'm trying to eat better (pizza and pasta are my weaknesses!!), and I'm taking those vegan prenatal vitamins. Did you know they can make your pee neon green?
So lots of preparations underway. My head is constantly stuck in what we call "baby mode." There's so much uncertainty in having a baby. Jared is much better at handling the unknown than I am, and he tolerates my control freak tendencies with ease. I think he just knows that planning is my way of centering myself, making everything right in my world.
Namaste.
Monday, February 4, 2013
The Evolution of Baby Thoughts
I used to hate the idea of having kids.
My parents had three children: my sister is 13 years older than me, my brother is 10 years older than me, and then there's me - the baby. I first became an aunt at the age of 9 when my sister's daughter was born. Now I'm Aunt Jess to 5 kids in my family and 2 in my husband's family - oh, and Great-Aunt Jess to one - all before I turn 30. Don't get me wrong, I love my nieces and nephews (and great-niece). Somewhere along the line, though, I got the idea that it would be better to not have kids of my own and just spoil the hell out of my sister's and my brother's kids instead.
When I was a teenager, the biggest reason I didn't see myself having kids was the actual birth. That still scares me to death. Countless women have died during childbirth, so I'm thinking this isn't an unrealistic fear. I know, I know.. modern science has made this a much safer process, but it still doesn't sound like a walk in the park.
Now that I'm married, feeling my biological clock ticking away, and watching my friends start their families, a bigger fear has emerged: saying goodbye to life as I know it. Losing the freedom to sit on the couch all day watching Criminal Minds marathons. Losing the thrill of spontaneity. Losing the precious extra hours of sleep on a Saturday morning. Most of all, losing the electrifying connection I have with my husband.
I want to start our family more now than ever.
I have the most wonderful husband in the world. If he was anyone else, I would still be held hostage by my fears of becoming a mother. Emotionally, we've been ready to have a baby for about a year; financially.. well, we're as good as we're going to get. But I'm not worried anymore. We are a team and will mold our relationship and ourselves to fit the new life of parenthood. As my husband has said to me, our lives are going to change drastically, but we will not lose them. We may not be able to have lazy days as often, but we'll have a much deeper connection. Both of us are so much looking forward to creating a life together and teaching him or her about the world. For all the sacrifices we'll have to make, we'll share and enjoy those moments of watching our baby grow and learn new things.
..or so I hope. We are just at the start of this baby-making process, and I'm going to use this blog to share our experiences (I mean the emotional, health and wellness, planning process - not the down & dirty baby-making. I'm sure someone else has a blog for that). My husband and I haven't told anyone we're even in the planning stage (well ok, I have one girlfriend in the loop for moral support), so my writings here may even help us share the news when the time comes.
My parents had three children: my sister is 13 years older than me, my brother is 10 years older than me, and then there's me - the baby. I first became an aunt at the age of 9 when my sister's daughter was born. Now I'm Aunt Jess to 5 kids in my family and 2 in my husband's family - oh, and Great-Aunt Jess to one - all before I turn 30. Don't get me wrong, I love my nieces and nephews (and great-niece). Somewhere along the line, though, I got the idea that it would be better to not have kids of my own and just spoil the hell out of my sister's and my brother's kids instead.
When I was a teenager, the biggest reason I didn't see myself having kids was the actual birth. That still scares me to death. Countless women have died during childbirth, so I'm thinking this isn't an unrealistic fear. I know, I know.. modern science has made this a much safer process, but it still doesn't sound like a walk in the park.
Now that I'm married, feeling my biological clock ticking away, and watching my friends start their families, a bigger fear has emerged: saying goodbye to life as I know it. Losing the freedom to sit on the couch all day watching Criminal Minds marathons. Losing the thrill of spontaneity. Losing the precious extra hours of sleep on a Saturday morning. Most of all, losing the electrifying connection I have with my husband.
I want to start our family more now than ever.
I have the most wonderful husband in the world. If he was anyone else, I would still be held hostage by my fears of becoming a mother. Emotionally, we've been ready to have a baby for about a year; financially.. well, we're as good as we're going to get. But I'm not worried anymore. We are a team and will mold our relationship and ourselves to fit the new life of parenthood. As my husband has said to me, our lives are going to change drastically, but we will not lose them. We may not be able to have lazy days as often, but we'll have a much deeper connection. Both of us are so much looking forward to creating a life together and teaching him or her about the world. For all the sacrifices we'll have to make, we'll share and enjoy those moments of watching our baby grow and learn new things.
..or so I hope. We are just at the start of this baby-making process, and I'm going to use this blog to share our experiences (I mean the emotional, health and wellness, planning process - not the down & dirty baby-making. I'm sure someone else has a blog for that). My husband and I haven't told anyone we're even in the planning stage (well ok, I have one girlfriend in the loop for moral support), so my writings here may even help us share the news when the time comes.
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