baby priorities

There are plenty of rotten aspects to being in residency while being pregnant; let's just say it's not a combination I would recommend to anyone wishing for life balance or sanity. However, as I am just in the thick of my toughest rotation of residency, which is perfectly aligned with the toughest part of being pregnant, I have been trying hard to keep perspective and focus on the silver linings. This pregnancy has been all about remembering my priorities, and only bothering with the important things. This means that I remind myself everyday that the only things that really matter are to get my job done (as efficiently as possible so that I can get home) and to spend time with my family. Fortunately, the tiniest of my family members comes along everywhere I go, so the two of us get lots of little moments to share experiences. Every time Roo jumps on my bladder or tries to push out my belly button, I think, "hi little buddy, I know you are in there!" while I push back on the little parts that stick out and make me look lop-sided. Time with the little one isn't hard to come by these days, but unfortunately I can't carry Adelaide with me all the time. So these last few months I have been learning that it's impossible to fit in all of the things I wish for, and I have to prioritize the big ones. Time with Adelaide is essential. And, at least occasionally, thanking my husband for holding down the fort and being full-time Dad / housekeeper / cook / savior -- this also is essential. All the rest -- just details. If the dishes don't get done, or I miss my exercise time, or I don't do any of the reading I had planned, well, there's always next year for those things. I am learning that working 80-hours per week and having a family is enough! This is a good lesson, because it makes me so thankful when I make it to yoga, cook a healthy meal, talk to a friend, or when I get caught up on my reading. These things don't happen all the time anymore, and almost never happen simultaneously. But that's okay. For a short while longer, life is all about getting through the work, making the most of moments at home, and absolutely cherishing the rest. I am learning a lot in residency; one extracurricular lesson has come from being forced to challenge and define my priorities, which is a good lesson, one that I hope I remember after life lightens up on me.

summer activity

The weather always seems to turn to "fall" just as the school year starts; perhaps it knows that we need help adjusting to the back-to-school routine. The JAM family had a very active and busy summer. Little Roo is constantly on the go, turning, kicking, swimming, you name it; never a dull moment. I hope this kid sleeps more on the outside than on the inside! For now, I'm very much enjoying the not-yet-powerful fluttering that serves as a constant reminder that I am not alone. But hopefully s/he slows down over the next few months if those movements get any stronger! I'm not sure how much more 're-arranging' my insides can tolerate...

Adelaide in the meantime has become quite proficient with her little tape measure, calling out numbers ("eighty-two, nine" is a favorite) as she sizes things up, and she has a mini-sized wheelbarrow that she uses to tote gravel around, thanks to helping Joey with a series of very extensive house/yard summer projects.

She also worked hard to keep up her reputation as a tiny traveler. This summer she ventured to South Dakota (via motorhome, which lost 2 wheels on I-90! prompting her comments like "Grandpa, slow down! the wheels might fall off!" with perfect timing during the last few months). Ada also went on her first canoe/camping trip and absolutely loved paddling around wearing her little red life jacket (tragically, we forgot the camera on that adventure) . And she made it back to Wisconsin to visit her grandparents and cousin Sam. Thanks partly to him, she is very excited for "our" baby to arrive. When we talk about baby coming and all the things s/he will do and need to learn, she often says, "... like Baby Sam?"

All of us are getting excited for her little sibling, and I am feeling more confident that she's going to handle the transition well. However, we recently visited a friend with a new baby. Ada was entranced: wanted to hold him, change him, sing to him, examine his little hands ... but when he started crying, she knew just what to do, "put he on the ground!"(pointing to the concrete patio). Maybe she's not ready to babysit yet :)

baby yoga

Although I haven't kept up with my yoga class as well during this pregnancy as I did with Adelaide, these two are making up for it. We got our 'fetal anomaly ultrasound (and yes, baby's gender is still a mystery). Actually we got two of them because they couldn't see everything on the first one. Baby Roo is sure cute; it's great fun to watch him squirm around. While we were watching, baby reached her hands up over her head, then down to grab her toes -- baby yoga!! Baby looks healthy, so far so good.

Back at home, Adelaide had a yoga adventure of her own. She likes to pack a little bag with whatever toys or snacks she has available, and march around the house, announcing that she's 'going to yoga' now. Last weekend, she took up doing yoga exercises on the floor, and slipped and cut her head open. Finally my many years of school had a good use: no emergency visit for us. I just went to the hospital, got skin glue and steri-strips, and fixed her head while she was sleeping. $250,000 in training, and I saved us $300. Well worth it, no? Maybe I should have been a yoga teacher.

June adventures

June was the most exciting month ever. I finished internship (hurray!!!!) just in time, as another week might have pushed me over the breaking point.

Adelaide got a visit from her Grandma Nellie and Aunt Lisa, and she ate up all of the attention. As you'd expect, she was a good adventurer and took them around town to her favorite places as well as up to Mt. Hood. The first day they were here, I prepared her to be alone with her visitors while we were at work, saying "Grandma will take you on an adventure." Adelaide quickly retorted, "no, five adventures." And they did.


