DECEMBER 26, 2003

Today we got to hold Miles! See...

.We went to Aaron & Jenn's and got to spend some nice quiet time with all of them. Miles is even more beautiful than I remembered (I hadn't really gotten to see him very well in our short visit, though I did know he was gorgeous) and he was just so warm and sweet and perfect. Aaron and Jenn seem so at ease and perfectly at home with the whole new situation. And, the most amazing thing is just to see how IN LOVE they are with Miles. It's everywhere in all their words, the way they look at him, how they hold him and move him around… just really amazing. See what I mean...

It also strikes both Jim and I that what we are witnessing for them is what we are about to experience in our own way in about five months. And it makes it all the more exciting and unbelievable at the same time.

One of my pregnancy books says that sometime this month I will likely get my first "congratulations" from a stranger, indicating that my pregnancy is showing on my body. After visiting Miles, we went to Mitchell's ice cream. A man was sitting outside of Mitchell's with a sign that said something about needing food and being a vet. We parked literally next to him. He only smiled and said "Hello" when we got out of the car. A genuine smile and hello. We got our ice cream and started to get back in the car. Every once in a while, a person asking for money strikes me and I will give a dollar or two. It's rare and I don't know what makes it happen, but sometimes… The man smiled kindly as we prepared to get in the car with our ice cream cones. I asked Jim if he had a dollar. I gave it to the man. He said, "thank you" - kindly. Then he said, "congratulations." "Thank you", I said. "A boy?", he asked. "We don't know", I replied. "It's a boy", he said. I smiled and said, "you think so?" "Yes", he was certain. "What's your name?" "Joe". "Nice to meet you, Joe. I'm Michelle." "Nice to meet you, too." When I got back in the car I reminded Jim that this was just about the time our first stranger was to congratulate us, according to the books. Joe was that stranger - especially strange if I'm actually carrying a boy. We'll see.

DECEMBER 25, 2003

Baby HenBarry is officially Miles Aaldish Barry! Ta-da!

Had a wonderful morning with Tina, Andre and their kids for Christmas morning. It was so fun to have a "kid Christmas" as it's been a long time since I've had one of those. It's just fun to watch kids enjoy Santa gifts and open their presents. Madi got an easel from Santa and she wrote "Hi" on the chalkboard side, first thing. Tina was freaking out, "Did you write "Hi", Madi?! Do you know how to write Hi?!" It was very funny. Sami and I (okay, mostly I) sang on her karaoke machine all morning. Santa must have known I'd be there Christmas morning because it felt like MY gift - hee hee. (It probably didn't feel like such a "gift" to everyone else there that morning.)

It was all good "training" for our new upcoming life change.

The afternoon at Ke & D's was full of excellent food (as always) and lots of fun conversation, as well as another exciting ornament exchange. It was a particularly special Christmas because Angie, Kirk and Matt (my sister and her family) were with us - and we knew we had new little Miles, even though they weren't at the celebration. Just good times all around.

DECEMBER 24, 2003

Had a fabulous Christmas Eve celebration at Auntie Jan and Uncle Steve's. While always an entertaining event with singing and ornament exchange and great conversations, we had a special treat this time. Uncle Steve's Vietnamese Club did a Dancing Tiger show (I can't remember the actual name of the tiger) where they put on this amazing, extravagant Tiger head and audience members feed the tiger head red envelopes with money in them. It was very cool.

We got to take all the kids with us. They are all so much fun and so good - they really take care of each other. I hope our baby(ies) have the kind of connection that the rest of the kids in our family have created. It's precious.

DECEMBER 23, 2003

Baby HenBarry is born!

He's (yes, he's a HE!) 7lbs, 13oz of sweet perfect slice of heaven! He was born at 10:13pm today.

Aaron greeted us outside the door at the hospital at around 11pm and he already looks different. Maybe that doesn't seem possible, but he just did. He's so proud - and somehow certain, or clear, or grounded. What's the right word? It's very cool.

Baby HenBarry (still deciding on a name) is sweet and perfect. We just got a glimpse before the nurses needed us to go so they could care for Jenn, but it was awesome to see this sweet little baby in our world. Magic.

DECEMBER 22, 2003

Got a call today from Aaron. They're on the way to the hospital.

