Killin' time

BD here. 'Round here there's been lots of time killin' going on while we're waiting for this thing called a baby. I've been instructed that it is actually *not* helpful to remind Gina every few minutes that the baby is not here yet. So...I've taken advantage of the down time over the long weekend and finished a video of our adventures in Australia. I tell you what, that little Hero2 that I splurged on just minutes before the trip is quite the amazing camera and worth every penny. Sometimes when I watch this video I wonder how we got so lucky. Sit back, make sure it's in HD, click on full screen mode, and enjoy.

Hello Due Date...

Goodbye due date! Not much to report here in the baby delivery department. We're doing what we can to "encourage" Little Bee on her way into this world (including walking, acupuncture, sugar comas) but she seems pretty content to lay low where she's at. She's all about the element of surprise, this one, and loves to make us wait. It's pretty much her thing. So we wait. And it's cool.

The Belly - 40 Weeks Pregnant

But in other news, the sunsets this week have been amazing. Absolutely breathtaking. Usually at some point in the evening one of us will perk up and suddenly say "look outside!" and we drop everything to witness the sun setting. We love to sit out on our deck on these cool spring evenings and soak up the golden lighting. I can't wait for Little Bee to join our evening porch sits. Daddy promises to keep his geeky science chatter to a minimum. Momma promises there will be popsicles.

An Update on Tennis

With Coach Karl, who yes, insisted on his bended knee pose :)

My tennis buds. Every Thursday. We do this. We meet up with Coach Karl and laugh and talk and laugh and swing our rackets at balls flying at our noses. The tennis court has become this sacred ground where we come to vent about life, confess our challenges and swing our troubles away. Lately my giant pregnant body just chases the balls around about 3 seconds late in every direction. I look forward to it all week and it's become a real passion in my life. All 5 of us have either had a baby or become pregnant during this past year of playing with Coach Karl. We didn't even know Coach was of the magical baby making variety when we signed up! What good fortune. Oh the things Karl has heard out on that court! To say he's been thoroughly prepped for marriage and babies and the whole nine yards is probably an understatement. Also, we are very good at offering him our unsolicited dating advice :). It'll be a little sad when this baby comes and I'll need to take a few weeks off from tennis. But we're all pumped to play together this summer (with my NEW shiny racket that I scored for Mothers Day). Deedee and I will especially be happy to play without our bellies in the way! And when Kim has her baby this fall, all 5 of us will have had babies on Karl's watch. It's so fun.

Deedee, Jane, Kim, Bethany, Moi

I'll probably regret posting these pictures of myself at 39 weeks pregnant after 90 minutes of playing tennis, but, whatevs. It's all part of the fun. We really need to get ourselves some matching skorts and visors to up our game, don't ya think?

Showered

WOW. Baby girl and I have been showered silly by friends, family, and neighbors. While I love parties, and throwing parties, and planning parties, I'm admittedly not so good at being the party. I embarrass far too easily in these situations for them to ever be comfortable for me. It's overwhelming to imagine how much this baby girl is already loved by these amazing people in our lives. It took a real concerted effort to keep my tears at bay and not break down at the sight of every tiny pair of socks (they are so little!).

Ward Shower

Hands down, I have the most amazing ward, not to mention the most amazing friends in my ward. It's been a real blessing to have these women in my life. Each of them have supported and strengthened me through this whole getting pregnant process. Some of them having very similar situations, all of them understanding the desire to be a mother. It was such a beautiful party too; they had been planning and scheming for weeks and made decorations that match Little Bee's nursery. Everything about the shower was perfectly catered to my personality, I couldn't have planned it better myself. The sweet women in my ward completely spoiled us with lots of handmade blankies, burp cloths, booties, plus a car seat, which was such an awesome surprise. I treasure all of it! Thank you Kim, Jen, Deedee, Jane, and Bethany!

  Girlfriend Shower

Tiffani and Lisa masterminded this darling Honey Bee shower. It was adorable! I have such crafty, talented friends. They had invited a small intimate group of some of my closest and longest-term girlfriends to the Ford's cabin. I've known most of these women practically my entire life and have watched them all become mothers. There were even two brand new babies up there (squeee!) and honestly I don't know how I managed NOT to go into labor that night. Little Bee cannot wait to meet her friends! I watched Jessie and Natty handle their newborns with calm confidence. I kept thinking, these girls are such pros. I soaked in all the advice and wisdom they could give me. In the morning a few of us topped off our baby shower hangover with French Toast at Magleby's before they had to buzz back to their own hives. Thank you Tiff, Lisa, Natty, Jessie, Lauren, Jen, Deb, and Emily! (And, a super thank you to Lauren for coming down from Idaho! Oh how we miss you here in the beehive state...).

