BAD. DOG.

We were doing so well. Tulley was doing pretty good as a puppy. She's teething and thus had used the corners of our baseboards in our bathroom as a teething toy when locked up in there when we were away. But we thought we had stopped her from such destructive behavior by giving her more freedom. She had started sleeping in the bedroom with the rest of us (and I mean all of us - Melody on the floor, Jake and Kelsey in bed with Cameron and me)rather than secluded in the bathroom. And when we both needed to be away from home we'd leave her in our bedroom, with or without Melody. Turns out Melody was a key factor.

Evidence of the Baseboard eating. This was the worst of it.


Monday night we had our prenatal class again. When we left, we locked Tulley behind the baby gate in our room, and let Melody have full run of the rest of the house so she could eat her dinner at her own pace. When we came home, I went up to get Tulley so she could have her dinner. That's when I discovered a nice little 2"x3" rectangular spot on the floor void of any carpet! That was the last straw. Last night Cameron and I went out and purchased a large dog crate for Tulley to spend her time in when we're not home.

The missing carpet patch.


Tulley's new home when we're gone.

We're also getting a quote to have more of our side yard cemented and to have it completely fenced in. This way we can leave Tulley in the backyard unattended and not worry about her digging or eating bark. Plus, we figure with London on the way, we'll make this the new potty zone so when she's playing in the main backyard, she won't run into any poop. We also plan to build a shed in the side area to store our garden equipment and chemicals, so we'll be able to lock the gate to the side yard so London won't be able to get to the shed and chemicals.

Cameron went online and read about how to fix the carpet too. We have a ton of carpet left over from the same dye-lot so he'll be able to do a patch job pretty easily and have it so it is barely noticeable. Guess what his weekend project is?

The prenatal classes are going good. This week's class focused on the different stages of labor, how to tell when I'm in labor or having false labor, and had a few breathing exercises for us. We could have done without the video that showed the birth of the placenta - I don't think one couple in the room wasn't a bit turned off by it and none of us want to see our own when the time comes.

We also start our 3 weeks of two classes per week this week. Tonight we have Baby Care Basics. Next week we have the breastfeeding class and the week after that Anesthesia options.

I've also started the Pediatrician-finding process. I've got a prenatal consultation with one doctor this Friday and another next Thursday. I was aiming for 3 but the 3rd doctor I called doesn't do prenatal consultations, which scratched him from the list real quick. I had a 4th in mind but after the phone calls today scheduling these appointments, I already have a good feeling about Doctor candidate number 2. Stay tuned to see if my instinct is correct.

I leave you with a picture of Tulley and another of Melody, lounging around the house yesterday. The last one is a picture my mom took of Tulley and Me when she and Dad came to visit. I amost look as if I'm not pregnant! To be honest I can't wait for London to be here and have my body back to myself! Tulley has since outgrown her original green color and is now wearing one of Melody's old ones.







Tootles,
Sarah

Olive Oil Tastings and Olive Trees

This past Friday night, while sitting on the couch unwinding from his long day of work and looking ahead at a weekend with no plans for the first time in a while, Cameron says to me "Let's go somewhere and do something tomorrow."

I sat there for a minute and then suggested Olive Oil tasting. We've had Olive Oil Tasting in Napa or Sonoma in our minds for a while now, as we wanted to go see the trees and talk to some people about growth and care of them. We want to plant a non-fruiting Olive Tree in our backyard sometime soon, but everyone keeps telling us how huge they get and that they still cause allergies even if they aren't the fruiting kind. Well, Cameron was on board. Why not go to Sonoma or Napa when the weather is expected to be beautiful. So I did some quick research online and in no time had a few winery names listed that also offer Olive Oil tasting. Saturday morning we got up and out of the house by 9 AM.

First stop, BR Cohn. Beautiful winery with a separate building dedicated to Gourmet food tasting. There we learned that they prune the trees to keep them at the right fruit-picking height and that pruning can be done in the spring or fall.