We were planning to have our Christmas at home tonight then leave tomorrow morning for California to share Christmas with family and hopefully be around for Baby HenBarry's birth, due December 25th. We've decided to leave today instead, just so we can be around in case Aaron or Jenn need us and also so we can meet the new baby as soon as possible.

DECEMBER 15, 2003

According to the scale at Mickie's office, I've gained about eight pounds since my first visit. I'm pretty sure I gained a few before my first appointment, but fortunately I've got no accurate record.

DECEMBER 13, 2003

I'm sitting in the chair at my hairdresser this morning and she's telling me some birth stories (she's got a few) and all of the sudden I feel this string of tiny bubbles in my low belly. Since many random unexpected bodily events occur in this pregnancy experience, I was initially just curious to see what would happen next. I thought maybe it was some kind of new pregnancy digestive process. But it went on for a while and then happened again... this time it felt like a butter fly was on the loose in my right upper pelvis area.

The committed listener that I am, I tried to refocus on my hairdresser's story. But I couldn't. Mid-sentence, I said, "Oh my gohd, does it feel like a butterfly is loose in your belly when you first feel the baby move?!" She laughs a bit and says, "yes." "I think I just felt the baby move!" "You probably did", she says and carries on with her story. I LOVE birth stories. But, see ya later for the next two hours! All I could think about was my little baby swimming laps in my abdomen and hoping to feel him or her kick off the sides of the "pool" again.

DECEMBER 11, 2003

We had our third appointment with Mickie today. The main topic of this visit was diet and I was to bring a two-day diary of my eating. So, I wrote down every single thing I ate for the last two days. Yesterday was the last day of school and we had parties in my classes, so my diary had quite a string of: "20 potato chips, 15 cheese puffs, 3 crackers with spinach dip" plus the usual attempt to get 100 grams of protein, 6-8 servings of carbs, etc. I hand my diary to Mickie (quite proud of my thorough, nicely typed homework) and she says, "My, you're hungry!" Huh?! Wait, wait - we had parties at school… and I'm trying to eat enough protein, and… and… well, yea, I am hungry… but not always THAT hungry! Suddenly, I was feeling very defensive (and thinking sadly to myself - oh, so maybe this is why I'm growing out of my clothes so quickly) and misunderstood. Mickie was quick to appease me, saying that she disagrees with the many books that encourage such high protein and carb intake and that eating like that can easily cause 50-60 pound weight gain in pregnancy (thereby releasing me from complete responsibility for my high caloric intake - thank you.)

Of course, she reminded me two or three more times during the appointment to eat less, the reminders jabbing pointedly in my growing side each time. She's right, she's right - I know she's right. Ugh. I guess I'm still not convinced that I'm not going to gain 50 pounds. My body loves to gain weight. It's what it does best. Why would it not take advantage of this opportunity?

DECEMBER 1, 2003

We had a fun visit to Ohio for Thanksgiving. We did wonderful visiting, lots of excellent eating (e.g., great Thanksgiving meal and delicious food at Jim's cousin Jeff's restaurant, "The Ocean Club" in Columbus, where he fixed us up real nice!), and we got to share about the baby. After lunch at Jeff's restaurant (he's the Sous Chef there), we walked around the mall a bit and wandered into Motherhood Maternity. Norma, Jeanne and Tricia (Jim's mom and two aunts) talked me into trying on a couple of maternity tops (okay - it's not hard to talk me into trying on maternity clothes, I'll admit - I love it!) In the dressing room, they have a strap-on belly to try on with your clothes! So, of course, I strap it on under the maternity tops and am just literally taken over by giggles! There's me with a big pregnant belly in a maternity top, looking like a real pregnant woman!

I swear I would have cried if I could get myself to stop laughing. Sometimes it just really hits me that this is actually happening. I have spent many, many years waiting for the circumstances to be right to be pregnant and have a baby. And here it is - happening, and with this dream man and inside this awesome life. Wow.

The tops looked pretty cute, I might add. Hard not to with a strap-on belly, you can imagine. Norma and Jeanne "Merry Christmas'd" me for the fourteenth time and we walked out with the blouses, still giggling.

Scout went to stay with Terry in Pendleton while we were in Ohio. It just amazes me how much we miss her when we're away. I can't even imagine how we'll be with our kid!