Then we embarked on a family road trip to some of the sights of Southern Oregon. We went to an animal safari, dipped our toes in Crater Lake, shopped every cute shop in Ashland, slept high in the air in a tree house "treesort," and generally had a lovely time with a very relaxed agenda.

Although I shouldn't have been, I was surprised what a fantastic traveler little Ada is. She had a blast and was such a fun travel companion. She sang made up songs in the car ("goodbye to the giraffe ... we're going to a hotel ... we're on a vacation trip") to the melodies of her favorite tunes. She napped when I told her to, tried lots of new food, stuck right by us in the "don't-bring-your-kid-in-here" stores, and didn't mind the mosquito attack. She even learned how to hold a napkin under her peach in the car so no drips got to the carseat. People say it's hard to travel with a toddler, but we are very fortunate to disagree.

baby culture ... times two

Adelaide has recently burst into the Portland cultural scene. First, Cirque du Soliel "the circus," which she loved (Marissa and U.T. help her recreate the acrobatics on chairs act, to which she proclaimed "that's not safe!"), and she's now been to an IMAX production as well as her first theater movie! All went well so we are on a roll. Joe and I feel like we are regaining a little piece of life that we've missed for the past 2 years. And just in time ...

I'm now 18 weeks along with baby #2 (better known as Baby Roo). Roo, unlike Ada, has thankfully been quite stealthy. Where Adelaide announced her presence in my body with a fleet of drama and a myriad of symptoms, Roo has been particularly quite for the first 4 months. No sickness, no sleepiness, no vegetable aversion; I just quietly became two. In fact, I am just now starting to believe that s/he's there (because my belly becoming quite prominent!).

In addition to feeling very thankful that she didn't cause me much grief during the already overwhelming past few months, I'm cognizant already that they are very different babies, and will be completely different people. Perhaps he'll have dark straight hair, or not say a word until he turns 3 ... maybe she'll need lots of sleep or be a picky eater. How exciting that the second one holds as much mystery as the first! The only things for certain is that this baby is already determined to be different than his or her big sister, but I'll do my best to encourage Roo to be just as adventurous. Here's my first official "new baby" picture, with my dad. No big belly yet, but we are 3 generations on the summit of Mt. St. Helens (in a white-out).

because we love our family!

Two great stories from the past month: 1. We recently went for a long run on a gorgeous blue-bird day. Nearly an hour in, we got caught in a torrential downpour the likes of which Portland rarely sees. Having little alternative, we just kept going. (Adelaide's running stroller has a rain shield, but of course we had left it at home since the sun was so bright.) We all got sopping wet. Adelaide never complained, and when we got back to the car, I expected to find her feet would be wet from sticking out from under the canopy, but I was horrified to find that the vent behind her head had been open, so she had a stream of rain water that poured over her red curls and ran down the back of her shirt, leaving her sitting in a puddle. Feeling like a terrible mother, I picked her up, "Ada, you are all wet! I am so sorry." Like the trooper that she is, Adelaide gave me a hug and a sideways look, and said with a grin, "it's just water!!"

2. I have been working lots of night shifts lately, so we all eat an early dinner together, Adelaide helps me pick out my "hospital pants" and we say good-bye. Last week, we had a conversation something like this, "Are you going to hos-i-bal?" "Yes, I am going to the hospital." "Why are you going?" "I have to work tonight." "Why do you work?" (pause ... I have been asking myself the same thing lately ... masochism? Insanity? Because now I am so far in debt I'm not sure I have a choice ...) Fortunately, she answered for me, "You go to work because you love our family??" Yes! I have no idea where she got that, or what that means to her, but what a great answer!

terrific 2s

Well turning 2 certainly poses it's challenges: Adelaide is more opinionated, fiercely independent, and all the more determined to assert herself. But so far, "2" is anything but terrible. This is certainly the most fun age she's been; every moment with her is a treat. A couple of months ago she mastered the ABC's song (which, my mom was quick to point out, I could not sing in it's entirety before my 2nd b-day) and she loves to sing it (or anything) at the top of her lungs, complete with "em-o-mem-o-pee" and "dougle-me, x ...". She figured out that Twinkle-Little-Star and Baa-Baa-Black-Sheep all follow the same tune, and she switches between the 3 songs line-by-line sometimes. (How did her parents make it to this age without noticing that, and she figured it out so early? Music lessons are paying off!).

She's also been working hard on pronouns: me, you, I, my. With a few silly exceptions, like "you tuck my in" ... she's pretty much got it mastered, and she loves to practice. Absolutely everything is a conversation: "I like apples. You like apples? I give you apple to eat!" A constant stream of pronoun practicing. This is great for everyone as I no longer have to refer to myself (or her) in the third person. We talk like grown-ups! Although the days when she did whatever I wanted (without bargain or negotiation), were a bit easier, the sparkle of her little personality more than makes up for the 'terrible 2's'.