Next, we headed to Viansa Winery. They had quite a collection on olive oils and other gourmet foods to sample as well as premade lunches for purchase. All the tasting we were sampling was making us hungry, plus the back porch of the winery looked out over a wetlands preserve. We couldn't resist the sampler with salami, brie cheese, a second type of cheese, gorgeous red grapes and spiced olives. We made a nice little lunch of it out there in the nice spring air. We also noticed that these olive trees had been allowed to grow differently than BR Cohns.






We had planned to only go to these two places, but on our way to Viansa, we passed another winery that offered complimentary Olive Oil tasting and since with was on our way back home, figured it couldn't hurt to stop. We again noticed the Olive Trees looked differently at Jacuzzi than Viansa or BR Cohn. So we've concluded its all in the pruning on how big you want your olive trees to get. Jacuzzi housed a company called The Olive Press and we had quite the tasting of Olive Oil there. The lady behind the counter kept suggesting ways to mix the oils and some other samplers of theirs to try as dips and salad dressings. This was definitely what we had in mind when we set out to go tastings - it was much like a wine tasting.



We definitely came home with a bounty of goods and need to start making some salads to complement the oils we walked away with, as well as have baguettes on hand for some good dipping. The best was just spending some quality time with my sweetie. We used to do things like this more often when it was just the two of us in the Bay Area. Soon it will be us 3 and while we won't be able to be spontaneous like we used, we could also see ourselves packing London up in the car and going for day trips around the area once she's a little older. She will definitely be introduced to the Monterrey Bay Aquarium when we know she can handle the drive. That was our backup plan for Saturday.

Exciting times are definitely upon us with London's arrival coming up fast.Two weekends ago was the Baby Shower. Vicki and Pua threw it for me and the day was perfect - good friends, food and times. London is definitely going to be one well dressed baby girl and is already well loved. My parents came in for a long weekend for the event, which was great as I hadn't seen them since Christmas. I've definitely grown since then. Unfortunately, a trip to the DMV the Wednesday before the shower resulted in me catching a head cold and last week was spent recovering and putting away as much of London's things as I could. We still have some items to purchase and I need some closet organizing pieces to completely put away all her soft, beautiful blankets.

Our baby classes started last night. The 6-week course held every Monday is designed to help us get ready for the labor and delivery. Most of the other expectant parents are due within a week of our due date and delivering at the same hospital. We also actually know one couple a little from our college days - Cameron worked with the mother at Best Buy and she and I had communications classes together. Small world! We are pretty sure when the time comes there is a good chance we'll know another mother or two delivering at the same time. All in all, it seems like a nice group and could result in some great play date friends. There was one couple that everyone found to be a little too undereducated - it was as if they had not picked up and read one pregnancy book in the last 7 months, nor looked at any prenatal care information. They didn't know that you're not supposed to sleep on your back after the first trimester and that sitting in a spa wasn't good for mom or baby, either. I do fear some for their child. Hopefully this class gets them to start doing some reading after the class is over, because it was also obvious they also didn't talk about pregnancy or babies with their family. Definitely not my way of doing things. Luckily, my dad's shower gift to me was a book called Baby 411. I've been reading a chapter a day and have already learned a lot and have pages I want to bookmark to re-read or quickly refer to when London arrives.

Charlie Horses

New development in pregnancy land...I'm getting charlie horses in my calves! Not that these aren't annoying enough, but they come in the dead of night. I'd woken up to a really bad one a few weeks ago and my calf was sore for 4 days. That night Cameron and I went to Costco to grab a bunch of bananas. I'd eat one or two in the morning and one before I went to bed. No charlie horses. The bananas ran out late last week, but the charlie horses didn't come back immediately. Well, Sunday night I woke up to a mild one.

Yesterday morning, when I got up, Cameron asked how I slept, noting before I answered that I looked like I didn't sleep all that well. I admitted to the charlie horse and how I was then afraid to stretch or move at all the rest of the night. Cameron proceeded to get upset with me for not waking him up to have him massage the charlie horse out. My reasoning for not waking him up is that he has a job that he has to get up for and therefore needs his rest. If I have a bad night, most mornings I can sleep in to try and catch up. This didn't matter to Cameron. So sweet. And he got his wish.

