Category Archives: Cohabitation

project family 2.9.36b

If you’ve been keeping track of the titles of these biweekly updates, you’ll notice that the version number has gone from 2.1.xxb to 2.9.xxb.  I think that the change properly reflects how close we are to going to a full-blown status project family 3.0.

While the picture is from the 36th week, my delay in getting this up has carried us well past the 37 week barrier, which is also considered full term for pregnancies.  As in, if labor starts, the doctor isn’t going to stop it.  As in, one of Rhiannon’s coworkers recently had a baby at 38 weeks.  As in, Beta is really more a release candidate / final build version than a beta at this point.  As in we could have a baby way too fast.

Yeah, a little late for that now, isn’t it?

Week 36

Not to say that I don’t want Beta to come visit.  I know she’s still in the incubator getting that last honey-baked flavoring and all, but she’s been in there a long time now and I’m not a patient person.

But then, there is still so much to do.  We have paint cans sitting in the nursery, and there are painting touchups to be done, and I’m not going to go in to the status of the basement other than to say Rhiannon has had to make more phone calls to me at work about it than I care to count.

This past weekend, we did an afternoon out walking around Babies’R'Us and the baby section of Target to finish purchasing what we naively think we need.  We’ve read lists on the internet and we’ve had plenty of suggestions from people who have kids, people who don’t want kids, and people who have tried to give us their kids, but I’m certain as soon as we get the little one home, we’ll figure something that should have staring-at-the-sun levels of blindingly obvious and I’ll be the new dad standing in front of some lonely aisle trying to decide which size or pattern would be better.

But no, I’m not concerned about it.  About anything.  At all.  Ever.  Thanks for asking.

It isn’t all work and no play around the house.  Last Thursday happened to be our 4th wedding anniversary, and if even if we had wanted to get out of the relationship, I guess it’s a little too late for that now, isn’t it?

In all seriousness, the past four years have seemed to fly by and I really can’t complain about any single day.  Given that this will be our last anniversary or holiday as just a couple, we figured we should get out and celebrate while we still could.

We went out to a fondue restaurant that we ate at once before when we were still dating (and it’s still around, so it must be decent) and spent over two hours winding our way through a four course meal (finishing with an en flambé chocolate and marshmallow fondue with strawberries, brownies, rice krispie bars, and cheesecake – all calorie free I’m sure) before waddling out of there.

We stopped by a home improvement store on the way home to walk a little of the dinner off and pick up a light for the basement.  We may have been a little over-dressed for that type of establishment – Rhiannon was wearing a formal black maternity dress that she had picked up for a wedding reception and I put on my black suit jacket.  An older man working there asked us if we were going out and we told him we had been out and we on our way home.

He asked if this would be our first child, and upon hearing that it was, he said go out as much as you can now while you still can.  I love hearing that type of advice that makes it sounds like your life ends with kids.  It’s still amazing that the human race has managed to survive as long as it has, what with the horrors of child creation and rearing.

Still, as long as Rhiannon and I are together, I guess things won’t be too bad.

Year 4 and still happy

not like the good ol’ days

We have a small landing in the stairs that lead up to second floor of the house, and two steps is a good height where Rhiannon’s shoulders are above mine and I can reach around her legs and pick her up.  I use to do this every once in a while and then set her down on the floor level.

I tried it today without really thinking about what I was doing.

Rhiannon: “What are you doing?”

Me: “I was trying to pick you up like I normally do.”

Rhiannon: “You can’t do that anymore.  Things are different.”

Me: “What do you mean?  I’m strong enough to lift you up.”

Rhiannon: “Yes, but I’m bumpier now than I used to be and it squishes Beta.”

Me: “Oh.” [talking to her belly] “Sorry, Beta.”

Rhiannon: “What are you apologizing to her for? She probably thinks it’s fun.  I’m the one that was hurt.”

Beta is causing trouble between us already.  (And sorry, Rhiannon.)

the benefits of being a heavy drinker

Oh, you thought I might have meant alcohol…

I drink water at work.  Most people would say I have a lot of water.  A gallon in a 10 hour work-day is not uncommon.

There are a few drawbacks – I’m used to drinking quite a bit and I feel it when I don’t, like over the weekends.  Also, a two-hour meeting that doesn’t have a convienient bathroom break in it somewhere can get interesting.

But drinking a lot has its positives  as well, like when H.R. pulls your name for the random drug test.  There was a conference room full of people downstairs sitting around drinking coffee, water, and tea until they thought they were ready for the test.  Me? I just signed in, “tested” and was out in five minutes.

Really, I’m just trying to make the pregnant lady I live with not feel so bad for having to go to the bathroom often.

a look into our subconscious mind

Rhiannon and I both had dreams last night that we remembered enough about this morning to share stories.  In my dream, we were on a road trip without any maps through another country.  All I knew was the highway numbers we were suppose to take.  It got foggy so I decided to go different way and we got lost.  I have no what the significance of this is.

Rhiannon had a dream that I was letting Beta lay on the very edge of the table while we were eating supper and she was telling me I would be in trouble if the baby fell off onto the floor.  Basically, I let it go until Beta did indeed fall off, except I caught the little bundle before impact with the ground could occur.

My reaction this morning was that I was pretty awesome in both dreams and Rhiannon’s thoughts were more along the lines that she would probably try to physically harm me in both situations.

I don’t normally put much stock in dreams having any significance in the real world.  I don’t call radio shows to find out what it all means.  I’d say this is probably a good thing, since neither of these situations could really be interpreted to be a great situation for me in the future.

when a man loves a woman…

This past Saturday was Valentine’s Day, and, like pretty much any other particular event, it was the last (insert whatever occasion of any significance that happens annually and also occurs before the middle of June here) before we have a kid.

So obviously, we went out in style.  I had a huge arrangement of flowers delivered to Rhiannon’s class and…  No.  It was Saturday.  (I did bring home a nice bouquet for her on Friday evening.)

Ok, so we went out, hit all our favorite bars, and came home more than a little tipsy.  No, we didn’t.  Actually, we don’t go out that much, and from what I’ve been told, the whole state of being pregnant doesn’t really mix well with the consumption of large amounts of alcohol.

But don’t worry; we did go out.  And we did in style, with a nice brunch at IHOP.

Nothing says romance like counting how many pancakes people at the tables around eat with the “all you can eat” pancakes meal.  Neither one of us had pancakes.  We’re already becoming disconnected from the socialized world – I’d say that makes us pretty ready for kids.

We did go out on a date.

A date to Babies’R’Us, where we bought some crib sheets (to go on the mattress we don’t have in the crib we haven’t bought yet).  We also bought Beta a first outfit, unless we find something cuter in the next 4 months.

If anyone knows – help me out: What do babies wear in the hospital?  Are you expected to bring some infant clothes with you?  Do they just wrap them up in a blanket and call it good?  If they provide clothes, is it $50 dollars for what amounts to the fabric equivalent of a dish towel?  These are things that the pregnancy books do not talk about.

In case you think that this was the lamest Valentines Day ever, don’t fret.  We did have a nice candlelight picnic dinner in the living room, complete with a fire and some locally made chocolates for dessert.

That night, when we were going to sleep, I was saying goodnight to Beta, which basically consists of me putting my hand on Rhiannon’s stomach and saying goodnight in some ridiculously cutesy baby-talk sort of way.  Exactly the thing that six months ago I would have sworn I would never do.  I felt one “pulse”, and then three more, all in a row.

Rhiannon confirmed that it was not abdominal muscle spasms.  We felt Beta for the first time, together.  Maybe not romantic in the traditional sense of the holiday, but it was the best thing either of us could have asked for.

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