Richman Family Shower

My mom and sisters threw us a family baby shower and Brook even let them help a little bit :). Much to my pleasure she decided not to kill herself over making Macarons and did a buffet of bundt cakes instead. Right up my alley. They invited some longtime family friends and even some women from my home ward who I feel practically raised me. Like my sweet neighbor Gladyse who lived just across the street from my home and always had a hug and a smile. It was really fun to spend the afternoon with my family. It's been 11 years since one of my sisters had a baby and my mom had a grandchild. My nieces and nephews are now growing their own families and I love that Little Bee will still have cousins (once removed) to grow up with on this side. Also, I have to brag about my niece Cassie, who made us a beautiful baby quilt! It was her very first quilt, believe it or not, and it's just perfect for Little Bee. I squish it everyday. Aside from lots of darling clothes and baby essentials, we were gifted a diaper bag and the cutest stuffed zebra you ever saw. Zebra has been testing out Little Bee's nursery to make sure it's juuuuust right. Thank you Brook, Mom, Marci, and Jody (and TOM for doing the invite)! And...no one took pictures. So. Yeah.

 

 

Duncan Family Shower

With my sil Michelle at the helm of this shower I knew it would be crafty and beautiful, and it was! She played off the butterfly print hanging in Little Bee's nursery and threw a butterfly themed baby shower. Everything was absolutely darling and she worked so hard. Check our her butterfly decor tutorials. She even made Little Bee her very first apron, which I adore. Michelle made her mom's delicious chicken pasta salad and I honestly can't eat that salad without thinking of Judy. It made me happy to think of Judy that day, even if in salad form! Apart from the perfect party planning and decorating, the most special part of the shower was the blessing dress and blankets hand crocheted by BD's Grandma Noni. I about died when I first held the blessing dress. It's the most precious thing in the world and was such a big surprise! I can't wait for her to wear it on her blessing day. It was a wonderful shower and everyone was so nice. Thank you Michelle!

This little baby and I have been showered with love and gifts beyond what we deserve. We've also received lots of love in unexpected little packages from friends and colleagues over the last few months. I'm just going to say it...Seriously. So. Blessed.

xoxo

The Macaron Class

The Macaron. Pronounced: mah-kah,rhon, and if you can manage the French nasally sound at the end, more power to you. Not to be confused with a Macaroon, go ahead and say it like an American and really add emphasis the rooooon. The little French Macaron is ever so popular these days. People swoon over these little almond flavored sandwich cookies. Confession: I'm not really one of them. They are cute, but I'm not sure their cuteness can make up for 1) their lack of deliciousness, and 2) the labor intensive process of making them, and 3) they cost about $4 a pop. Wha???

For my birthday Brook took me to a Macaron class hosted by her cooking group. Kathryn Gordon, New York pastry chef and author of the book Les Petits Macarons was there for an instructional demonstration on making macarons. It was totally awesome to see her at work. But I came away from the night even more intimidated about those little French Confections than ever before. Because as a professional pastry chef, who has literally written the book on macarons, even Kathryn Gordan was able to mess them up right in front of us. She was still trying to tweak her recipes enough for high altitude variations. Golly, for only containing 4 ingredients, there is about 4 thousand ways to royally screw up a macaron. And every pastry chef in the world has an opinion on the right and wrong way to make a macaron. The history is pretty fascinating actually.

Still, it was awesome to meet her and get my book signed. Someday I'm going to attempt them at home. Someday! Thanks Brookie Cookie!

A Letter to Baby Bee: 35 Weeks and it's getting hot in here

Dear Baby Bee,
At 35 weeks pregnant, your due date is sneaking up. I can now tell people that I'm having this baby next month. I'm beginning to wonder if sleeping on my stomach was really as amazing as I remember. Walking around with a space heater strapped to my abdomen, I am starting to see why all pregnancies must come to an end. It wasn't that long ago that I would have wanted to stay pregnant forever. But even my most roomy maternity clothes, the ones I thought would never fit, are now even becoming a little snug. It feels like you are growing bigger by the minute, your movements becoming stronger and more deliberate than ever, sometimes they literally take my breath away. All of these are good signs that soon we will meet.

It's best that I concentrate on the meeting you part, rather than the getting you out part. Because, HOOEY! how that is all going to happen is one big giant mystery that I can't yet comprehend. We took a Childhood Preparation class at the hospital. I've been reading all I can about labor and delivery. I've been asking everyone I know to share their own experiences. But even still, I'm not sure there is anything that can really prepare me. It's both terrifying and exciting all at once. We have faith it will work out in the end. Things generally do.