Last night I got yet another charlie horse, this time in the opposite calf than Sunday night's. At first I tried not to wake him but it got worse and I started whining and then got out of bed hopping and hobbling around. Cameron quickly instructed me to get back into bed and give him my leg where he massaged the cramp out. Unfortunately, my calf is sore today and if its anything like the last bad one, it will be for a few. At least I have a husband that wants to do all he can throughout this pregnancy. He says its cause he won't be getting up every two hours once London arrives to feed her. I think he just gets enjoyment out of my little dances from the pain, as he was quite amused this morning thinking about last night.

Speaking of London, her room is very nearly done. The shelves were put up on Sunday and all I need to do is hem the windows valences together. Still working on the house first but made more progress than I thought I had yesterday. After a busy weekend with our niece Lillie's first birthday party on Saturday, a PartyLite party at my friend Alyssa's on Sunday, and the charlie horse Sunday night, I was pretty slow moving and unmotivated yesterday and didn't accomplish all I set out to do. Still when I sat down last night to relax and think about all I need to do today, it didn't seem all that bad. We'll see how far I get today.

Tootles,
Sarah

Lost Teeth and Interview Updates

Tulley is growing up so fast! She's already bounding up the stairs two at a time and has no problem going down them. Tomorrow she goes in for her last round of normal vaccinations and as we discovered this week, she is in teething mode full force. She's even lost two and already has one of those spaces filled with an adult tooth!

In other news, I had my third and final interview with the company I have been interviewing with. I definitely did my best and only time will tell if it was enough or if I'm the one they want. I'm one of four final candidates. I do have to say the interview with the Director was one of the most challenging and intimidating interviews I've ever been in. He would definitely be one to push me to my best on each and ever project.

Not too much more going on. The baby shower for London is in 10 days so I'm working on cleaning the house. I can only do so much physical work each day that I focus on a room or two a day. London's room is coming along nicely. Cameron got the last of the painting done, and now two shelves are waiting for me to put them up and decorate them. I also need to hem the two window valences together, which I'll do this weekend probably. As soon as its all done I'll get the final pictures up.

Tootles,
Sarah

Co-habitation Achieved!

Above are pictures from this afternoon. Melody has recently rejoined family time in the family room when we're watching TV. She had taken her usual spot this afternoon while I rested on the couch after a 3-hour interview. Next thing I know Tulley is sitting next to Melody, watching her sleep. And then slowly, laid down and cuddled up next to her. Usually Melody would growl or jump up and walk away. This time she just accepted it! I think Melody has finally accepted Tulley as a family member.

The other pictures are of the nursery. Painting in the room is complete, all the furniture is put together and arranged. All that we need to do now is hang the window valence (I found the perfect curtain rod at Target this weekend), hang the 3 wall hangings that came with the crib bedding and Cameron still needs to paint two shelves and a side table that will go next to the glider. He got the primer coat on these items this weekend and will likely finish the painting this weekend.

London has been moving a lot lately. She still prefers moving around at night and still stops before Cameron gets a real chance to feel her move. The newest development is her pushing up against the womb wall creating major pressure on my belly! I love it and am uncomfortable all at the same time.

In other news, I have been interviewing. I had an interview last Wednesday and by Thursday morning had scheduled a more formal interview with the company. That interview took place this morning. It consisted of filling out the official applicant form, drafting a press release based on content provided by the company and interviewing with the person that would be my supervisor should I get the job. I think it went really well and hope to be called back for the last round of interviews. I should know by the end of the week. They are looking to have offer the job to the ideal candidate by the end of the month and have them start the first of April. Perfect - that would give me about 2 months in the job before leaving for maternity. I'd only take the 6-8 weeks before returning. I definitely miss the intellectual stimulation, now that I've been off for 4 weeks. Keep your fingers crossed.

Tootles,
Sarah