It's A Boy!

Yesterday we found out that we will be welcoming another little boy into our family in May. We went for the ultrasound and at first they couldn't tell because the little guy was squeezed in really tight (more about that in a second). But with a lot of poking and prodding by the ultrasound tech he finally obliged us with a very clear shot of his little boy parts. With Oliver I wasn't so sure that the ultrasound tech had really seen anything, much less anything that even vaguely resembled a penis, but this time it was unmistakable. Yup, another little boy.

So, my recent and recurring fantasies of taking my child to The American Girl Place, dressing her up in smocked Bishop's dresses, and having tea-parties were dashed--at least for this go round. I was really sure that it was a little girl, but I guess it was just wishful thinking.

Not that I am disappointed that he's a boy. Not in the least. It will be fun to have a little pair of tow-headed rascals. And in the last 24 hours I have begun to feel very affectionate and fiercely protective of this little one, too.

Even though everything seemed to check out normally with the anatomy scan yesterday, they were somewhat concerned that there was not enough amniotic fluid. That's why he was so scrunched. The doctor said that it was not something to worry about, because his kidneys and bladder seemed to be developing normally, but in any case, he wants to see me for another ultrasound in a week. So the only thing I can do is try to drink more water to see if it is just a matter of my being dehydrated. For the first time in this pregnancy I started to think of this little baby as someone who needed my love, protection and care just as much as Oliver. I thought that until he/she came out, my body would more or less take care of the "growing the baby" part and so I didn't give it a whole lot of thought. Since that appointment I have become much more aware of his kicking and I think about how much water I'm drinking (a whole lot now!!!) and what I eat. I had been pretty good about eating healthily before, but a bit more cavalier with my sugar intake. Now before I eat something I think, will this be good for the baby? Anyway, for the first time I'm starting to think of this little guy as a real baby, not just a bump.

A Sad Reason for A Wonderful Trip to NYC

Oliver and Nana in front of the Origami Tree at the Natural History Museum

I was not expecting to make a trip back up to New York before the New Year but Grammie's funeral was in Long Island so we got back on a plane (everyone but Oliver is sick of traveling!) and flew up to NYC. New York is so magical at Christmas time and despite the sad reason for being there, we had a terrific time.

My mom and I took Oliver to the Natural History Museum. That was one of my favorite places when I was little. I loved to go look at the origami tree. This time I was surprised by how small it was, in my memory it was just enormous. Oliver at first just ran by it, but then when he slowed down and got a closer look he was mesmerized.

He was, of course, thrilled that we got to take a bus to the museum. My mom held him and they chatted about all the taxis, busses, garbage trucks and motorcycles we passed along the way.

He loved the museum, he ran all over looking at the dioramas of animals and the huge dinosaur fossils.

I made Oliver pose in front of this diorama, because it was my ALL TIME favorite when I was little. I mean, I was obsessed with this one. It shows Peter Stuyvesant trading wampum with the Indians for the Island of Manhattan. The salient features of the diorama are a) Peter has a peg leg and b) the Indians are naked (under their loin cloth flaps). It made for fascinating viewing and certainly provided a lot to think about (were the manequins anatomically correct? how did Peter's peg leg stay on??).
Abby hosted us for brunch in her new apartment. She served bagels and lox which is my favorite New York breakfast. Her apartment is so sweet!! She had just moved in (as in 2 days before we got there) but she had already Abby-fied it with her cute personal style. It has skylights and an amazing terrace/deck which is practically the size of her old apartment. We can't wait for the summer barbecues!

Oliver and Brian chillin' on the roof deck

The funeral itself was just as perfect as something like that could be. All my aunts and uncles were there, as well as a lot of my mom's college and childhood friends from the neighborhood. My dad also came, which I thought was really cool. The funeral gave me a chance to reconnect with some of my cousins who I haven't seen for years. It was really great to see what interesting people they have become. My cousin Tegan works for an organization called The Food Trust, whose mission is "building strong communities through healthy food." She is involved with an initiative to improve the school lunch program by connecting local farmers with school districts. It is really shocking how inherently unhealthy the food that is served up in public schools is. Anyway, she got me fired up to find a way to get involved with this down here in North Carolina.

Grammie

Easter '06 in Florida with Grammie and Poppop

Our dear Grammie, my mother's mom, died last week after a long struggle to recover from a severe car accident. She had been in the hospital since July. So, there were definitely mixed emotions at her death. We miss her terribly, but no one wishes she were still back in the hospital suffering. She had just turned 84 at the end of November. Oliver and I went up to the funeral in Long Island. Ryan had a sinus infection so he wasn't able to come with us. The funeral was beautiful. Father Gaffney, who was my grandfather's friend since freshman year in highschool (1935!) said the Mass and gave a brilliant tribute to Grammie. He spoke of her humble elegance, her generosity and gracious hospitality, her love of children and her unparalleled homemaking skills! (he called her a laundry engineer...washing and folding mountains and mountains of clothes of her 11 children). She was also a great cook. I'm really indebted to her for establishing a great tradition of eating well. She used fresh, seasonal produce before it was "fashionable" and even in her old age would get on epicurious.com and find new recipes to try. I loved being able to call her up for menu ideas or cooking tips. I think of her often when I'm in the kitchen. I also miss her corny email joke forwards, even though I had gotten to the point where I wouldn't even open them anymore. Now I wish that I could get one more from her.

RE: Flying pigs

We got so many great comments about our recent customs debacle, thank you everyone for feeling our pain. This message, from our good friend Dave Gardiner was especially hilarious. We thought we'd post Dave's condolences/rant here, too.

"... as far as the customs issue, take comfort in knowing you have saved other gourmet gourmands, proscuitto fantasizing, lushes like myself from the same mistake. How badly I have wished to bring back a whole side of proscuitto I am unable to adequately convey. I was overcome by mixed emotions after reading your summary of the events. First my eyes welled up with tears at that the thought of having to abandon that most cherished of meats after meticulously watching over and escorting it so far as only a loving guardian would do. However my sorrow was overpowered by violent rage towards the imp who declared the Hamlet of hams contraband, knowing full well that he volunteered at the end of his shift to stay after and help "clean up". No doubt he went home, hacked off a slab of Proscuitto di Parma, smeared on some Easy Cheese, added two pieces of Wonder Bread and said, "I don't see what all the fuss is about." The thought of such an epicurean imbecile even touching, let alone eating, what was rightfully yours to savor for the next several months was too much to bear. I attempted to assuage my violent emotions by burning an American flag in our backyard followed by urinating on a package of Oscar Meyer bologna in symbolic protest to the whole debacle. Alas, my rage remains unstatisfied.

If I had been aware of the situation, as a veterinarian I would have flown to New York and personally vouched for the sweet delicacy, pledging my professional licensce and reputation that this single piece of Italian "swine" was of greater value than the entirety of the Hormel family of sorry excuses for pork products and that it represented centuries of refined curing techniques that resulted in an absolute gastronomique wonder that a greasy commoner like himself could never appreciate so long as he thought haute cuisine was supersizing his extra value meal. This of course would have been followed by me spitting on his shoes afterwhich I would have picked up the proscuitto crudo, embraced it tightly at my chest and stated, " I would sooner be gunned down by overzealous idiotic customs officers than allow this marvel of humanity to fall into to the hands of an ignoramus such as you." At this point assuredly other fine food aficionados would have come to our aide and collectively safely escorted the treasure to its connecting flight.

Should fate have it that you and I are ever in such a situation again, I pledge the entireness of my luggage to smuggling European delicassies into the US. May we be so fortunate to one day work side by side in such a noble adventure.