We've been working feverishly on preparing your nursery - with lots of help from Aunt Jen - and making sure it's just right. This is mostly for my benefit rather than for yours, but for some strange reason it feels really really important that it gets done. The room is bright and cheery; it's our favorite place in the house to be. Now, when your dad comes home he knows to find me in the nursery instead of the kitchen or living room. We can hardly walk past your room without stepping into it and running a hand over the crib rail. It sounds silly, but trust me, this is all very exciting for us.

While my nesting instinct keeps getting stronger and stronger, your dad has patiently been working through the endless honey-do lists I make for him. Just when he gets through with one, I've added more things to another. He's adamant that you are able to recognize his voice after you are born, so every night he's been picking out a book or two to read out loud. Lately, it's been all about Dr. Seuss. It's just the two of us in the room but there he is doing all the animal sounds and funny character voices. I'm unbelievably grateful that I have the chance to see this "daddy mode," a side of him I never expected. Everyone says it just keeps getting better. Little girls need great daddies, and while I'm obviously partial to him already, I think  you've got the very best.

Even with 5 weeks (+/-) left to go, there is still plenty that we need to do in preparation for your arrival. We have lots of fun to look forward to as well with upcoming baby showers and hopefully a pedicure or two for mom. The other night we attended the Salt Lake Temple with Grandpa and all of your Duncan aunts and uncles. You were highly active during the whole session - even getting hiccups toward the end - before you must have exhausted yourself completely and dozed off. I kept having the feeling again and again that you are, and will continue to be, the greatest joy of my whole life.

Love,
Momma

Happiness is...

...washing and folding baby clothes.
Little pink and red onesies and rompers and dresses for a baby girl.
Washing and folding baby girl clothes is decidedly 100% more enjoyable than laundering men's dress shirts or women's under garments.
Today I piddled around my little house, making sure to completely ignore the messes in my kitchen, stopping for little naps or a few Cadbury mini eggs along my way.
It's quiet, no music or TV on today, just me and the baby and our thoughts. She gets the hiccups, which makes me smile, rocking in the new rocker.
I'm making list after list in my head of little things and big things that need to get done before she arrives. Babies need a lot of stuff, I decide.
BD will be home tomorrow and can help with the big things.
I snack on graham crackers dipped in cold milk in the late afternoon and wondered if someday she'll love the same.
Simple joys. I'm feeling like the luckiest momma-to-be in the world today.

Sailing in the Whitsunday Islands: The End

One afternoon Tom and Brad jury-rigged a harness and hoisted Brad up the mast. BOYS. Brad said it was a little wobbly up there, but managed to get this picture of our group before I gently reminded him that his wife was great with child and would really not like to raise this baby on life-insurance money.

On sailing trips like this, it always amazes me how 7 people can live on a 35' boat together for 7 days and still find time for quite solitude. Somehow you seem to find a quiet place to read, relax, think or nap when you need it. There is something wonderful about being on the water in those quiet moments that refreshes the soul.

During some of the snorkeling expeditions I stayed back on the boat, especially in places that felt "sharky." Turns out, I have shark intuition because they did see sharks in those places! Pregnant girls just don't need that added stress. I love seeing these pictures now: looks like they had a James Bond kind of day :).

The return sail back to the marina is always bitter sweet. For me, I know I'll get land sick within a few hours and be swaying back and forth for days and days. No one really wants the trip to end. Yet, we ran out of ice days ago and even though we've rationed the food perfectly, there is not much left of the scraps that still looks appetizing. Somewhere out there air conditioning and cold drinks are waiting for us. Maybe even ice cream? Yes, definitely ice cream. And a shower.

With kisses and hugs we parted with Glen, Chad, and Diana on Hamo Island. Back in Brisbane, Michael picked us up at the airport and we were eager to tell him all about our sailing adventures. Michael and Georgia were kind enough to open their home to us that night and even prepared an over-the-top Aussie-style BBQ. We gorged. They spoiled us with gifts for little bee. Tom and Todd got squared away with their camper van and made preparations for the next 10 days on the road. We visited and played with Michael's puppy, MC. It was lovely. The following morning Michael and Georgia drove us to the airport. I might have cried a little when we said goodbye, because you see, Australia is a looooong ways away and I don't know when I'll see them next. 

But we know we'll be back. Thanks for tagging along on our adventures in Oz! xoxo

Hills Inlet and White Haven Beach on Whitsunday Island

For once, I'm going to shush-up and let these pictures speak for themselves.