Pregnancy Update

Well, it’s been awhile since I updated everyone on my pregnancy, and it seems like a lot has happened since learning about our impending baby boy. It all began, you might say, with a flare up of my condition called ulcerative colitis. I will spare you the unnecessary details, but feel free to Google the term for a healthy dose of my reality. It’s not for the faint of heart. Anyway, once this condition flared up, I have been struggling to stay healthy ever since.

Important: THE BABY IS FINE! It’s just that I was growing weak, dehydrated, and anemic. So now I’m on medication for all this. Fun stuff, let me tell you, and I'm only 25 weeks. I have a long way to go yet. Plus this pregnancy has graced me with all the usual symptoms (symptoms, I might add, that I NEVER HAD with Ava, so it’s all new to me): painful swelling, leg and foot cramps, hemorrhoids, back aches, you name it. Yes, I would like a little cheese with my wine—thanks for asking!

As you know, I am generally a happy, upbeat person, and I am determined to remain that way through these last few months of pregnancy. Despite what seems to be an avalanche of problems that continue to mount. See? I’M SMILING! Still, a few positive thoughts and prayers wouldn’t hurt any!

As for what Erik and I are fondly calling The Name Game, the answer is NO. Our son does not yet have a name. Believe me, it is not for lack of trying on anyone’s part. All the grandparents chipped in and contributed some quite viable ideas, which are under consideration. Erik and I have fully perused our baby name book, coming out with a list that currently numbers over 30 names. And Ava is still sticking with Oscar, which I swear is what he’ll be named if we enter the hospital without something else on hand.

A Legend in All the Right Ways

Recently, I was scanning through the channels on TV and came across the movie, Legends of the Fall. I paused, as many of you can guess, to appreciate the scene with Brad Pitt swinging his long locks as he dismounts from a horse. Then, before I could move on to something else, I heard a powerful little voice from behind me.

Ava: WHO IS THAT?

I turned around, only to find Ava pointing quite enthusiastically at the television screen. Who? I asked innocently.

Ava: THAT MAN. The one with the long hair.

Mommy: Him?

Ava: YES, HIM! He’s—a—cutie—patootie.

Our eyes met with instant understanding. She grinned at me. I grinned at her. It was then I informed her that she had just learned a very important lesson. That, my daughter, is Brad Pitt, a name you will not soon forget.

And she hasn’t. Believe me, she hasn’t. So in honor of Valentine’s Day, I am sharing with you my daughter’s new crush. And admitting, as well, that she appears to get her taste in men from her mother.

Semantics

A recent dinner conversation, following my return from a two-day conference in Indianapolis. Note: Ava spent that time with my parents.

Ava (pointing to an unidentifiable crumb on the table): What the hell is that?

This was spoken casually and—yes—quite correctly. Mommy and Daddy’s response? First, open-mouthed shock. Then, I’m sad to report, side-splitting laughter. Oh, it couldn’t be helped! That quizzical look on her face paired with the sound of that little word coming out of her sweet little mouth—it was too much. So we laughed. And laughed. Then Ava laughed.

Ava (repeating several times): What the hell is that? What the hell is that?

Mommy (finally): You know, honey, that’s not a very nice word to say. Sweet little girls shouldn’t say things like that.

Ava: But Mamaw said I could say that word. She WANTS me to say it.

Mommy: Hmm, I highly doubt that, Ava. Should we call her and ask?

Ava: Oh, I just remembered what I’m supposed to say. What the HECK is that?

Yes, after the entertaining phone conversation that ensued with my mother, it was discovered that Ava had learned this phrase from watching the Spider Man movie (which I did approve, by the way), and had been instructed by her grandmother to substitute the other, less offensive word for the original offender.

Hilarious semantics, if I do say so myself.

P.S. No, the above photograph has nothing to do with this incident, but I felt it fully captured the PERSONALITY of the endearing toddler I live with each day. Enjoy!

Snow Day, Part 2

Well, my blog has been silent the last week, as the Smiths have been busy surviving the Blizzard of ’09. How did we do it? By settling into a comfortable routine of trash the house/clean the house. By eating every scrap of food in the house. By watching reruns of the Elf movie, starring Will Ferrell, until Ava was frequently quoting it. By refereeing Erik and Ava’s various steel cage wrestling matches, aka The Most Dangerous Game. By laughing at ourselves continually.

Yes, we may be a bit crazier, but we did survive.

Ava's prized snowball

(And yes, that's my Daddy shoveling my steps for me--Thanks, Dad!)

Ah, the irony!

A snowy visit with Mamaw and Papaw

Our backyard

Say What??

