Are you a Boy or a Girl?

My favorite story that Steve tells about his childhood took place when he was in 7th grade on a trip to Disneyland. I won't spoil the story by typing it in my own words (he has really perfected the delivery), but it involves Steve spending some quality time by himself with the trip's bus driver. One of the scenes goes something like this:

Male bus driver (to Steve): So, what's your name anyway?

Steve (trying to sound macho): Steve.

Bus driver: Sheath??

Steve: No, Steve.

Bus driver: Well all right then Sheath. Sheath, you a boy or a girl?

Naturally, we've been repeating, "Baby, you a boy or a girl?" especially as we get further along in this pregnancy (almost 19 weeks!) and near our ultrasound date (tomorrow!). I've also been taking informal polls from whoever will offer an opinion on the gender of our baby. So far, my family thinks it's a boy, Steve's family thinks it's a girl, Steve thinks it's a boy, and I think it's a girl. I've heard mostly "girl" from friends and co-workers.

Just for fun, here's what old wives' tales say:

Carrying low (I think): boy

Last heartbeat rate=147: girl

Craving salt (Asian noodles) and sweet (pineapple): inconclusive

Chinese birth chart: boy

Ring trick: girl

No morning sickness: boy

Husband doesn't gain weight*: boy

*Not that any of these are good predictors of gender, but this one really isn't...especially for my marathon-training husband.

So, any last minute predictions? Blue or pink? (an apple is the 15th week fruit in case you were wondering) We go in for our big ultrasound tomorrow. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they will be able to tell. And I'm continuing to pray for a healthy baby (it is so easy to get caught up in worrying).

And finally, here are some belly photos that, I must admit, I've been a bit shy to share. I was inspired by another blogger who stood by a chalkboard each week and snapped a photo of her growing belly. My chalkboard is nowhere as pretty as hers, but it has already been fun to see the changes.

After the 13th week I got a little discouraged and stopped taking photos for awhile. Then, suddenly over mid-winter break, there it was--a real baby bump.

I almost changed the scene a bit to include our wire clothesline and mini chalkboards, but decided to stick with the original. As you can see, Steve has joined in the countdown too.

*Fake belly. Remember, this guy runs 50+ miles a week. I'll probably pass him in weight by the time this whole thing is through. ;)

February Photos

*I did not make this cake. I realized I needed to make this clear when I showed Steve my post and he exclaimed, "When did you make that?!"

It's the last day of February! I have always loved this month. Valentine's Day is one of my favorite holidays (even though I sort of dislike similar days like New Years and 4th of July). Many of my closest friends and family members have birthdays in and around February, and with each day, the mornings get a tiny bit brighter, the days a little bit longer. Inspired by another blogger's Friday Phone Dump series, I thought I'd post my favorite February photos.

We celebrated our dear friend Mckenzie's birthday with a beautiful brunch on February 4th.



I love her. And so does her man. :)

The rest of the month's photos came mostly from my new phone. I love how easy it is to capture life's moments.

There have been some stressful times this month, but looking back at these photos serves as a reminder that life is really really great. I'm very blessed.

A Nacho Libre Valentine's

My Valentine's Day gift for Steve this year was one of his all-time favorite movies, Nacho Libre. Oh you've never heard of it? Or maybe you have, but you're still wondering how it could be someone's favorite movie? I sort of did too. But Steve often walks around the house quoting the movie, impersonating Jack Black, and I have to admit, it's kind of grown on me.

So when I started thinking about what to do for Valentine's Day, a Nacho Libre themed dinner seemed perfect. There was also a bit of an "xo" theme too, inspired by this quotable scene from the movie.

For decorations, I found some cheap mini red lights and punched them through some cardboard to make a glowing "XO" sign. Other than that, I collected a few air plants, succulents, candles, punched some glittery confetti, and printed some of Steve's favorite quotes to place around the table.

In the movie Nacho asks Chancho if he can borrow some sweats to make a wrestling uniform. So, of course, we wore sweats to dinner.

The menu was pretty simple: jalapeño and lime marinated kale tostadas (I've made this a bunch lately) and cornbread. No, cornbread didn't really go with the meal at all, except that I had to incorporate one of Steve's favorite quotes somehow.

The best part was Steve's surprise when he walked into the kitchen (he had been working in the living room and had no idea I was setting it all up). After dinner we watched the movie and ate chili dark chocolate. I'm already thinking about other movies that would make good themed dinners. Any ideas? What's your favorite movie?

In the City

For my mid-winter vacation, my mom and I traveled to New York City to visit my sister, Robin. We've done this girls trip before, but this time Robin and her husband Josh became our city guides (they moved to Manhattan in September). Highlights included: seeing Robin and Josh's apartment, meeting up with Josh's parents, eating great food, taking a city bus tour, catching a comedy show (Chris Rock was an unexpected guest!), eating great food, celebrating my mom's birthday, and...eating great food.

An extra special surprise was meeting up with our friends, Chris and Joey. Joey lives in Queens, and Chris was in town from Rhode Island for the day. As my mom said afterwards, "Good friends are so important." I totally agree.

Our last day in New York was my mom's birthday. I'm so lucky to have someone so generous and fun in my life. She is a wonderful mom and friend.

Robin was probably my favorite subject to photograph throughout the trip. She's such a city girl now. ;) Can't wait until our next girls vacation!

10 on 10: February

Pineapple

You could say that I've been a little obsessed with fruit lately. It's been the subject of many of my photos, and I can't seem to eat enough of it. Especially oranges and pineapple. Mmmm pineapple. But there is another reason for all of these photos of fruit...

I'm pregnant! And these little snapshots of kumquats and limes represent the baby that is growing in my belly. At 10 weeks, the baby was the size of a kumquat. 11 weeks was a fig (I never found one at any of the local stores). At 12, he or she was as big as a lime. And now, as I begin my 13th week, one site says it's the size of a medium shrimp. I'm going to skip this week's picture. Couldn't it have been something like a small peach instead? :)

Steve and I feel so incredibly blessed, the love from our families has been amazing, and we're already so excited for this next chapter in our lives. Most days, I still can't believe it (am I really going to be a mom??), but I know that God has a plan. I pray for his guidance and courage through it all.

And guess what? By week 33, the baby will weigh about as much as a pineapple. A pineapple! I can't wait.

{a mini kumquat from my January 10 on 10 photo set}