As Ava approaches the big 3-year mark, I find myself reflecting upon her past year of toddlerhood. There are so many memories I want to cling to regarding this beautiful child of mine, but one notion that I realize has really cemented her personality is her sweet little sense of humor. Recently, I went through the red notebook in which I record all of her adorable comments, and I thought I’d share some of the more colorful ones.

After Mimi offered to get her a Kleenex during a particularly vivid nose pick: You know what, Mimi? At home I pick my nose all the time. What do you think about that?

Anytime she’s feeling unusually happy about something: I’m whole-happy!

A random comment at Mimi and Papaw’s house one day when one of their friends came over: I like when boys kiss me. No, we have no idea from whence this comment came. None at all.

After Erik chastised her by saying that Ho-Ho and Santa Claus were watching her behavior: Um, Daddy, HO-HO IS SANTA!

After making brownies, I asked her if she needed her hands washed. Nope, I already wiped them on my pants!

One day, she told me and Erik a highly elaborate story that clearly did not happen, following which we asked her pointedly if that had actually happened to her. Ava’s response? Oh, yes, it happened to me. When I was a different girl. With a different face. WTF? I don’t even want to know the depths of this child’s imagination.

Cravings

One of the most common questions I am asked about my pregnancy, other than the due date, revolves around any food cravings I might be having. Yes, people seem to find this fascinating. With Ava the answer was simple: milk and fruit! milk and fruit! milk and fruit! With this baby, however, I’ve found no recurrent theme to what I crave. It changes daily. Frequently. Wildly.

Take last week, for instance. One day in my classroom a student mentioned Crab Rangoon, a wonderful Chinese delight. Immediately my taste buds began to perspire and the muscles of my throat quivered uncontrollably. I could barely wait the few hours to the end of my day. Yes, on the way home, I stopped at China Wok. I HAD TO DO IT!

Also, with Ava, I was SuperMom and ate healthier than I ever had or ever will in this lifetime. Limited sugar and fast food, with NO SODAS! NONE! WHATSOEVER! In fact, this practice continued through the subsequent nine months of breastfeeding. If you know me at all, you know what a monumental feat this accomplishment was for me.

Unfortunately, I am no longer SuperMom. Damn.

Yes, I occasionally consume soda, albeit caffeine-free. Yes, I eat fast food at least once a week (sometimes more—gulp). Yes, I do feel guilty about it. But I can’t seem to stop myself. So if I have any recurrent theme to my cravings this time around, it is desiring things that are unfortunately bad for me. In my defense, however, I drink gallons of water a day, monitor protein, fruits, and vegetables, and take multiple vitamins per day. So while I am succumbing to some weak cravings, I am nonetheless remaining sensible about this pregnancy. Let’s not forget I am still the old Lori Thyen in many ways, and she would never tolerate less than one’s best effort.

Of course, right now I’m shushing her so I can go out and get a loaded cheeseburger with fries. And a Sprite! And maybe a Blizzard for dessert! With a pickle on the side!

Snow Day

Yes, it finally happened. After molding tiny wet snowballs from the past few disappointing snippets of intermediate snowfall. After explaining to Ava—again and again—the joy of suiting up for a frolic among inches of snow (an event she had been desperate to experience for herself). After securing Disney Princess snow boots to match the blizzard-style Disney Princess winter coat. After doing quite a creative dance in hopes that the snow spirits would finally relent and let my daughter have her first true romp in the snow. Yes, it finally happened!

Monday and Tuesday were snow days for the Smith family (thank you, Pike County!), and we couldn’t wait to take advantage of the thick carpeting of snow that had blanketed our neighborhood. Ava popped out of bed Monday morning ready for her adventure, although mean ‘ol Mommy made her wait until after lunch when the temperatures peaked around freezing. At that point, we began the time-honored tradition of donning our winter gear to battle the elements. Although Erik and I pulled together a hodge-podge of clothing that represented various stages of our past, and would have embarrassed us greatly had any of our neighbors been peeking out their windows, we at least had prepared an adorable outfit for Miss Ava. As you can see in the photos, she could not have been any cuter for her first official snowy foray into the backyard!

As for our adventure, we enjoyed all the usual wintry entrapments: making and throwing snowballs, kicking loose snow at each other, and building a snowman. Of course, this particular snow didn’t stick very well, so please do not judge our small, simple snowman. He served his purpose, and served it well, and we love him for it. Then we ended our fun by drinking hot chocolate with marshmallows back in the toasty warm house. Ah, another adventure. Another memory. Another photo-op for the blog and/or scrapbook.

If it has to be so cold, then at least we have snow days to warm our hearts!